Regionalism in the Church: structure of communion or pretext for separatism?

This article by Jean Meyendorff, a paper presented at the 1980 Bologna colloquium on the ecclesiology of Vatican II, examines the tension between regionalism and universalism in Orthodox ecclesiology. Taking a historical and critical approach, the author traces the evolution of the Church's regional structures, from the provincial synods of antiquity to modern national autocephalies, showing how legitimate ecclesiastical regionalism was progressively distorted by nineteenth and twentieth century nationalism into an ethnic separatism condemned as early as 1872 under the name of phyletism. The article's main contribution is its call for Orthodox theologians to engage in rigorous self-criticism: absolute autocephalism cannot constitute a valid ecclesiological response to Roman primacy. Meyendorff argues for an institutional articulation between the local community, regional mission, and the universality of the Church, a necessary condition for any progress in Catholic-Orthodox dialogue.