This panel begins with Hai-Duong Nguyen's "Buddhist-Christian Dialogue... in Vietnam," which examines the gap between the teachings and practice of the Vietnamese Catholic Church's Buddhist-Christian dialogue and proposes a way forward in view of the church's ecclesiological commitments.
In "Decontextualized Continuity," Mena Basta argues that the American Coptic Orthodoxy tradition functions as a decontextualized ancient Christianity that must renegotiate identity, authority, and transmission as it is re-embedded in the U.S.
Also from the Orthodox tradition, Radu Bordeianu posits that technological advances have reshaped relationships, identity, and religious life in Orthodox parishes challenging them to reclaim the irreplaceable value of embodied communion in an algorithm-driven culture in "Virtual Community?"
Finally, in "What Draws Young Men to the Church?," Kati Tervo-Niemelä argues that young men’s selective engagements with Christianity in Finland illuminate changing expectations of ecclesial belonging and authority, offering important insights for ecclesiological reflection on generational change and its future.
The Catholic Church, since Vatican II, has sought to rediscover its identity in its relationships with other religions. Indeed, Vatican II dedicated an entire document to this matter and urged its members to dialogue with believers of other religions. This dialogue is more crucial to the church in Asia, where Christians are the minority among believers of Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, etc. In Vietnam, the Catholics comprise a small number of the population, while the majority are Buddhists. No matter how crucial Buddhist-Catholic dialogue is for the existence of the Church, the Catholic Church in Vietnam remains static. This paper examines the gap between the teachings and practice of the Vietnamese Catholic Church in Buddhist-Christian dialogue and explores how dialogue could be a new way of being church in Vietnam. I approach this by illustrating the reasons for Buddhist-Christian dialogue, proposing some methods of dialogue as suggested by magisterial teaching, and concluding with a prediction of its fruits and limits, along with suggestions for ways forward.
What happens when a tradition that understands itself as continuous across two millennia becomes a diaspora tradition by necessity? I argue that American Coptic Orthodoxy functions as a decontextualized ancient Christianity that must renegotiate identity, authority, and transmission as it is re-embedded in U.S. religious, cultural, and institutional environments. Treating the diaspora parish as a primary laboratory rather than a secondary extension of “Egyptian” Christianity, I examine how tradition is tested and rearticulated through language choice (Coptic/Arabic/English), liturgical pedagogy, communal memory, and pastoral strategies for a multilingual, multi-generational community. Focusing on temporality, I show how appeals to antiquity (saints, martyrdom, monastic ideals) authorize continuity while selective adaptation (catechesis, parish organization, English worship) enables an imaginable intelligible future.
Technological advances have reshaped relationships, identity, and religious life, challenging Orthodox parishes to reclaim the irreplaceable value of embodied communion in an algorithm-driven culture. Digital “hyper-personalization” traps individuals in ideological echo chambers; online American Orthodoxy has as supposed aura of toxic masculinity that attracts some young male converts. Online influencers and content creators form para-ecclesial authorities, competing with parish clergy in defining Orthodox identity.
Yet many converts first drawn in by online personalities eventually distance themselves from them as they become rooted in real parish life. Immersion in a living community reduces reliance on virtual religious spaces and softens ideological rigidity. Some arrive expecting an anti-liberal or anti-Western refuge, especially regarding gender and authority, but parish reality often reveals authentic communion instead, being embraced as persons and not reduced to demographic categories (male, conservative). Unlike the virtual space, the parish is an embodied, merciful, and reconciled community.
Recent research in Finland suggests a growing interest in Christianity among some groups of young men, challenging assumptions about linear religious decline and the marginal relevance of the church for younger generations. This paper examines the factors that attract young men to Christianity and explores what these attractions reveal about implicit ecclesiologies and emerging visions of the church’s future. The analysis draws on in-depth interviews with 30 young Christian men conducted in 2024–2025 and employs template analysis to identify recurring themes in how participants narrate meaning, community, tradition, and institutional credibility. The findings suggest that young men approach Christianity not primarily as a fixed authority, but as a moral, relational, and symbolic space whose legitimacy depends on authenticity, fairness, and continuity. The paper argues that young men’s selective engagements with Christianity illuminate changing expectations of ecclesial belonging and authority, offering important insights for ecclesiological reflection on generational change and the future of the church.