Original scientific paper
Confessional Mentality as a (Dis)Integration Factor
Dragoljub B. Đorđević
; Mechanical Engineering Faculty, University of Niš
Abstract
This paper discusses religiocentrism as a (dis)integration factor. The religiocentrism can be viewed at the two levels: at the level of the whole continent and at the level of one country. In both cases there arc two sublevels: first, the analysis of the relationship between the major religions (Christianity and Islam) and second, the analysis of the relationships between their branches (the Orthodox Church, Catholicism, Protestantism; the Shiites and the Sunni).
At the concrete level, the confessional mentality as a (dis) - integration factor is illustrated in the Yugoslav example in which at least three cultural circles are intertwined: West-European, that is, Catholic-Protestant, Byzantine-Orthodox and Ottomanic-Islamic.
It suggests a genuine defining of the confessionality (identification) and it also gives the confessional panorama of the Yugoslav population. The paper criticizes the way of determining the confessionality used by officials of religious communities: by identifying the confessionality and nationality this method causes disintegration of people on the national and religious grounds dividing them into the confessionally determined and undetermined people, theists, atheists, indifferents and others.
This paper also points out to the sociological fad that the monoconfessionalism of nations is being violated by two types of conversion. One type of conversion makes a pari of one nation lose its original ethnical belonging and become members of another nation. The other type causes the change of confession while the original ethnical belonging is being preserved. Both types are illustrated in the example of Serbians (and Montenegroes).
The conclusion claims that it is possible in multinational and multiconfessional countries such as Yugoslavia to build a unity only if the following altitudes are eliminated: extreme favouritism of the confessional mentality, noncritical identification of nation and religions, non-tolerant identification of nationality and confessionalily, norihumane divisions of people into the ones with a confessional background and those without it, and unduly opposing of theists, atheists and indifferents. This kind of unity can be then cherished among the neighbouring countries, regions and in Europe on the whole. The authors insists on a greater awareness of the Europeans of the need for this unity.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
155409
URI
Publication date:
31.3.1990.
Visits: 1.480 *