Orthodox Churches and Politics in Southeastern Europe: Nationalism, Conservativism, and Intolerance

Description

Orthodox Churches, like most religious bodies, are inherently political: they seek to defend their core values and must engage in politics to do so, whether by promoting certain legislation or seeking to block other legislation. This volume examines the politics of Orthodox Churches in Southeastern Europe, emphasizing three key modes of resistance to the influence of (Western) liberal values: Nationalism (presenting themselves as protectors of the national being), Conservatism (defending traditional values such as the “traditional family”), and Intolerance (of both non-Orthodox faiths and sexual minorities). The chapters in this volume present case studies of all the Orthodox Churches of the region. Front Matter ....Pages i-xvii The Orthodox Churches of Southeastern Europe: An Introduction (Sabrina P. Ramet)....Pages 1-14 Faith, Nation, and Structure: The Diachronic Durability of Orthodox Churches in the Balkans (David B. Kanin)....Pages 15-40 Conservative Orthodoxy in Romania (Lucian Turcescu, Lavinia Stan)....Pages 41-51 The Bulgarian Orthodox Church: Authoring New Visions About the Orthodox Church’s Role in Contemporary Bulgarian Society (Daniela Kalkandjieva)....Pages 53-83 The Church, the Nation, and the State: The Serbian Orthodox Church After Communism (Jelena Subotić)....Pages 85-110 Orthodoxy and Antisemitism: The Relationship Between the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Jews (Francine Friedman)....Pages 111-129 The Orthodox Church of Greece (Altuğ Günal, Zeynep Selin Balcı)....Pages 131-165 The Macedonian Orthodox Church in the New Millennium (Zachary T. Irwin)....Pages 167-196 Navigating the Challenge of Liberalism: The Resurrection of the Orthodox Church in Post-Communist Albania (Isa Blumi)....Pages 197-222 The Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia: Survival of a Minority Faith in a Secular Society (Frank Cibulka)....Pages 223-247 Back Matter ....Pages 249-267