Book Review: Gorana Ognjenović and Jasna Jozelić\u27s Education in Post-conflict Transition: The Politicization of Religion in School Textbooks

An edited volume entitled, Education in Post-conflict Transition: The Politicization of Religion in School Textbooks, was published by Palgrave Macmillan series in Religion, Politics and Policy and edited by two scholars, Gorana Ognjenović (University of Oslo) and Jasna Jozelić (Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, University of Oslo). This volume focuses on the politicization of religion and the development of religious education in public schools, and the degree of religious liberty and human rights in several, mainly former Yugoslav countries. Apart from an introduction, the volume has thirteen chapters and a conclusion. Chapter authors include scholars from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, and Slovenia . The book also covers case studies of religious education in these countries

\u27Converted Co-ethnics\u27: Romanian Migrants in the Northern Serbian Province of Vojvodina

In this paper, my case study highlights Romanian neo-Protestant migrants from Serbia who either returned to their “home country,” or work on different missionary activities among their co-ethnics after the fall of communism. To a large degree, members of the Romanian minority in Serbia belong to the Romanian Orthodox Church, which is the dominant confession, then a smaller number to the Romanian Greek-Catholic church and various neo-Protestant communities, such as the Nazarene, the Adventist, the Baptist, and the Pentecostal community. Starting from the hypothesis that the conversion of the Romanians in Serbia to neo-Protestantism is closely related to issues of migration, whether the conversion occurred while living abroad or they were, for religious reasons, forced to leave the country, the focus of this paper is transformation of social relations among converted Romanians and their co-ethnics. Based on the results from ethnographic research conducted in Serbia in 2014–2015, I will focus on how migrants perceive themselves and their co-ethnic attitudes towards them. Becoming a part of transnational religious community and emphasizing supra-nationality, the Romanian neo-Protestants perceive themselves as a part of “worldwide brotherhood,” adopting some new forms of collective identity while distancing themselves from the Romanian Orthodox tradition. Thus, religious otherness raises questions of the attitude of the Romanian local community towards the Romanian neo-Protestant migrants and their new religious, cultural, and social practices

"Our Faith Is Good, but Strict": The Transformation of the Apostolic Christian Church-Nazarene in North America

The number of religious minorities from Central and Eastern Europe prone to migration to the English-speaking world increased considerably during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Among them were the Evangelical Baptists, or Neutäufer, founded by a former Reformed minister, Samuel Fröhlich, around 1830 in Switzerland. Reviving some of the old Mennonite principles, this newly emerging religious community was emphasizing nonresistance, a refusal of taking oaths, the rejection of infant baptism, and separation from the world. Their expansion to Southeastern Europe in the late nineteenth century attracted new members from various ethnic groups. Because of state oppression and religious persecution, the Nazarenes from Yugoslavia started to immigrate to North America. There, they joined the Apostolic Christian Church, which was the official name of the Nazarene community in the United States and Canada. The material collected for this article is the result of empirical research conducted in Serbia and the United States on the history of the Nazarene migration to North America after the Second World War. The geographical focus of my research is the area of Akron and Mansfield, Ohio, which received the most Nazarene immigrants from Yugoslavia. Based on qualitative interviews with community members and archival research (Virginia Historical Society Archives), this paper addresses several questions: what the migration waves of the Nazarenes were, how the Nazarenes integrated into the new society, and how this religious community transformed in the English- speaking world

“Smuggling Bibles”: Everyday life of Baptist Serbs in Romania

Various neo-Protestant religious communities, such as Adventists, Pentecostals, Baptists, Nazarenes, Christian Brethren, and others, played an important role in the religious life of different ethnic groups in Romania, not only in the post-communist period, but also during communism. The establishment of the communist regime in Romania particularly influenced the position of minority religious communities, their rights of religious association, education, and employment.This paper seeks to present everyday life experiences of Baptist Serbs in Romania during the specific historical period of communism. It is based on field research conducted in August 2010 within Serbian Baptist communities located in the region of the Danube Gorge of western Romania (Rom. Clisura Dunãrii).Special interest is paid to the connections between Serbs from Romania and Yugoslavia, various missionary activities, and religious experiences of the born-again Christians during communism

"God doesn't know about Nationalities" : Questioning Religion and Nationalism in Evangelical Communities in Romania

A strong link between religion and national identity has been particularly important in the study of Eastern and Southeastern Europe during the 20th century. The study of religion and its changes came into the focus of anthropological and sociological research especially after the communist period. One of the most important aspects of change was “religious revival” which also included conversion to new forms of religiosity such as the Evangelical communities, the Nazarenes, Baptists, Jehovah Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists, and Pentecostals. The majority of Serbs living in Romania belong to the Serbian Orthodox Church, but during the last decades a number of Evangelicals appeared among the Serbian minority. This paper is based on the results of qualitative ethnographic fieldwork conducted in 2010 among the Serbian Evangelical communities in Romania. The research focuses on the influence of conversion from Christian Orthodoxy to Evangelicalism among Serbs, focusing on the Evangelical response to religion and nationalism discourses, changes in collective and personal identity of newly converted believers, and perception of converted co-ethnics by the non-Evangelical community. In addressing these issues, this article explores the role of religious traditions which do not overlap with any particular national/ethnic group, the relationship between religion and nationalism, and the presence of supra-national narrative emphasized in Evangelical communities

"How Long Have you Been in the Truth" : Expressing New Forms of Religiosity: Romanian neo-Protestants in Serbia

According to many anthropologists and sociologists, the collapse of communism and the emergence of a new nationalism in a number of post-communist countries resulted in a religious revival. In 1989/90 in Romania and Serbia, the number of those declaring themselves to be “believers” increased considerably. This religious growth also meant moving away from traditional religious forms to new ones. Focussing on conversion to neo-Protestantism in the post-communist era up to the present day, this article presents the results of ethnographic fieldwork conducted since 2008 in various Romanian villages in Vojvodina Province, Serbia. The article explores how different religious groups – such as Nazarenes, Seventh-day Adventists, Pentecostals and Baptists often stigmatized in public discourse – influenced religious change in the last decade. Even though these religious communities were already established in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they are often perceived as new forms of religiosity in the area, becoming more visible and numerous in the post-communist period, especially among ethnic minorities. In addressing these issues, this article explores the role of new religious identities that have emerged in the region, the historical continuity of neo-Protestant communities and the question of conversion to neo-Protestantism