A religious mosaic
About 90% of believers in Serbia identify with the Orthodox religion. The rest are divided among Catholics, Muslims, Protestants and other Christian groups. Sects of neo-paganism emerged at the turn of the century, but serve only to make headlines. Judaism, historically very old and flourishing under the Ottoman Empire, is now almost extinct since the Holocaust. All these denominations mask the very identity-based nature of religion in Serbia. For example, among the seven constituent peoples of Yugoslavia were Serbs, Croats, Albanians... and Muslims! Not to be confused with Muslims, Muslims with a capital letter are the Slavic people of Islamic culture, also called Bosnians. A Muslim/Bosnian can be Muslim, but he can also be Orthodox. As another example, while most Serbs are Orthodox, they do not all belong to the same church. Belgraders and other Serbs in the region obey the Patriarchate of the Serbian Orthodox Church based in Belgrade (an autocephalous church and therefore essentially national), but Montenegrins and Macedonians have their own patriarch and schismatic church, not recognized by the rest of the Orthodox. The rest of the denominations are divided as follows, again along identity lines
muslims are centered around the Islamic association of Novi Pazar. The Muslims of Sandžak are Sunni and have a very rich cultural heritage, with many mosques built during and after the Ottoman era. They obey the mufti of Novi Pazar rather than the one of Belgrade. The troubles of the Yugoslav war have created radical tendencies, very minority but very present. The second Muslim community is that of the Albanians. Less religious, they live Islam, especially since the Milošević era, as an aspect of their national identity;
serbianProtestants are the Slovaks and the few Germans from Vojvodina. They have a very decentralized practice, which honors their community and traditions, keeping the state as far away as possible. In the schools and villages of the region resound to the rhythm of nursery rhymes, choirs and traditional religious festivals of these communities;
catholics are the most diverse group. The Catholics are the most diverse group. Also concentrated in Vojvodina, they are made up of Hungarian, Croatian and Ruthenian minorities. They practice their religion often alongside their Orthodox compatriots and the sound of Orthodox and Catholic bells is indistinct on days of worship.
Religion under Tito
Contrary to popular belief, the establishment of a communist regime in 1945 did not prevent religious sentiment, even though the regime's apparatus did everything possible to reduce the political and social influence of the churches. After a short episode of Stalinist orthodoxy where religious practice was discouraged to the maximum, after 1948 and Tito's break with the USSR, a certain laissez-faire attitude was established. The Orthodox were never really attacked by the communists, largely because it was easier to ensure the obedience of the patriarch of Belgrade (who had little influence on society anyway). The Catholics were under much more pressure. After all, Vatican doctrine was in direct opposition to communist materialism, and the important role of the Croatian Catholic Church in the fascist Ustasha state was not soon forgotten. Even so, most party officials allowed weddings, baptisms, and funerals to proceed unopposed, and it was common for Catholic officials to perform their ceremony in a remote rural village to reconcile their beliefs with their careers. Finally, Muslims were much more affected: the veil was banned as early as 1948 and Muslims (Bosnians) were enrolled in a major national re-education plan (mainly through privileged access to socialist education). From 1954, a certain freedom in the conduct of its affairs was even granted to the Orthodox Church.
The Yugoslav war was the real trigger for religious tensions. The militias killed each other on religious as well as political grounds (the two being close) and many places of worship were destroyed, their personnel fled or assassinated.
Today, the exit from communism and the Yugoslav crises is accompanied by a great religious vitality, a vitality encouraged by Milošević (himself an atheist) to serve his nationalist purposes. Adult baptisms have been legion in recent years, to "make up for lost time", and voluntary associations to maintain the churches are quite active. Sometimes sports or business personalities put their hands in their pockets, such as basketball player Dejan Bodiroga for the monastery of Ðurđevi Stupovi.The Slava festival
Slava, or "Saint's Day", is a religious holiday of pagan origin and hardly Christianized where the family, gathered under its roof, celebrates the good graces of the patron saint of the family home and honors its ancestors. Each family has its own patron saint, dating back to the origins of the conversion to Orthodoxy, and sometimes more than one, if Mr. and Mrs. wish to preserve their family heritage. The festival is held on the day of the patron saint of each family.
Slava lasts several days, traditionally three, but nowadays it is more like two. To celebrate Slava, one begins by preparing the indispensable Slava cake (slavski kolac), a kind of round bun decorated with its traditional cross and zito
(ground wheat mixed with sugar and chopped nuts). Ideally, the cake is then blessed by the Pope, who goes door to door with the faithful (it is common for several families in the congregation to have the same saint) or stands vigilantly at the church for the families. This blessing is all the more important for the most religious, who could not enjoy it during the communist era. Once the bread is blessed, it is sprinkled with wine (the blood of Christ) and the cake is broken together as a sign of cohesion. This small ceremony is done in front of the icon of the family's patron saint, for whom a candle is lit on occasion.The festive meal that follows will depend on the calendar, depending on whether or not the Slava takes place during the Lenten period. The traditional dishes are in the spotlight: gibanica (cheese pastry),ajvar, kajmak (beaten milk cream) and sarma
(stuffed cabbage leaves). There are many guests, but since many Slavas are held on the same day, they rarely linger for more than an hour in each family.In the old days, there were also Slava for communities: schools, villages, or even regiments, which resulted in large banquets with processions. This tradition is largely lost.
Slava was included in 2014 on the representative list of intangible heritage of humanity of Unesco. Despite the Serbian national infatuation with this ritual, it is not exclusive to them and Slava is celebrated a little bit everywhere in former Yugoslavia, even in some Romanian and Bulgarian communities.
