Father Yves Congar and Russian Orthodoxy

This article by Father Hyacinthe Destivelle traces the history of the dialogue that Yves Congar (1904-1995) conducted with Russian Orthodoxy, from his early encounters with Russian émigré circles and Catholic unionism in the 1930s to his post-conciliar works. The study, both historical and theological, shows that this dialogue was structured in three stages, embodied by three Russian thinkers: Khomiakov, who nourished Congar's reflection on the unity of the Church and sobornost'; Soloviev, who inspired the notion of ecclesial uni-plurality; Bolotov, whose distinction between dogmas and theologoumena provided hermeneutical tools for thinking about diversity within unity. The main contribution of the article is to show that this dialogue, grounded in direct experience as much as in scholarship, contributed decisively to Catholic ecclesiological renewal, particularly to the elaboration of the concept of collegiality at the Second Vatican Council.