Thy Will Be Done?: Religious Nationalism and Its Effects in East Central Europe. (May 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Grzymała-Busse, Anna
• Editors: Bernhard, Michael; Jasiewicz, Krzysztof
• Is Part Of: East European politics and societies. Volume 29:Number 2(2015)
• Page Start: 338
• Page End: 351
• Publication Date: 2015-05
• Subjects: religion -- nationalism -- historical legacies -- coalitions; Europe, Eastern -- Politics and government -- 1945-1989 -- Periodicals; Europe, Eastern -- Politics and government -- 1989- -- Periodicals; Europe, Eastern -- Social conditions -- Periodicals; 947.0005
• DOI: 10.1177/0888325414550363
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0888-3254

Abstract

Levels of both religiosity and of religious influence on public policy vary enormously across the countries of post-communist East Central Europe. This variation poses a challenge to existing explanations, which have focused on religious competition and alliances with political parties to explain religious participation and policy influence, respectively. The legacy of religious nationalism instead helps to explain both the vibrancy of religious participation and the influence of churches on democratic public policy. This variation also calls for greater scrutiny of "historical legacies": while some patterns are durable and reach back centuries, others are recent innovations.