Original scientific paper
Conversions from the Orthodox to the Roman and Greek Catholic faith in the District of Križevci in the Independent State of Croatia
Filip Škiljan
orcid.org/0000-0001-7979-1359
; Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
The District of Križevci consisted in the period between two world wars and during the Independent State of Croatia regime of the following counties: Gradec, Raven, Sveti Ivan Žabno, Sveti Petar Čvrstec, Sveti Petar Orehovec, Vojakovac and Vrbovec. According to the census of 1931 there were 2 952 Uniates in the District, who accounted for 5.1 % of the population (including the city of Križevci). The author deals in the article especially with the conversion from the Orthodox to the Greek and Roman Catholic faith in the District of Križevci in the period from 1941 to 1945. The research is based on the material from the Croatian State Archives (archival holdings of the Archdiocesan Archives in Zagreb, the Ministry of Justice and Religious Affairs of the Independent State of Croatia and the State Agency for Economical Renewal of the Independent State of Croatia). The author concludes on the basis of a list of the names of converts or applicants for conversion from 12 of the 18 parishes of the District of Križevci that around half of the Orthodox Church members either applied for a conversion or became converts, mostly in the period from April of 1941 to April 1942. The documentation on the conversion of Uniates to the Roman Catholic faith is excellently preserved, while the conversions to the Greek Catholic faith are only documented by a list of names, without the supporting documentation. Based on the material from the Croatian State Archives, it can be concluded that the strain in the relations between the Roman Catholic and the Greek Catholic Church in the Križevci area was caused by squabbling over the facilities and members of the Orthodox Church.
Keywords
World War II; religious conversions; Križevci; Serbs; Orthodox faith; Greek Catholic faith; Roman Catholic Faith
Hrčak ID:
150060
URI
Publication date:
28.12.2015.
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