North Rhine-Westphalia Zentralabitur Orthodox Religious Education study plan

Define in writing the Orthodox distinction between image (eikōn) and likeness (homoiōsis) and explain how it structures the doctrine of deification

Summarize the positions of Gregory of Nyssa, Maximus the Confessor and the Macarian homilies on human freedom and synergy, citing at least one primary text each

Explain the communicatio idiomatum and the enhypostatic union of natures in Christ as formulated at Chalcedon (451), distinguishing it from Nestorianism and Monophysitism

Reconstruct the soteriological models of recapitulation (Irenaeus), ransom/Christus Victor (Gregory of Nyssa, Origen) and satisfaction, and state which the Orthodox tradition receives and which it qualifies

Analyze the hypostatic union as developed by Cyril of Alexandria and the Tome of Leo, identifying the terminological shifts between Ephesus (431) and Chalcedon

Explain the meaning of theōsis in Athanasius (De Incarnatione 54) and its Christological grounding

Distinguish the Orthodox treatment of ancestral sin from the Augustinian doctrine of original guilt, citing Romans 5 and the Greek patristic reception

Evaluate a past-style exam prompt on whether Christology can be taught without anthropology, drafting a structured argument in 45 minutes

Map the seven ecumenical councils onto the doctrinal questions they settled, and identify which councils bear directly on ecclesiology and sacramental theology

Explain the Orthodox understanding of the Church as eucharistic assembly (afikomen/ignatian model) and as continuation of Pentecost, contrasting it with juridical-institutional models

Describe the sacraments/mysteries in Orthodox theology, focusing on chrismation, Eucharist and ordination, and articulate the role of the epiclesis

Outline the Orthodox bioethical position on the beginning of life, drawing on the distinction between person and nature and on the prohibition of abortion in the Didache and Basil's canons

Explain the Orthodox position on divorce and remarriage (oikonomia vs akribeia) and the theological reasoning behind it

Articulate the Orthodox approach to end-of-life questions: euthanasia, palliative care and the sanctity of life, citing a modern social document

Describe the theology of marriage as a crowning and its relation to the Eucharist

Compare Orthodox and Catholic teaching on contraception and state the basis for the difference

Apply the fourfold patristic hermeneutic (literal, typological, moral, anagogical) to a psalm and to a Gospel parable, showing where the Antiochene and Alexandrian methods diverge

Explain the role of the Septuagint in Orthodox exegesis and the status of the deuterocanonical books

Describe the theology of the icon grounded in the incarnation and the Seventh Ecumenical Council (787), including the distinction between veneration (proskynēsis) and worship (latreia)

Identify the main iconographic types of Christ (Pantokrator, Mandylion, Extreme Humility) and the theological claim each makes

Explain the structure and theology of the Divine Liturgy of John Chrysostom, distinguishing the Liturgy of the Word from the Liturgy of the Faithful and locating the anaphora

Analyze the iconostasis as a theological boundary and its development from the templon

Summarize the Orthodox theological basis for ecumenical engagement, citing the 1920 encyclical of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the 1986 Balamand statement

State the Orthodox position on the World Council of Churches and the limits of intercommunion

Compare Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant approaches to justification and the authority of tradition, identifying the actual points of divergence

Explain the Orthodox understanding of primacy and synodality and its bearing on the ecumenical dialogue with Rome

Trace the history of the Great Schism of 1054 and the events leading to it, distinguishing theological from political causes

Describe the Orthodox Church's encounter with Islam and Judaism in history and the modern dialogue documents that address it

Synthesize the eight domains into a single conceptual map showing how anthropology, Christology and ecclesiology interlock

Rehearse full-length exam answers under time constraints on two unseen prompts drawn from the heaviest domains

Review and correct all weak points flagged in weeks 4 and 7 using a personal error log

Practice citing primary sources accurately without notes, covering at least 15 patristic and conciliar references