Современные религиозные трансформации в поликультурной среде: неопротестантские общины в Воеводине (Сербия)

Abstract

During the last decades religion has faced significant changes and the number of new religions increased in post-communist countries of Eastern and Central Europe. In Serbia, these changes led to new legal frameworks for both traditional churches and new religious communities. Although neo-Protestant communities were founded in the late 19th and the beginning of 20th centuries, they could be classi- fied as «new religions» since they became more visible after the fall of communism. Neo-Protestants have spread their teachings in eth- nically and confessional heterogeneous environments, such as the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and especially among eth- nic minorities. Unlike mostly homogenous traditional communities in Serbia, neo-Protestants emphasize the principle of trans-ethnicity and trans-nationalism. This paper shows the dynamics of neo-Protestant communities in the region as well as changes that occurred in religious identities of the converts. The paper also indicates how reli- gious transformations lead to diversification within a community that seems mono-ethnic and mono-confessional.