“Someone took me for a Barthian”: Archpriest G. Florovsky and Karl Barth

The article provides a comparative analysis of the main theological ideas of Archpriest George Florovsky and Karl Barth. At the beginning of their careers, both thinkers rejected the tradition that dominated their circle. Barth moved away from liberal theology, Florovsky moved away from the tradition of Soloviev and his school. The comparison of the two theologians is carried out on the basis of extensive material from the interaction between representatives of dialectical theology and philosophers of the Russian emigration. The article then examines the institutions in which this interaction took place: ecumenical conferences, journals, and articles and reports. Based on the correspondence, the article shows that Florovsky’s legacy includes two reports and one article that are in one way or another connected with dialectical theology. These are the article “The Debate on German Idealism”, the reports “Revelation, Theology and Philosophy” and “K. Barth and the Return to the Reformation”. The article then examines four main issues in which the ideological closeness of the two theologians is manifested. These are the problem of the transcendence of God, the question of the relationship between man and God, the theme of dialectics and crisis, and the interpretation of history and eschatology. The article also discusses the differences between the two thinkers. At the end of the article, it is concluded that both Florovsky and Barth can be classified as “neo-orthodoxy”.