M. Popović-I. Bjelić, St. Nicholas Church. The Orthodox Cathedral of the Town of Novo Brdo, Belgrade 2018 (review, in English). (original) (raw)

The forging and forgetting the cult of St. Jovan Vladimir in contemporary montenegro

International Journal for the Study of the Christian Church, 2021

After the fall of Communism, the Serbian Orthodox Church has experienced a significant revival, part of which has been the recollection of past events, personas, sites and shrines in order to reestablish its position in the post-Yugoslav republics. One of these processes of recollection is devoted to the cult of St. Jovan Vladimir (d.1016) and the sites associated with him in southern Montenegro. This article analyzes the forging of this memorialisation in its material form in the Serbian Orthodox Church as well as the erasure of rival processes of memorialisation. The reconstruction of memories and re-consecration of shrines is taking place across Eastern Europe today and the purpose of this study is to identify the key factors that determine the success or otherwise of such projects. It is focussed, in particular, on the ‘consecrating’ of four key sites closely related to the cult, all of which have been trans-national and transreligious.

The Everyday of Religion and Politics in the Balkans

2018

The deeply social and political significance of religion becomes apparent when looking at how different religious traditions can challenge coexistence and toler ance in everyday life.1 Ideology-expressed in discourse and doctrine/ religious meaning, and moral values3-undergirds identity politics. As such, it is import ant to understand the place of religion in the social organization and transform ation of a given society. 4 Above all, discriminatory and stereotyping ideologies behind the categorizing processes of religious affiliations are inherent to any context, whether local, regional, or international.5 Southeast Europe provides a colorful display of the relationship between religion and politics at the level of religious leaders, state actors, intellectual elites, and ordinary people in everyday interactions. Th e importance of native language in religious offices and the pas sion for historical incursions in the everyday life of public discussions-in print media and online networks-shows the intricate interconnectedness of religion and politics. In everyday conversation, people commonly raid history to their own end, convinced that religious movements and political movements have something in common. Historical Incursions in Everyday Life People often repurpose history to legitimate their view of how the world was, is, and should be. Though such forays into history may seem innocent, often their impact on political and everyday life is not. In February 2012, the Vati can organized a world conference to commemorate the 1,700th anniversary of the Battle of the Milvian Bridge (O ctober 28, 312) and the legacy of Emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity. In October 2013, the Serbian Orthodox Church also organized in Nish, the birthplace of Constantine, an even larger world conference to commemorate the importance of the Edict of Milan, in which Constantine established th e Christian movement as another official reli gion of the Roman Empire. The st ory of Constantine's acceptance of Christianity became important both to the growth of early Christianity and to the growth of Constantine's power, but it also embedded a narrative of providence within a political act that would later serve as a foundation for contemporary claims to the Balkan peoples being foundational to Christendom. Such moves are neither neutral nor unilateral. Ordinary Albanians are quick to remember June 28, 1989, when Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic used the six-hundredth-anniversary commemoration of the Kosovo Battle of 1389 to strengthen his power by exploiting the myth of the battle,6 probably not unlike Constantine did with the myth of his own dream. The narrative of a "M uslim" victory-despite both sides suffering heavy losses-is reinterpreted by Serbian nationalist politics, from the nineteenth century until today, as the emblematic Christian Serbian sacrifice at the hands of Ottoman armies. Gatherings to com memorate this myth served to justify the boundaries of Serbian holdings and any means needed to enforce them. Not surprisingly, they also glorified and sancti fied the ethno-homicidal criminals who best served Serbian identity politics.7 Such celebrations point to the mutually reinforcing-and locally contextualized nature of religion and politics and the ease with which nationalist tropes emerge as ordained and legitimate. Routinely, one hears support for the blending of religion and politics: ordinary Albanians may recall some imam in Prishtina running for president, 8 or some Kosovar politicians may advocate women wear ing Muslim headscarves to gain support among certain voters. 9 Similarly, the Serbian patriarch stated that "K osovo is the sacred land of Serbia" on Albanian national TV, on June 1, 2014, after the inauguration of the Orthodox Cathedral in Tirana, 10 where the Serbian flag was also briefly displayed. ll Many ordinary Albanians characterized this as a "brutal and unscrupulous provocation. "12 The Albanian prime minister was outraged and offended, and at his meeting with the patriarchs and primates of world Christian Orthodoxy, he demonstrably pointed his finger to the Serbian patriarch: "Your colleague abused our hospitality, he derogated our religious celebration day and he changed the evidence of our reli gious coexistence into an outdated political issue."13 Regardless of how outdated such moves may seem, incursions into history hold political clout to the exten t they make the present seem purposeful. Histo ries, however, are not without bias. Serbs can look to the churches and monaster ies built by the Nemanic dynasty to claim a territorial holding/4 just as they look to the Kosovo myth to speak of a Serbian sacrifice.1 5 Similarly, Albanians look to the efforts of the Greek Orthodox Church during the mid-nineteenth century in sq uelching the use of Albanian language as an example of systematic oppres sion. 16 There is an interconnectedness between religion and politics that repre sents both the imagined and the real state of everyday life. Religious Realpolitik On the Easter Saturday 2015 (A pril 11), when Orthodox Christians celebrated the resurrection of Christ in the Cathedral of Tirana, a prominent Albanian politician expressed his regret in the national press because the Greek archbishop of the Albanian Orthodox Church, Anastasios Yanoulatos, officiated not in Albanian but in Greek. 17 Many deacons rose to the archbishop's defense

Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and Metohija: Between Past and Future

Balkan Journal of Philosophy, 2014

The Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and Metohija has a long history that is rich in detail, so it is difficult to grasp it in its entirety. Therefore, only a few key points are presented in this paper, points which will hopefully lend insight into current events and future prospects. In this paper, the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and Metohija is observed through discussion about Orthodox belief, the priesthood and monasticism, and places of worship. The research was conducted in 2012, when we visited Kosovo and Metohija and interviewed bishops, monks, priests, lay believers, and pilgrims. Places mentioned in the paper are: Gazimestan,

Kosovo Crucified - Narratives in the Contemporary Serbian Orthodox Perception of Kosovo

Religions, Journal, 2019

In contemporary Serbian Orthodox texts, Kosovo is often referred to as the Serbian “Jerusalem”: a city calling for a Christian defense. All Serbs are bound to heed the call in keeping with the Kosovo “covenant” or “pledge” dating back to the Battle of Kosovo Polje in 1389, when Serbian troops, led by Prince Lazar, were defeated by the invading Muslim Ottoman army. The battle and Kosovo in general have since then assumed a central symbolic role in Serbian nationalism and the Serbian Orthodox Church. Furthermore, it has been claimed that the imagery and narratives of Kosovo were the ideological backdrop for the wars in the Balkans in the 1990s. This article investigates the development of the Serbian narratives and imagery pertaining to Kosovo and their modern form in the Serbian Orthodox Church in order to trace what type of imagery is dominant. The main focus will be on whether and to what extent the narratives of Christian defense and holy Serbian warriors fighting in the name of Christ are dominant. This investigation seeks to discuss whether the Kosovo imagery and narratives are formed upon and influenced by a broader Christian European antemurale myth.