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The conflict in Eastern Ukraine and the European refugee crisis have led to a dramatic increase in forced displacement across Europe. Fleeing war and violence, millions of refugees and internally displaced people face the social and political cultures of the predominantly Christian Orthodox countries in the post-Soviet space and Southeastern Europe. This book examines the ambivalence of Orthodox churches and other religious communities, some of which have provided support to migrants and displaced populations while others have condemned their arrival. How have religious communities and state institutions engaged with forced migration? How has forced migration impacted upon religious practices, values and political structures in the region? In which ways do Orthodox churches promote human security in relation to violence and 'the other'? The book explores these questions by bringing together an international team of scholars to examine extensive material in the former Soviet states (Ukraine, Russia, Georgia and Belarus), Southeastern Europe (Turkey, Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania), Western Europe and the United States.
List of contents
1.Eastern Orthodoxy, Forced Migration and Human Security: Concepts and Policy Perspectives Lucian N. Leustean Part I. Religion, Migration and Human Security in the Former Soviet States 2. Orthodox Churches, Nation-Building and Forced Migration in Ukraine Viktor Yelensky 3. The Russian Orthodox Church, Human Security, Migration and Refugees: Concepts, Strategies and Actions Alicja Curanović 4. The State’s Guardian Angel? The Georgian Orthodox Church and Human Security Tornike Metreveli 5. The Russian-Ukrainian Conflict and the European Refugee Crisis: The Policies of State and Church and Civil Society in Belarus Alena Alshanskaya Part II. Religion, Migration and Human Security in Southeastern Europe 6. The Impact of the Syrian Refugee Crisis on Turkey’s State Capacity Kivanç Ulusoy 7. The Orthodox Church of Greece: Church-State Relations, Migratory Patterns and Sociopolitical Challenges Georgios E. Trantas 8. The Humanitarian Engagement of Faith-Based Organizations in Serbia: Balancing between the Vulnerable Human and the (In)Secure (Nation)State Marta Stojić Mitrović and Aleksandra Djurić Milovanović 9. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the Refugee Crisis Daniela Kalkandjieva 10. Policies and Perspectives on Human Security and International Mobility in the Romanian Orthodox Church Iuliana Conovici Part III. Eastern Orthodoxy and Migration in Western Europe and the United States 11. From Orthodox Migrants to the Migration of the Orthodox Church(es): Making Sense of the Orthodox Presence in Western Europe Jean-François Mayer 12. Hospitality for Strangers? Policies and Practices of Eastern Christian Churches and Charities in Support of New Migrants to the United States and Refugees Abroad Jerry G. Pankhurst
About the author
Lucian N. Leustean is Reader in Politics and International Relations at Aston University, Birmingham, United Kingdom.
Summary
The conflict in eastern Ukraine and the European refugee crisis have led to a dramatic increase in forced displacement across Europe. This book examines the ambivalence of Orthodox churches and other religious communities, some of which have provided support to migrants and displaced populations while others have condemned their arrival.
Additional text
A valuable contribution to understanding the diversity of the Orthodox Church and its local historical differences. From a social science perspective, the contributions show the social importance of church actors, which politics and international charity and human rights work must reckon with. From a theological perspective, they are an important testimony to the active involvement of lay organizations, which often disappear behind the analysis of the positions of church leaders. However, they are also an indication of the social-ethical void within the Orthodox theologies and in intra-Orthodox dialogue. - Regina Elsner, in TRAFO
