Faith on the Margins: Religion and Civic Emancipation among Roma People during Communist Rule in Romania

This paper analyzes the way in which religion bolstered Roma people’s demands for civic emancipation and strengthened their ethnic and cultural identity in 1970s and 1980s Romania. Based on documents mainly from the former secret police, the Securitate, the paper is divided into two main parts. The...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Marin, Manuela (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: [publisher not identified] 2022
In: Review of ecumenical studies, Sibiu
Year: 2022, Volume: 14, Issue: 3, Pages: 405-430
IxTheo Classification:CB Christian life; spirituality
CG Christianity and Politics
KAJ Church history 1914-; recent history
KBK Europe (East)
NCC Social ethics
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Summary:This paper analyzes the way in which religion bolstered Roma people’s demands for civic emancipation and strengthened their ethnic and cultural identity in 1970s and 1980s Romania. Based on documents mainly from the former secret police, the Securitate, the paper is divided into two main parts. The first is a general overview of the state of the Roma people in communist Romania and the main initiatives for their civic emancipation. Next, the paper uses the perspective of "lived religion" to study three elements that informed the religious life of Roma during the 1970s and 1980s. These are the persistence of religious beliefs, the creation of Gypsy Neo-Protestant churches, and religious pilgrimage. Moreover, the paper will show that religious practice strengthened ethnic identity, favoured individual agency, and raised questions about equal rights and religious freedom.
ISSN:2359-8107
Contains:Enthalten in: Review of ecumenical studies, Sibiu
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.2478/ress-2022-0115