A tireless witness to the risen Christ: Father Cyrille Argenti

Born in Marseille in 1918 into a Greek family originally from Chios, Father Cyrille Argenti grew up in an environment deeply shaped by the Orthodox faith. Ordained a priest in 1953, he exercised his ministry for more than forty years in Marseille, within the Greek Orthodox parish of Saint-Nicolas. A man of prayer and dialogue, he was actively involved in the ecumenical movement, participating in particular in the work of the World Council of Churches. His writings bear witness to a theology rooted in the patristic and liturgical tradition of the Orthodox Church, which he endeavoured to convey to a Western audience. He died in 1994, leaving behind a significant spiritual and theological body of work, as well as a witness to Christian life recognised well beyond the boundaries of his community. This article offers a biographical and theological study devoted to Father Cyrille Argenti, a Greek Orthodox priest who exercised his ministry in Marseille in the twentieth century. Through an approach that is both historical and spiritual, the article traces the major stages of his life and ecclesial commitment, drawing on a summary bibliography of his works. The central idea is to show how Father Argenti embodied, in the Western context, a living witness to the Orthodox faith centred on the resurrection of Christ. On the theological level, the article highlights the way in which this priest was able to articulate patristic tradition, ecumenical commitment and pastoral influence, thereby contributing to making Orthodox theology known in France and to enriching interconfessional dialogue within contemporary Christianity.