Minorities and Religion in Post-Communist Eastern Europe

Dear Colleagues,

Throughout Eastern Europe, organized religion (and in particular Eastern Orthodox Christianity) has had quite a close relationship with the formation of local national identities. According to the Eastern European model of nation building, ethnicity has become a crucial factor in national political legitimacy. Since ethnicities have historically been linked to belonging to particular religious denominations, the dominant national legitimacy discourse in the countries of the region has been based on the interplay among church, state, ethnicity, and nationhood. In various forms and to varying degrees from country to country, this discourse survived even during the decades of the communist rule.

The historical link between ethnicity and religion entered a new phase in the post-1989 period, when religion, along with national identity, appeared to many as the only legitimate institutional and spiritual means available to fill the post-1989 ideological vacuum. In these conditions, the religious identity associated with the dominant ethnic–national identity reasserted its functions as a major source of national and nation-state legitimacy. In several states throughout the region, the Orthodox Church linked to the “state building” majority nation assumed the position of the dominant church in the state, even if such a privileged status could not be formally included in constitutional and legal provisions. This intertwining also fostered discrimination between the majority national faith and the minority faiths (Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, and others).

On the other hand, linking ethnicity and religion for the ethnic–national majority population created a legitimate cultural space that was exploited by the minority churches as well. Through their links with particular ethnic communities, these churches could assert their basic function as protectors of the ethnic communities’ respective national identities. Historically, minority ethnic communities have regarded belonging to denominational religious as an important means for the affirmation and protection of their own ethnic–national identities. This role was forcefully reasserted in the conditions of the new opportunities for political self-organisation and action, which emerged in post-communist period. Consequently, ethnic minority status acted as a factor strengthening the use of religion as an identity marker.

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue with articles concerning the relationship between religious, ethnic, and national identity in post-communist Eastern European countries, and addressing the situation of minority religious and ethnic–national communities, including legal status, socio-demographic and economic characteristics, education, culture, religious and ethnic community life, political representation, etc. The aim of this Special Issue is to highlight changes in these fields that occurred in the region in the decades following the systemic change of 1989 in order to map the current situation and to point out possible directions of future development. We welcome articles based on presentations of country cases, research conducted in a particular country, as well as comparative cross-country studies.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Religious pluralism within the state: the status and rights of religious and ethnic minorities, managing interethnic and inter-confessional relations, ecumenical dialogue and cooperation;
• Internal community life of minority religious communities; religiosity and religious participation; characteristics, problems related to church social incolvement in various fields: education, social services, political participation, etc.;
• Ethnic diversity within religious communities: management of ethnic and linguistic differences, possible sources of tensions and solutions offered;
• The role of majority and minority churches in nation building and in providing political legitimacy for the nation–state, for the political claims and aspirations of ethnic–national minorities, etc.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200–300 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the Guest Editor, Prof. Gavril Flora ([email protected]), and CC the Assistant Editor Margaret Liu ([email protected]) of Religions. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

Tentative completion schedule:

• Deadline for abstract submission: 30 December 2024
• Deadline for full manuscript submission: 30 April 2025

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Gavril Flora
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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• religious pluralism
• ethnic diversity
• religious minorities
• ethnic minorities
• national identity
• national political legitimacy
• Eastern Europe

Title: Transformation and Constancy in the Religiosity of the Hungarian Community of Transylvania, Romania

Abstract: Religion constituted an essential component of the ethnic identity of Hungarian communities in Transylvania, Romania, even during the most challenging period of the national communist regime of the country, in the 1980s. Despite the limitation of church attendance for specific professions and members of the Communist Party, a significant part of the population continued to engage in religious practices. For the ethnic Hungarian population of Transylvania (estimated at 1.1 million), church affiliation has been a defining trait, even in the period following the 1989 turnover of the regime. Religiosity has remained an important identity element, to a greater extent than among Hungarians residing in Hungary. Recent studies on this topic (Filep Tamás et al., 2022; Kiss et al., 2022) make use of the findings of the European Values Study (EVS) 2017 for Romania and Hungary, and a special survey conducted in 2019 for Hungarians in Transylvania. This shows that Hungarians in Transylvania are more closely aligned with Romanians than with Hungarians in Hungary with regard to religiosity. Identification with a religious denomination is almost universal in Transylvania, in contrast to Hungary. Since the 2019 EVS data collection in Transylvania, a national census has been conducted in 2022, with 2021 being the year of reference. It demonstrated that the rate of religiously non-affiliated persons remained extremely low throughout Romania, including the Hungarians. However, the census depicted a changing religious landscape, with a growing importance of the neoprotestant churches. The present article re-examines the principal findings of the EVS survey in the context of the 2021 census, with a particular emphasis on the contrasts and similarities between Romanians and Hungarians in Transylvania, and Hungarians from Transylvania and Hungary, in relation to religiosity, taking into account a range of background variables.

Title: New Religious Movements in Bulgaria between Nationalism and Universalism

Abstract: The paper describes the positioning of religious communities and new religious movements (MRMs) in Bulgaria between nationalism and universalism. The diversity ranges from traditional religious communities, new dimensions of Orthodox Christianity and Islam in the country, Evangelical churches, and new religious movements. The perceived overlaps between religious, ethnic, and national identity in historical context are being challenged by the mainly universalistic appeals of new religious movements. The diversity among movements is described in different dimensions such as health and wealth, business and finances, generations and changes. The different stages of transition from communism are marked by the presence of different types of NRMs: The beginning of the 1990s – the period of rejecting the communist past – is marked by the appearance of “world-rejecting” NRMs, which tend toward a decline through the years 1990 – 2007. At the middle of the 1990s – the most difficult years of transition in economic terms – there was a steady growth of “world-accommodating” groups such as neo-Pentecostals. The other type – the “world-affirming” is still not very popular in terms of membership, but they tend to appear in the public sphere after Bulgaria became a member of the European Union. New religious movement claiming authority in older establishments are described in their relation between nationalism and universalism.