Serbian Orthodox Fundamentals
The Quest for an Eternal Identity
Christos Mylonas
"Mylonas has constructed a dense and fascinating
analysis of the relationship between Serbian Orthodoxy
and Serbian national identity ... In the end, one is
left praising the extraordinary depth of Mylonas's analysis
and eager for a response from and dialogue with Serb
scholars." - American Historical Review
This book is a comprehensive exposition of the interaction
of a national (the Serbian people) and a religiou (the
Orthodox Christian faith) content, in the formation
of a distinctive national identity and a mode of being.
Its interdisciplinary approach, drawing on sociology,
social anthropology, theology, political theory, Balkan
historiography, and Serbian folklore, is deployed to
provide a powerful and original analysis of how Serbian
Orthodoxy has resulted in the sacralisation of the Serbian
nation by framing the parameters of its existence. Addresses
the following questions: what 'makes' a Serb? Are meaningful
assumptions possible by introducing Serbian Orthodoxy
as the primal point of reference? Why does religion
appear to have an especially strong appeal?
"Its most important contribution is to elaborate
how Serbian Orthodoxy forms a sense of
holiness in creating autonomous ethnic religious structures,
a lineage of ethnic saints
drawn from the ruling dynasty, vernacular scriptures
and ceremonies, that then construct
a sacred history, focusing on the Kosovo myth."
- John Hutchinson, London School of Economics
Contents
Preface; 1. Nation, Religion and Fundamentalism;
2. Orthodoxy and Serbian National Identity; 3. Homo-Femina
Serbicus; 4. The Pursuit of "Secular" Salvation;
5. The Pursuit of "Sacrificial" Salvation;
6. "To Love Your Neighbour as Yourself"; 7.
The Balkan Orthodox Commonwealth; Conclusion;
Bibliography; Index
2003
306 pages
ISBN 978-963-9241-61-9 cloth €50.00/ €35.95 /
£33.00
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