The Sacred Battlefields of the Eastern Europe: The Role of Orthodox Christianity in Geopolitics

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444). This special issue belongs to the section "Religions and Humanities/Philosophies".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (18 August 2024) | Viewed by 6469

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Docent in Sociology of Religion, Center for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
Interests: orthodox Christianity; sociology of religion; nationalism

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Guest Editor
Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University, SE-22100 Lund, Sweden
Interests: south eastern European history; Serbian orthodox church; orthodoxy; nationalism; Byzantine-Slavic church history; law and religion; Nordic orthodox churches

Special Issue Information

Brief Introduction

Is Orthodox Christianity primarily a tool or resource used by political entities, or does it act as an independent social force with the power to drive political outcomes? How does this religion, as a transnational force, shape global politics? The special issue "Sacred Battlefields: The Role of Orthodox Christianity in Geopolitics" seeks to address these overarching questions by exploring the complex and often understudied role of Orthodox Christianity in shaping geopolitical landscapes, particularly in Eastern and Southern Europe. This issue aims to bring together a diverse range of scholarly perspectives to analyze the ways in which Orthodox Christian traditions, doctrines, and institutions interact with, influence, and are influenced by the dynamics of nationhood, territorial disputes, and political power.

The scope of this special issue extends to various dimensions of the interplay between Orthodox Christianity and geopolitics. It includes, but is not limited to, the study of canonical territorial conflicts, the role of the church in state politics, the influence of religious identity, beliefs, legitimacy, and institutions in shaping social and political landscapes, and the impact of ecclesiastical decisions on international relations. To what extent can these religious elements influence or determine political and social outcomes? How have these dynamics been present historically, and how have they been reinforced or altered?

The issue will address historical contexts as well as contemporary situations, such as the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, in order to provide a comprehensive understanding of the role of Orthodoxy in contemporary geopolitical affairs. Contributors are encouraged to approach the topic from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including theology, sociology, political science, history, and international relations. We welcome empirical studies, theoretical analyses, and methodological contributions including qualitative, quantitative, comparative and case study approaches that shed light on how Orthodox Christianity shapes and is shaped by geopolitical contexts. 

This special issue aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of the complex relationships between religion, nationalism, and territoriality, especially in regions where Orthodox Christianity is a dominant religious force. It seeks to provide new insights into how religious beliefs and institutions can become entangled with national and international political agendas, influencing everything from local community dynamics to international diplomatic relations.

Invitation

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to the special issue titled "The Sacred Battlefields: The Role of Orthodox Christianity in Geopolitics". This issue seeks to explore the complex and often understudied relationship between Orthodox Christianity and geopolitical dynamics, particularly in Eastern and Southern Europe. The ongoing war in Ukraine, among other regional tensions in the South Caucasus and the Middle East, underscores the critical need to understand the role of religious institutions and doctrines in shaping national and international politics. This area of research is not only timely, but also essential for understanding the broader implications of religious influences on contemporary geopolitical landscapes. This special issue aims to provide a platform for interdisciplinary scholarship that examines the intersections of Orthodox Christianity, national identity and territorial conflict within wider geopolitical context.

This special issue welcomes original research articles and reviews. Areas of research may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  1. The impact of Orthodox Christian doctrines on national and international politics.
  2. Canonical territorial conflicts within the Orthodox Church and their geopolitical implications.
  3. Influence of religious identity, beliefs, legitimacy, and institutions in shaping social and political landscapes in Eastern and Southern Europe.
  4. Historical and contemporary analyses of church-state relations in Orthodox Christian contexts.
  5. Methodological approaches to the study of the interplay between religion and geopolitics.

Before submitting a manuscript, interested authors should first submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200-300 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send this to the Guest Editors () or the Assistant Editor for Religions (). Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors to ensure that they fit within the scope of the special issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

Proposed deadlines:

    Abstract submission deadline: 15 January 2024
    Full manuscript deadline: 19 May 2024

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Tornike Metreveli
Dr. Emil Bjørn Hilton Saggau
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • orthodox Christianity
  • geopolitics
  • nationalism
  • canonical territorial conflicts
  • church-state relations
  • eastern Europe
  • southern Europe
  • canonical territoriality
  • religious influence
  • political power

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 5288 KiB  
Article
The Church as Res Publica
by Cyril Hovorun
Religions 2025, 16(1), 32; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16010032 - 31 Dec 2024
Viewed by 547
Abstract
Christianity emerged valuing horizontal socio-political relations, which it inherited from Jesus Christ, and which resonated with the ideals of ancient Greek and Roman republicanism. As the church engaged with the Roman Empire, its republican roots faded, adopting monarchical traits. Still, republicanism never disappeared [...] Read more.
Christianity emerged valuing horizontal socio-political relations, which it inherited from Jesus Christ, and which resonated with the ideals of ancient Greek and Roman republicanism. As the church engaged with the Roman Empire, its republican roots faded, adopting monarchical traits. Still, republicanism never disappeared from the church or the Christian Empire. In the former, it took the form of synodality and became reflected in the ways of electing bishops. In the latter, the church became a part of the power-sharing system, effectively substituting the Senate. In contrast to the stereotype that the church is intrinsically monarchical and supports monarchies, this paper argues that the original Christian ethos is more republican than monarchical. As a result, the church has the potential to enhance democracies in the modern geopolitical landscape. Full article
20 pages, 373 KiB  
Article
Autocephaly Reconsidered: Civil Authorities as Autocephaly-Making Factors
by Daniela Kalkandjieva
Religions 2024, 15(12), 1518; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121518 - 11 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1200
Abstract
Contemporary scholars share a common vision of the phenomenon of autocephaly as a virtue empowering a local Orthodox church independently to elect its supreme hierarch and run its domestic affairs without the endorsement of another church leader. While the academic discussion on this [...] Read more.
Contemporary scholars share a common vision of the phenomenon of autocephaly as a virtue empowering a local Orthodox church independently to elect its supreme hierarch and run its domestic affairs without the endorsement of another church leader. While the academic discussion on this subject is concentrated on the canonical and theological aspects of autocephaly, the presented study shifts the focus to the involvement of civil authorities in the promotion and abolishment of this ecclesiastical status. It challenges the conventional perception of such interventions as something incidental or a feature of particular political formations. It aims to reveal that civil authorities have been a constant factor in the establishment of new autocephalies since the recognition of Christianity as an official religion in the Roman Empire. For this purpose, the focus falls on the Chalcedonian Eastern Orthodox churches which have centuries-old traditions in autocephaly-related practices from the Edict of Milan (313) to the end of the Cold War. It also takes into account the different legal frameworks within which civil authorities used to validate new autocephalies. On the grounds of this analysis, the concluding remarks reflect on the impact of this experience on the autocephaly-building process in post-atheist areas. Full article
17 pages, 722 KiB  
Article
The Russian Orthodox Church Turns to the Global South: Recalibration of the Geopolitical Culture of the Church
by Mikhail Suslov
Religions 2024, 15(12), 1517; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121517 - 11 Dec 2024
Viewed by 912
Abstract
The Ukrainian parliament’s 2024 law banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) marks a significant conceptual and strategic recalibration of the Russian Orthodox Church’s (ROC) geopolitical culture. The framework of the “Russian world” project, which asserted a shared civilizational identity [...] Read more.
The Ukrainian parliament’s 2024 law banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) marks a significant conceptual and strategic recalibration of the Russian Orthodox Church’s (ROC) geopolitical culture. The framework of the “Russian world” project, which asserted a shared civilizational identity between Russia and its Orthodox neighbors, is increasingly untenable amidst the war with Ukraine and splits in the Orthodox world. In response, the ROC has pivoted towards global outreach, notably expanding into Africa. This move aligns with Russia’s broader geopolitical strategy, which frames Russia as a defender of multipolarity and traditional values against Western influence. However, the ROC’s attempt to adopt a global stance and reimagine itself as a universal church, rather than a pillar of the “Russian civilization”, faces ideological and geopolitical challenges, as explored in the paper. Full article
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11 pages, 285 KiB  
Article
Outline of a Serbian Orthodox Doctrine of Righteous War
by Emil Hilton Saggau
Religions 2024, 15(12), 1473; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15121473 - 4 Dec 2024
Viewed by 675
Abstract
The post-communist period has seen several wars in regions with a majority of Eastern Orthodox Christians. These conflicts have prompted Eastern Orthodox churches to formulate stances on war and develop new doctrines of righteous war. These responses draw on a long lineage of [...] Read more.
The post-communist period has seen several wars in regions with a majority of Eastern Orthodox Christians. These conflicts have prompted Eastern Orthodox churches to formulate stances on war and develop new doctrines of righteous war. These responses draw on a long lineage of Eastern Roman and Slavonic traditions, particularly the Cyrillian doctrine of righteous war expounded in the Life of Constantine-Cyril. This paper examines the theological responses of the Serbian Orthodox Church to the wars in the former Yugoslavia, providing a reference point for comparison with the current theological debates and assessment of doctrines of warfare in light of the war in Ukraine. The focus is on the biblical hermeneutics and theological framing of various Serbian-centered doctrines. These new outlines draw on diverse traditions within Slavonic and Eastern Orthodox theology. The paper aims to provide insights into the shaping of Eastern Orthodox positions on war and the theological genesis of justifications for war. The discussion sheds light on the intricate relationship between war and Christianity within the Eastern Orthodox context in Serbia. Full article
20 pages, 309 KiB  
Article
The Religious Component in Contemporary Russian Imperialism
by Pål Kolstø and Bojidar Kolov
Religions 2024, 15(9), 1138; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15091138 - 21 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1417
Abstract
Ever since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, various voices in the Russian public sphere have been trying to make sense of Russia’s new place in the world, its geopolitical horizons, and the identity of its people. One of the dominant trends that [...] Read more.
Ever since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, various voices in the Russian public sphere have been trying to make sense of Russia’s new place in the world, its geopolitical horizons, and the identity of its people. One of the dominant trends that have emerged is Orthodox imperialism, which combines religious symbols and narratives with a geopolitical vision of Russian expansion and “reunification”. This article provides an overview of the Russian Orthodox imperialist voices, analysing the political norms and identities they have enabled. Our investigation shows that by advancing a programme that combines geopolitical restoration and eschatological religious mission, Orthodox imperialism offers an ideological solution to the problem of Russia’s lost great-power status. This solution, however, does not envisage a bright future for Russia or the world. On the contrary, it remains firmly fixated on the past, foretelling of an apocalyptic disaster if Moscow does not regain its former imperial glory and exercise its divine role as a “restrainer” to any global domination. Full article
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