On December 3 and 4, 2021 at the Orthodox Theological Institute “St. Sergius of Radonezh “in Paris successfully held an international conference on the common theme” A century of the Orthodox presence in France: recurring chaos and promises of church unity. “
The conference was held in person and with the opportunity to participate online. It is dedicated to the organized mass presence of Russian Orthodox believers together with their clergy, led by the Bishop of Kholm and then Metropolitan Evlogiy (Georgievski). In 1921, the first theological courses began in Paris, led by Russian émigré theologians, including Prof. Anton Kartashov. These courses in the following years grew into the Orthodox Theological Institute “St. Serhiy Radonezhki ”.
On the occasion of the centenary of the appointment of Ep. Evlogiy as administrator of Russian Orthodox parishes abroad from St. Tikhon, then Moscow Patriarch, participants in the conference from different jurisdictions and countries tried to address issues of Orthodox communities in France, their integration into the local cultural context and their pursuit of unity in ethnic and cultural diversity.
The second part of the title of the conference clearly shows the disappointment of the Orthodox in this country from the failure of hundreds of years of efforts for theological progress and canonical organization of Orthodox dispersion in France, which brought together immigrants from a dozen local churches – autocephalous and autonomous.
Awareness of the need for a unified local Orthodox Church within France began to emerge in the mid-20th century, but so far it has only come to the establishment of the so-called Assembly of Orthodox Bishops in this country as a forum for episcopal consultation and representation. of the Orthodox Church in front of the various institutions. This form of Orthodox unity around the world was established by decision of the Fourth All-Orthodox Pre-Synodal Conference held in Chambézy, Geneva, in 2009.
The new migration to France came after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the “socialist camp” in 1991, and thus revived the feeling of a national diaspora. In fact, all Orthodox communities in France remain organized in more or less competitive diocesan jurisdictions, like the autocephalous mother churches, following the pattern of the national diaspora.
The conference discussed the relationship between church nationalism and the diaspora, analyzed the history of the organization of different communities and views on unification, the ecclesiological search for unity and finally – the challenges facing a single but diverse Orthodox Church in France today.
