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4. From Repression to Denial: Responses of the Serbian Orthodox Church to Accusations of Antisemitism
- Central European University Press
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ChaPter four from Repression to Denial Responses of the Serbian Orthodox Church to Accusations of Antisemitism the discussion of the role of repression in Velimirović’s rehabilitation focused primarily on material which dates back to the late 1980s and the early 1990s, and therefore to the early stages of the bishop’s return to the mainstream. at the same time, more recent examples have shown that the image of Velimirović’s supposed affliction during the nazi occupation remains embedded in the overall discourse of remembrance . the inclusion of the theme of suffering in the short prayer (kondak) dedicated to Velimirović—which was formally endorsed by the Church on the occasion of his canonization—as well the reference to it by a protagonist of the documentary “Why people Whisper in Church” or by Deacon ljubomir Ranković on Radio Free Europe confirmed the fact that martyrological interpretations have become an indispensable aspect of the routine of Velimirović’s celebration. although the martyrdom myth was shown to provide the rhetorical means for fighting off actual or anticipated challenges to the bishop ’s integrity, in the early stages of the rehabilitation, “wilful forgetting ” owed much of its success to the relative absence, in public discourse , of alternative, critical interpretations of Velimirović’s personal life. in the late 1980s, state-controlled media were silently complicit in the overall nationalist project and the efforts to bring nikolaj Velimirovi ć back into the mainstream. old communist critique of the bishop ’s life gradually began to wane, giving the sympathetic appraisals relatively free reign. even after the relations between the serbian government and the Church deteriorated in the second half of 1991 (see R. Radić, 2002b; tomanić, 2001), the efforts of Velimirović’s supporters were never officially challenged or undermined by the authorities. only a few individuals, belonging to the country’s liberal intelligentsia, made occasional attempts to “remind” the public of the contention 11 Denial and Repression of antisemitism surrounding Velimirović’s life. in 1991, at the time of the hype surrounding Velimirović’s “return” to serbia, serbian Jewish author filip David wrote an article for the independent magazine Vreme in which he condemned the bishop’s antisemitism and warned against his uncritical rehabilitation (David, 1991). the essay on serbian populism by sociologist nebojša popov published in the same magazine in 1993 examined the ideology of nikolaj Velimirović in the context of 1930s populist culture (popov, 1993). in 1996, the magazine Republika published a lengthy and unsympathetic account of Velimirović’s religious philosophy (m. Đorđević, 1996). in the same year, the monthly bulletin published by the Union of Jewish Communities of serbia featured an article “‘saint’ against the Jews,” which criticized Velimirović’s antisemitism, while in the contribution to the edited volume Serbia’s Road to War, historian Radmila Radić reflected on the way in which the popularization of nikolaj Velimirović in the late 1980s and early 1990s accompanied the rise of nationalism within the serbian Church (“‘svetac’ protiv Jevreja,” 1996; R. Radić, 2002b). apart from these occasional unfavorable evaluations, critical discourse surrounding Bishop nikolaj’s life and work was undeveloped and remained confined to liberal elite circles and publications that wielded comparatively little influence in serbian society. it failed to threaten, in any significant way, the far more organized and widespread propagation and reinforcement of the sanitized version of Velimirović’s life. in the aftermath of the fall of slobodan milošević in october 2000, the widespread adulation of nikolaj Velimirović became the subject of more regular criticism from serbia’s liberal intellectuals, independent media, and civil rights organizations. this is primarily because Velimirović’s rising popularity in serbia was linked to the increase in the public presence and political influence of nationalist elements within the serbian Church. the emerging “new” or “post-milo- šević” serbian nationalism had a notable religious component, offering a new value system based on orthodox religious dogma. a report published in 2003 by the serbian office of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights concluded the following: the downfall of milošević marked the end of the Communist ideology . the ensuing political vacuum was filled with anti-Communism, monarchism and orthodox religion. the serbian orthodox Church [44.204.204.14] Project MUSE (2024-03-28 14:15 GMT) 11 From Repression to Denial gained a prominent role on the political scene, and that development was wholeheartedly backed by [Vojislav Koštunica]. the Church gained a dominant position in society, which enabled it to launch a campaign for the re-traditionalisation of...