1920s Romania and the founding of our church: two books to read
As our church prepares to celebrate one hundred years since its consecration this November, I have been reading a little on the religious and political history of Romania in the 1920s. There are two particular books which have been extremely helpful, and from which I have learned a lot. If you’re looking for something to read on Romania in this period, I recommend them!
The first is called ‘Sectarianism and Renewal in 1920s Romania: The Limits of Orthodoxy and Nation-Building’ by the Liverpool academic, Dr Roland Clark. It traces the ways in which the Romanian Orthodox Church developed after the First World War, exploring the ways that Protestant ideas of religious renewal gained a foothold within Orthodoxy, but also the reaction against these ideas. This is bound up with the history of Protestant groups in Romania, as well as the development of schismatic Orthodox movements and some that existed at the margins of what was seen as acceptable. This was a time of intense social change as Greater Romania incorporated many non-Orthodox citizens into its new borders. The rise in literacy, and the role of the Universities, as well as the wider development of civil society, all contributed to the rapid changes of this period. The activities of Catholics and Protestant groups led to a discourse about sectarianism and nationalism, which would shape people’s ideas about what it meant to be Romanian. This is an absolutely fascinating book, and provides an accessible account of the history of a number of Protestant groups (notably Baptists and Seventh-Day Adventists), as well as the more esoteric groups within Orthodoxy (the Lord’s Army and the Stork’s Nest) and outside it (the Inochentists and Old Calendarists). There is not much about Anglican activity in Romania in this period, though Clark alludes to the close relationship of the hierarchy with the Church of England and the anti-Anglican sentiment this generated in some quarters. The definitive history of Anglicanism in Romania has yet to be written, but this book paints a very clear picture of the fast-changing religious, political and social landscape into which our church was consecrated a hundred years ago.
In addition to being an excellently written, accessible and scholarly work, this book is also available via Open Access. You can download a copy here: https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/52492
The second book is by the journalist and writer Paul Kenyon, ‘Children of the Night: The Strange and Epic Story of Modern Romania.’ I should preface my comments here by noting that I have not yet finished the book, but I have read the chapters covering the 1920s. That said, it is absolutely gripping and it won’t be long until I’ve finished it.
Paul Kenyon has a vivid writing style that brings to life the politicians and royalty of the period. It is well-researched, and I feel like I know what drove these characters and shaped the politics of the Romania from the late-nineteenth century, through the First World War and in the inter-war period. Of particular interest to us in this centenary year is his account of Queen Marie in chapter three, and he captures well her move from foreign princess to Regina Maria a României. He does not shy away from the ugly side of history and documents the rampant anti-Semitism of Romanian society in this period. In relation to this, it is worth remembering that the first Anglican organisation to work in Bucharest was the London Jews’ Society, formerly the London Society for Promoting Christianity Amongst the Jews. Whilst it is uncomfortable, Kenyon’s book can help us understand this aspect of our church’s history by bringing us face to face with the persecution and murder of Jewish people in Romanian society around the time of our church’s foundation.
This is a really superb book and makes clear things I previously only half-knew, and is worth reading for the cinematic portrayal of the key figures of the age. The Romanian translation has just been published, and it can be found in both English and Romanian in the Cărturești bookshop down the road from our church.
Both these books convey the complex and multi-faceted Romania of the inter-war period. They have helped me to nuance my thinking about the religious and political context of the 1920s, and I commend them to you as we begin our centenary celebrations in the coming months.