Father Sergiy Bulgakov: Two Years in Prague

Abstract

Based on diaries, letters, and other documentary evidence, the article examines the Prague period in the life of Fr. S. N. Bulgakov in exile: from May 1923 to June 1925, events related to life in Prague — lecturing at the Russian Faculty of Law, participation in the congresses of the Russian Student Christian Movement (RSHD) and the Brotherhood of St. Sophia, meetings with representatives of Catholic clergy and the gradual overcoming of the “Catholic temptation”, travels to Europe to raise funds for the Theological Institute being created in Paris, polemics with the Eurasians the first clashes with the episcopate caused by Bulgakov’s teaching about Sofi a, friendship with Yu. N. Reitlinger and other personal circumstances. It is shown that staying in Prague was an important stage in comprehending the life path after expulsion from Russia and the formation of a creative credo at a new, theological stage of creativity.