Georges Vasilievich Florovsky (; – August 11, 1979) was a

Russian Orthodox The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

, and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

. Born in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, he spent his working life in Paris (1920–1949) and New York (1949–1979). With Sergei Bulgakov, Vladimir Lossky, Justin Popović and Dumitru Stăniloae he was one of the more influential Eastern Orthodox Christian theologians of the mid-20th century. He was particularly concerned that modern Christian theology might receive inspiration from the lively intellectual debates of the patristic traditions of the undivided Church rather than from later Scholastic or

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

categories of thought.

Life

Georgiy Vasilievich Florovsky was born in Yelisavetgrad in the Kherson Governorate of the

(now

Kropyvnytskyi Kropyvnytskyi (, ) is a city in central Ukraine, situated on the Inhul, Inhul River. It serves as the administrative center of Kirovohrad Oblast. Population: Over its history, Kropyvnytskyi has changed its name several times. The settlement ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

) on 9 September 1893, the fourth child of an Orthodox

. He grew up in

Odesa Odesa, also spelled Odessa, is the third most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern ...

. Raised in an erudite environment, he learned English, German, French,

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, Greek, and

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

while a schoolboy, and at eighteen he started to study

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

. He graduated from the University of Odesa in 1916. After his first graduation, he taught for three years at high schools in Odesa, and then made his full graduation including the licentia docendi at all universities in the Russian Empire. In 1919, Florovsky began to teach at the University of Odessa, but, in 1920, his family was forced to leave Russia. Florovsky realized at that time that there would be no return for him, because

Marxism Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflict, ...

did not accept the history and philosophy he taught. He was part of the

emigration Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

of Russian

intelligentsia The intelligentsia is a status class composed of the university-educated people of a society who engage in the complex mental labours by which they critique, shape, and lead in the politics, policies, and culture of their society; as such, the i ...

, which also included

Nikolai Berdyaev Nikolai Alexandrovich Berdyaev (; ; – 24 March 1948) was a Russian Empire, Russian philosopher, theologian, and Christian existentialism, Christian existentialist who emphasized the existentialism, existential spiritual significance of Pe ...

, Sergei Bulgakov, Nicholas Lossky and his son Vladimir Lossky, Alexander Schmemann, and John Meyendorff, the last two of whom would follow him in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

as Dean of Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York. In the 1920s, Florovsky had a personal and vocational friendship with the existentialist philosopher

, but the two became distanced later, through Berdyaev's not understanding Florovsky's ordination to the presbyterate in 1932 and because of the critical attitude to Berdyaev's

philosophy of religion Philosophy of religion is "the philosophical examination of the central themes and concepts involved in religious traditions". Philosophical discussions on such topics date from ancient times, and appear in the earliest known Text (literary theo ...

expressed in Florovsky's ''Ways of Russian Theology'' (1937). In 1924, Florovsky received his M.A. in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. In 1925, he became professor of patristics at the St. Serge Institute of Orthodox Theology in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. In this subject, he found his vocation. The lively debates of the thinkers of the early Church became for him a benchmark for Christian

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (philosophy), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern us ...

, as well as a base for his critique of the ecumenical movement, and despite his not having earned an academic degree in theology (he was later awarded several honorary degrees), he would spend the rest of his life teaching at theological institutions. In 1932, Florovsky was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

of the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

. During the 1930s, he undertook extensive research in European libraries and published valuable patristic studies in Russian, such as his book on ''Eastern Fathers of the Fourth Century'' (1931) and ''The Byzantine Fathers Fifth to Eighth Centuries'' (1933). These were followed by his magnum opus, ''Ways of Russian Theology'' (1937). In this work, he questioned the Western Christian influences of

scholasticism Scholasticism was a medieval European philosophical movement or methodology that was the predominant education in Europe from about 1100 to 1700. It is known for employing logically precise analyses and reconciling classical philosophy and Ca ...

pietism Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christianity, Christian life. Although the movement is ali ...

, and

idealism Idealism in philosophy, also known as philosophical realism or metaphysical idealism, is the set of metaphysics, metaphysical perspectives asserting that, most fundamentally, reality is equivalent to mind, Spirit (vital essence), spirit, or ...

on Orthodox, and especially Russian, Christian theology and called for its reformulation in the light of patristic writings. The work was received with both enthusiasm and condemnation—there was no neutral attitude to it among Russian émigrés. One of his most prominent critics was

. Florovsky remained professor of patristics at the Institute until 1939, and from 1939 to 1948 taught there as professor of dogmatics. In 1949, Florovsky moved to the United States to take a position as Dean of Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. There, his development of the curriculum led to the Board of Regents of the

University of the State of New York The University of the State of New York (USNY, ) is the state governmental umbrella organization that oversees all educational institutions, including schools, libraries, and museums in New York State. It is governed by the Board of Regents. D ...

granting the Seminary an Absolute

Charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

in 1953. In 1955, Florovsky was asked by his synod overseers to "lay down the deanship."Andrew Blane, ed., ''George Florovsky—Russian Intellectual and Orthodox Churchman'' (1993. St Vladimir’s Seminary Press, Crestwood NY), pp. 109ff. He became a professor of divinity at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and ended his academic years as a professor at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

. He died on 11 August 1979 in Princeton.

Works

* Eastern Fathers of the Fourth Century (1931. Paris) * The Ways of Russian Theology
online
* The Catholicity of the Churc

* The Lost Scriptural Min

* On Church and Tradition: An Eastern Orthodox Vie

* St. John Chrysostom. The Prophet of Charit
online
* The Ascetic Ideal and the New Testament. Reflections on the Critique of the Theology of the Reformatio

* The Limits of the Church, Church Quarterly Review, 1933

* Following the Holy Fathers (Excerpt of The Collected Works of Georges Florovsky Vol. IV, "Patristic Theology and the Ethos of the Orthodox Church," Part II, p. 15-22
online
* St Gregory Palamas and the Tradition of the Fathers, 196

* Revelation and Interpretatio

* Scripture and Tradition: an Orthodox Vie

* The Work of the Holy Spirit in Revelatio

* Holy Icon

* Collected works published 1972-1979 (vol. 1-5) in Belmont, Mass. by Nordland Pub., and 1987-1989 (vol. 6-14) in Vaduz, Europa by Büchervertriebsanstalt. **''Collected Works. Volume 1: Bible, Church, Tradition'' **''Collected Works. Volume 2: Christianity and Culture'

**''Collected Works. Volume 3: Creation and Redemption'' xcerpts online**''Collected Works. Volume 4: Aspects of Church History'
excerpts online
**''Collected Works. Volume 5: Ways of Russian Theology, Part I'' **''Collected Works. Volume 6: Ways of Russian Theology, Part II'' **''Collected Works. Volume 7: Eastern Fathers of the Fourth Century'' **''Collected Works. Volume 8: Byzantine Fathers of the Fifth Century'' **''Collected Works. Volume 9: Byzantine Fathers of the Sixth to Eight Centuries'' **''Collected Works. Volume 10: Byzantine Ascetic and Spiritual Fathers'' **''Collected Works. Volume 11: Theology and Literature'' **''Collected Works. Volume 12: Philosophy'' **''Collected Works. Volume 13: Ecumenism I: A Doctrinal Approach'' **''Collected Works. Volume 14: Ecumenism II: An Historical Approach''

References

External links

* *

Lecture at St. Vladimir's Seminary 23 May 1980

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110610175656/http://diglib.princeton.edu/ead/getEad?eadid=C0586&kw Princeton University Library: Georges Florovsky Papersbr>St. Vladimir's Seminary Library: The Fr. Georges Florovsky Papers
1937, Critique of Florovsky's "The Way of the Russian Church" * Matthew Baker, 'The Eternal ‘Spirit of the Son’: Barth, Florovsky and Torrance on the Filioque', in ''International Journal of Systematic Theology''; 12:4 (2010 October), p. 382–403

* Matthew Baker and Nikolaos Asproulis, 'Secondary Bibliography of Scholarly Literature and Conferences on Florovsky', in ''ΘΕΟΛΟΓΙΑ: The Journal of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece'', 81/40, Vol. 4 (2010), pp. 557–396

* Fr. Georges Florovsky Orthodox Christian Theological Society: A graduate student organization of Princeton University dedicated to promoting the study of the life and work of Fr. Georges Florovsky and of Orthodox theology

{{DEFAULTSORT:Florovsky, Georges 1893 births 1979 deaths Writers from Kropyvnytskyi People from Yelisavetgradsky Uyezd Eastern Orthodox theologians American theologians Eastern Orthodox priests in the United States Eastern Orthodox writers Schoolteachers from the Russian Empire Emigrants from the Russian Empire to France 20th-century Eastern Orthodox priests Academic staff of Odesa University Corresponding fellows of the British Academy

Life

Works

See also

References

Further reading

External links