The Position and Role of the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, Twenty Years after the Fall of Communism

U uvodnim reminiscencijama autor polazi od deklarativnog i stvarnog urušavanja komunističkog sustava, uz zapažanje kako, unatoč tom urušavanju prije 20 godina, još uvijek nije posve nestao mentalitet tog ideološkog sustava. Zatim autor pokazuje kako Crkve u Srednjoj i Istočnoj Europi nisu do kraja prevladale višedesetljetnu nametnutu getoizaciju, kako na osobnoj, društvenoj, a jednim dijelom i na strukturalnoj razini, te kako do sada Crkva u postkomunističkim zemljama nije dovoljno ispunila svoju povijesnu i milenijsku misiju trajnog dizanja svojeg proročkog glasa protiv svake vrste socijalnih nepravdi, te kako nije uspjela preko svojih članova aktivno utjecati na politički i gospodarski razvoj, pritom se svjesno stavljajući na stranu ugroženih. Time je na iskušenju njezina vjerodostojnost jer se Crkva nerijetko nalazi u opasnosti mogućeg konformizma spram države u zemljama Srednje i Istočne Europe. Istodobno je u opasnosti postati odviše ekleziocentrično, a premalo društveno usmjerenom, te istodobno premalo samokritičnom. To kod građana nekih zemalja dovodi do trajnog opadanja povjerenja u Crkvu kao instituciju (Hrvatska, Mađarska, Češka i Slovenija). U drugom dijelu autor pretresa očekivanja od Crkava te njihove zadaće oslanjajući se na rezultate empirijskoga istraživanja religija i Crkava u zemljama Srednje i Istočne Europe Aufbruch II. iz 2007. godine. Iz istraživanja je razvidno kako se od Crkava očekuje da budu društveni čimbenici koji daju svoj doprinos na duhovnom, odgojnom, socijalnom te moralno-etičkom području, ali se od njih ne očekuje da budu određeni korektiv političarima te da se previše javljaju u javnosti službenim istupima. Autor zaključuje kako Crkve Srednje i Istočne Europe nisu dovršile svoje repozicioniranje unutar društva, a tako ni posve prevladale višedesetljetnu getoizaciju.Pritom u spomenutim zemljama nije došlo do optimalne prementalizacije kako na društvenoj tako i na političkoj razini, ali se nije dogodila ni pastoralna prementalizacija, nego su se pojedine Crkve zadovoljile površnom i ritualno-folklornom nazočnošću u javnosti. Time se indirektno priznao neuspjeh korjenitog afirmiranja socijalne dimenzije vjere i crkvenosti u društvu u kojemu živi i djeluje, a tako i neintegriranost Crkava preko svojih članova na području znanosti i kulture. Samim time u pitanje je dovedena i uspješnost evangeliziranja javnosti.In his introductory reminiscence, the author starts from the declarative and realistic ruin of the communist system however, pointing out that despite the fall of communism occurring over 20 years ago, the communist mentality has not completely disappeared yet. The author then points out that the Church in Central and Eastern Europe has not overcome the ghetoisation it has been exposed to over the past couple of decades - at the personal, social and partially structural level. So far the Church in post-communist countries has not sufficiently fulfilled its historical and millennial mission to continually raise its prophetic voice against all forms of social injustice. The Church has not actively influenced political and economic developments through its members nor has it stood firmly on side with the oppressed. This brings its credibility into question because the Church in Central and Eastern Europe is often faced with the danger of conforming to the State. At the same time it is faced with the danger of becoming too ecclesiacentric and lacking social direction as well as self-criticism. In some countries this has led to a constant decline of trust in the Church as an institution (Croatia, Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovenia). In the second part of the article, the author scales through expectations and duties of Churches based on the results of empirical research of religion and Churches in Central and Eastern European countries - Aufbruch II, 2007. The results indicate that Churches are expected to be social factors that contribute to spiritual, educational, social and morally-ethic fields as well as an expectation that they be a corrective for politicians and finally that they do not appear officially to often in public. The author concludes that the Churches in Central and Eastern Europe haven\u27t quite completed repositioning themselves within society and as such have not overcome the trend of becoming ghettoised. In these countries an overturn in mentality has not occurred either - socially or politically - nor has an overturn in mentality occurred in pastorale. Instead individual Churches have satisfied themselves with being present in public as mere ritual-folklore. This indirectly admits failure of any resolute affirmation of the social dimension of faith and ecclesiality in society in which it lives and acts which has led to a non-integration of Churches through their members in the fields of science and culture. This in itself brings into question the success of evangelisation of the public