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The Bishop’s Gambit: Contrasting Visibility of Orthodox Churches in Serbia and Georgia
Type
conference paper
Date Issued
2018
Author(s)
Abstract
Both in Georgia and in Serbia, Eastern Orthodox Christianity is closely linked to - and at times intertwined with – the concepts of national identity and belonging. Despite an increased visibility of religion in the two states which manifested itself in a boom of religious architecture and symbolism after the collapse of communism, this paper shows that being a priest carries a different meaning and status in the two societies. In Georgia, my research shows, political influence of priests manifests itself in power to mobilize large-scale public protest and influence public opinion and even election results, whereas in Serbia political influence and mobilizational power of a clergy strikingly differs. The Georgian clergy often “preaches politics” from the altar as opposed to the Serbian church’s more “social discourse”. Given that the two states share religion and religious traditions and an experience of communism, this divergence is puzzling. Based on ethnographic work (participant observation and interviews with clergy) conducted in Serbia and Georgia, this paper asks why being a priest has a powerful cultural, social and political capital in one society while not in the other? The paper follows the sermons and narratives of the prominent Georgian and Serbian priests.Having similar hierarchical position and parish, the priests enjoy different social standing, demonstrate contrasting views on national belonging, the role of church in society, the threats and fears and other socio-political themes. By intertwining the interviews with prominent priests, participant observation in 15 orthodox churches around Georgia and Serbia and recent survey data, this paper shows that Orthodox clerics in Georgia tend to exploit an increasingly uncertain public opinion about the role of the church in democracy by interpreting political events during the church sermons and communicating their political views to the parish. Yet this brings another important question which this paper addresses in greater detail – when, how and why has this divergence occurred in the first place? Here the paper employs process-tracing and content analysis triangulated with an archival work to explain why churches which employed similarly ethno-cultural and politically motivated discourses in aftermath the collapse of communism suddenly shifted in opposite direction.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
SHSS - Transcultural Workspaces
Event Title
23rd Annual ASN World Convention
Event Location
Harriman Institute, Columbia University
Event Date
03.-05.05.2018
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
254903