Church and State - Religious Nationalism and State Identification in Post-Communist Romania

Twenty years have passed since the fall of the Iron Curtain, yet emerging democracies continue to struggle with a secular state which does not give preference to churches as major political players. This book explores the nationalist inclinations of an Eastern Orthodox Church as it interacts with a politically immature yet decisively democratic Eastern European state. Discussing the birth pangs of extreme nationalist movements of the twentieth century, it offers a creative retelling of the ideological idiosyncrasies which have characterized Marxist Communism and Nazism. Cristian Romocea provides a constant juxtaposition of the ideological movements as they interacted and affected organized religion, at times seeking to remove it, assimilate it or even imitate it. Of interest to historians, theologians and politicians, this book introduces the reader, through a case study of Romania, to relevant and contemporary challenges churches worldwide are facing in a context characterized by increased secularization of the state and radicalization of religion.Table of ContentIntroduction; 1. The Orthodox Church in Post-1989 Romania; 2. German Protestantism and Nazism in Third Reich Germany; 3. From Caesaropapism to Religious Nationalism; 4. National Orthodoxy and the Romanian State; 5. The Marxist-Orthodox Symbiosis; 6. The Theological Error of Nationalism: Barth and Staniloae; Conclusion: Towards a Theology of 'Permanent Revolution'; Bibliography; Index.Review QuoteRomocea’s book will be very useful to scholars interested in religion and politics in modern Romania.Biographical NoteCristian Romocea is Visiting Lecturer at Evandeoski Teoloski Fakultet Osijek, Croatia.Exploration of how religious nationalism incapacitates the church from maintaining a critical distance toward the secular state.Fresh analysis of interactions between the Christian religion and extreme ideologies in the 20th century.Surveys how modern Romania has coped with democratization and pressures of the secular state.Provides a theological safeguarding against national extremism, especially in an increasingly vigorously religious world.