International Confer.: “Churches and political power during communism"

"1918 December 1.” Gyulafehérvár University (department of history, archeology and museology) and the National Museum of the Gyulafehérvár Union organized the International Conference entitled “Churches and political power during communism. Réka Kiss, president of the National Committee of Remembrance and Áron Máthé, deputy president of the NCR gave a lecture at the scientific session.

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On the first day of the meeting, Réka Kiss the president of the National Remembrance Committee (NEB) gave a lecture entitled "Dilemmas and survival strategies in the Hungarian Reformed Church during the communist regime" comprehensively explaining the trials of this historical period. Áron Máthé, the deputy president of the NEB gave a lecture about Sándor Joó, the Reformed pastor from Pasarét, who was called the most blessed Hungarian preacher of the 20th century, "Deceptive documents? "The case of Sándor Joó, a reformed minister" in his speech.

The establishment of communism in Eastern Europe found the Churches in fragile positions, following the traumatic experiences of the Second World War. The churches were challenged to coexist with autocratic or dictatorial regimes. Institutionally weakened by the attempts of the political power to limit their autonomy, the churches had to face the overthrow of the socio-political order caused by the Sovietsupported instauration of the communist regimes.


The Soviet model of communization of societies was adapted by the regimes loyal to Moscow also interms of religious policy, which translated, in the case of the majority churches, into public and political
marginalization, in exchange for limited autonomy. Thus, the religious policy of the regimes, which did not aim at the total elimination of religious life and, implicitly, of churches, included a set of practices
and instruments, which involved institutional control, informational surveillance, and political repression. A special case was represented by the Greek-Catholic churches, which were abolished, and their clergy and bishops repressed.


The conference aims to address the complex issue of the relations of churches and religious cults with political power during the communist period, using the tools of interdisciplinary knowledge (historical, theological, political, sociological, anthropological, etc.).

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Programme