Original scientific paper
Death as the Disintegration of the Community of the Church: The Ontological Status of Death in the Theology of Ignatije Midić
Vladimir Edelinski Mikolka
; Katolička župa sv. Arhangela Mihaila, Berkasovo, Srbija
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* Corresponding author.
Abstract
In the theological reflections of Ignatije Midić, death is not understood as the natural
end of life, but as an ontological disintegration of the community and a negation of
personal existence as opposed to biological and psychological interpretations. This
article, drawing on an analysis of Midić’s thought rooted in the theology of Ioannis
Zizioulas and Maximus the Confessor, examines how death dismantles the hypostatic
structure of the person, which arises and is sustained solely within a relationship
of love with God and others. Using an analytical–hermeneutical method, the paper
argues that personal identity is possible only within an eschatological community,
and that death signifies the loss of this relation — thereby negating being understood
as relational existence. In this context, the author clarifies the distinction between
ontological and biological death, emphasizing that the loss of relation not only follows
physical dying, but in fact precedes it, revealing a deeper theological meaning.
The Church and the Eucharist are interpreted as concrete forms of communion that
already anticipate the ultimate victory over death — as spaces in which isolation
and individualism are overcome. In this way, the article contributes to a theological
understanding of death within contemporary Orthodox thought, which conceives the
person as both a relational and eschatological reality.
Keywords
Ignatije Midić; death; ontology; community; personhood; eschatology; Church
Hrčak ID:
347268
URI
Publication date:
1.7.2026.
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