02 — The War and the Refugees
During and after the Second World War Evdokimov worked with CIMADE, the French Protestant-founded ecumenical relief body that sheltered internees, hid Jews and moved them to safety, and afterwards housed the displaced. He is credited with assisting refugees and Jews through CIMADE during the occupation, and with directing reception centres and student hostels in the Paris region for more than two decades afterwards. This section reports what is documented, and marks clearly where it is not.
Tradition: Russian Orthodox (emigration)
Files
| File | Description |
|---|---|
| The War Years and CIMADE | CIMADE, the occupation, the sheltering of Jews, and an honest account of what the sources do and do not establish |
| The Hostels and the Work of Welcome | The postwar reception centres and student residences, 1945–1968, and the theology that grew out of them |
Why This Section Matters
Evdokimov is one of the few twentieth-century theologians whose most important book about the Christian life in the world was written by a man who had spent twenty years running hostels for people with nowhere to go. The theology of Section 04 — “interiorized monasticism,” the vocation of the layman, hospitality as a sacramental act — is the reflective form of the work described here. He belongs, in this respect, with St. Maria of Paris, whose house on the rue de Lourmel was doing the same thing in the same city, and who died at Ravensbrück for it.
A caution about proportion. Clandestine wartime rescue by its nature leaves thin documentation, and the temptation to inflate is strong. This section does not claim for Evdokimov the martyr’s crown that belongs to Mother Maria and Fr. Dimitri Klépinine. It reports that he worked with CIMADE, that this work included help to Jews, and that the detail beyond that is not established in the accessible sources.
See Also
- 01 — Life and Formation — the years before
- 03 — St. Sergius and the Teaching Life — the years after
- 04 — Interiorized Monasticism — the theology this life produced
- St. Maria of Paris — the same city, the same work, a different end
References
- Office français de protection des réfugiés et apatrides (OFPRA). “Paul Evdokimov, theologian.” Famous Refugees image gallery.
- Omnes. “Paul Evdokimov and the Art of the Icon.”
- Louth, Andrew. Modern Orthodox Thinkers: From the Philokalia to the Present. London: SPCK / Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2015, 161.