THE PERSECUTION OF RELIGIOUS CULTS IN ROMANIA BY THE COMMUNIST REGIME: HOW AND WHY WAS IT POSSIBLE?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7391921Keywords:
religious liberty, control, totalitarism, political power, ConstitutionAbstract
Persecution of Religious Cults in Romania by the Communist Regime: How and why was it possible?
The Church, one of the most important elements in Romanian society, has not always enjoyed freedom. Studies on religious freedom approached the problem from the perspective of political regimes that challenged the importance of religion. In Romania, even at the declarative level religious freedom was ensured by the Constitution from the beginning, starting with the communist regime, its freedom was linked to state policy. The Church was free only if it was considered that its practices did not harm the state and society. But with this condition, the Church was placed under the control of the state. This started the religious persecution. Through this analysis, we propose to offer a more complete perspective on the phenomenon of the persecution of the Church in the communist regime in Romania. Starting with the influence of Marxist doctrine and the Soviet model, then the historical chronology that follows the evolution of legislation and the seizure of control of the Church by the state, the article will also offer a series of political theories regarding the relationship between power and religion in totalitarian regimes.
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