On the Ecclesiological Views of Patriarch Sergius (Stragorodsky)

This article examines the ecclesiological views of Patriarch Sergius (Stragorodsky) based on the analysis of three program articles published in the Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate in the 1930s and 1940s. The main topics of these publications are related to the attitude towards non-Orthodoxy, but their consideration also holds general ecclesiological significance: the boundaries of the church, the theological explanation of religious conversion, apostolic succession, the hierarchical system, and unity of the church. Patriarch Sergius formulated an understanding of religious conversion as an objective characteristic of the state of non-Orthodox communities and an evidence for the possibility of grace acting beyond the boundaries of the church. He associated the practice of religious conversion with the church oeconomy, grounded in the conciliar latitude of the church. He also delineated the boundaries of the church by participation in the single Eucharist, which simultaneously served as evidence of church membership. Moreover, he indicated the ecclesiastical unity and boundaries of the church by its hierarchical structure and the hereditary succession of the apostleship. Deviation from this succession led beyond the boundaries of the church. He understood the oeconomic action of the church in the soteriological key of striving for the salvation of many. This connection aligned the ecclesiology of the patriarch with the original soteriological message of his theology within the context of the relationship between dogma and history, jurisprudence and living church practice.