Hyacinthe Destivelle

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The Reverend

Hyacinthe Destivelle
Destivelle Hyacinthe.jpg
Destivelle in 2025
Church Roman Catholic Church
Archdiocese Toulouse
Previous posts St. Catherine's Church, Saint Petersburg , Russia
Orders
OrdinationJune 23, 2001
Personal details
BornLaurent Jacques Hubert Destivelle
(1970-09-09) September 9, 1970 (age 55)
Paris, France
Nationality France
Residence Santi Domenico e Sisto, Rome, Italy
Education
Military career
Allegiance France
Branch French Navy
Service years1993–1994
Unit Aircraft carrier Foch

Hyacinthe Destivelle (born Laurent Jacques Hubert Destivelle, September 9, 1970) is a French Catholic Dominican priest and theologian specializing in Catholic ecumenism with Eastern Catholicism and the Eastern Orthodox Church. Since 2013, he has been an official of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and is regarded as among the Vatican's foremost specialists on relations with the Russian Orthodox Church. He was previously rector of the Church of St. Catherine basilica in Saint Petersburg, the oldest Catholic church in Russia, and a dean of the Archdiocese of Moscow. He is also the younger brother of rock climbing icon Catherine Destivelle.

Contents

Early life and education

Laurent Jacques Hubert Destivelle was born September 9, 1970, the fifth of six children and the only son of French engineer Serge Destivelle and his wife Annie, a painting teacher. He has five sisters: Florence, Sophie, Martine, Claire, and Catherine, who is considered one of the greatest female rock climbers in history.

As a child, Destivelle was baptized by a priest of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church and had a Reformed Protestant godfather. [1] He was a Boy Scout, and sang in the famous boys' church choir, the Little Singers of Paris. [2] [3] At age ten, he saw Pope John Paul II speak at Paris–Le Bourget Airport during the Pope's first visit to France in June 1980. [4]

For undergraduate studies, Destivelle attended Sciences Po Bordeaux, graduating in 1992 with a degree in political science. [5] From 1992 to 1993 he did graduate studies at Sciences Po in Paris. [5] [6]

The following year, he was conscripted into the French Navy, serving from 1993 to 1994 aboard the aircraft carrier Foch. Conscription in France ended in 1996. [5] [6]

Destivelle earned his doctorate through a joint program in Paris, earning a doctorate of philosophy in Slavic studies from Sorbonne University (Paris IV), a doctorate of theology from the Catholic University of Paris, and a doctorate in scientia sacra (sacred science) from the St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute. [5] During his studies, he spent time at the Higher School of the Faculty of Philosophy at Saint Petersburg State University from 2003 to 2005. [3] He defended his doctoral thesis, Reform of the Ecclesial Academies and the Teaching of Orthodox Theology in Russia at the Beginning of the 20th century, in Paris, on December 11, 2008. [7] His doctoral advisors were historian Francis Conte from Sorbonne University, and theologian Laurent Villemin from the Catholic University of Paris. [7]

While a doctoral candidate, from 2005 to 2010, Destivelle was also director of the Parisian scientific and ecclesial institute Istina  [ fr ], specialized in the field of Orthodox-Catholic dialogue. [5]

Priesthood

In 1994, he entered the Dominican Order and took his monastic vows, adopting the name Hyacinthe in honor of the French Dominican Hyacinthe-Marie Cormier who was beatified the same year. Just after his novitiate, John Paul II released his 1995 encyclical on ecumenism (titled in Latin : Ut unum sint , lit.  'That they may be one') to which Destivelle attributes his career interest in working towards Christian unity. [1] [4] Destivelle was ordained June 23, 2001.

Ministry in Russia

Destivelle was rector of the Church of St. Catherine in Saint Petersburg. SPb Catholic ChurchStCatherine.JPG
Destivelle was rector of the Church of St. Catherine in Saint Petersburg.

From August 2010 to July 2013, Destivelle was Dean of the Northwestern Region of the Archdiocese of the Mother of God in Moscow, Russia and Rector of the Church of St. Catherine on Nevsky Prospekt in Saint Petersburg, the oldest Catholic church in Russia. [2]

Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity

Since July 2013, he has been an official of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity at the Vatican. [2] [8] He is also director of the Institute for Ecumenical Studies at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas. [9] He is considered one of the Vatican's foremost experts on the Russian Orthodox Church and ecumenism with Eastern Catholicism and the Orthodox Church. He has been tapped repeatedly to manage Church relations with the Russian Orthodox Church, which is closely aligned with the Russian government. [6]

On July 7, 2023, he was appointed a as an expert at Pope Francis' Synod on Synodality. [10]

Personal life

Destivelle is fluent in French, English, Italian, and Russian, and literate in German and Spanish. [5] He resides in the convent of Santi Domenico e Sisto church in Rome.

Awards

The Order of St. Seraphim, 3rd Class. Orden Serafima Sarovskogo 3-i stepeni.jpg
The Order of St. Seraphim, 3rd Class.

Order of St. Seraphim of Sarov, 3rd Class (2017) — Given by the Russian Orthodox Church "in consideration of the work of bringing the relics of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker." [11]

Publications

References

  1. 1 2 Mallon, Elias D. (2025-01-28). "In Conversation: Decades of Catholic-Orthodox Relations". Catholic Near East Welfare Association . Retrieved 2026-01-14. Yes, actually, I go from my very childhood. I was used to the diversity of Christian traditions since I was baptized by a Melkite priest. And my godfather comes from the Reformed tradition. So, I was used to a certain diversity of Christian traditions since my childhood and in my family. But when I became a Dominican in 1994, it was just some months before the publication of the encyclical Ut unum sint by John Paul II, and I was very impressed by this encyclical ... And I thought that perhaps I could most specifically work in the field of Christian unity being a Dominican. And when ... I was authorized to also receive my formation in parallel to my Dominican formation to have also an Orthodox formation at the faculty of Orthodox theology in Paris, St. Sergius Institute. And so, I started, yes, the licentiate, the master's program, and the doctoral program in Orthodox theology.
  2. 1 2 3 Детский хор из Парижа споет в православном и католическом храмах Петербурга [Children's choir from Paris will sing in Orthodox and Catholic churches in St. Petersburg]. RIA Novosti (in Russian). 2016-10-11.
  3. 1 2 Aubin, Catherine (2015-01-25). "Hyacinthe Destivelle, entre catholicisme et orthodoxie" [Hyacinthe Destivelle, between Catholicism and Orthodoxy]. Radio Vaticana (in French). Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  4. 1 2 "Fr. Hyacinthe Destivelle, O.P: An Interview with the 2019–20 Fr. McInnes Chairholder". The Angelicum (Interview). No. 3 – July 2020: St. John Paul II Centenary edition. Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas. July 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Destivelle, Hyacinthe (2025-02-22). "Curriculum Vitæ" (PDF). Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas .
  6. 1 2 3 Bernardini, Matt; Gastineau, Pierre (2025-02-07). "From Depardieu to Tulsi Gabbard, the Belgian at the heart of US lawmakers' Russia concerns" . (France, Russia, United States, Vatican). Intelligence Online . Retrieved 2025-06-25. Louvrier, a Christian, has long been involved in Vatican parallel diplomacy initiatives with Moscow. Intelligence Online can confirm that he attended the historic 2016 meeting in Havana between Pope Francis and the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Kirill of Moscow (Kirill). This unprecedented encounter between the heads of the two Churches was organised by the Russian Orthodox Church's sherpa, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, and the Vatican's Father Hyacinthe Destivelle. A Dominican priest who served in the French navy and studied at the elite Sciences Po in Paris, Destivelle is the Vatican's specialist on relations with the Russian Church.
  7. 1 2 Destivelle, Hyacinthe (2008). La réforme des académies ecclésiastiques et l'enseignement de la théologie orthodoxe en Russie au début du XXe siècle [The Reform of the Ecclesiastical Academies and the Teaching of Orthodox Theology in Russia at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century] (PhD thesis) (in French). Sorbonne University.
  8. ↑ "Staff of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity". Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity . Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  9. ↑ "Institute for Ecumenical Studies - Angelicum". Angelicum. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  10. ↑ "Synod24 – 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops – Second Session – List of participants according to title of participation". Vatican Press Office . 2024-09-16. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  11. ↑ "Святейший Патриарх Кирилл встретился с итальянской делегацией, сопровождающей мощи святителя Николая - Патриархия.ру" [His Holiness Patriarch Kirill meets with Italian delegation accompanying relics of St. Nicholas]. Russian Orthodox Church (in Russian). 2017-05-22. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
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