Неизяснени аспекти на кризата в Българската православна църква в Америка (1938 – 1999) – част I (1938 – 1989) (по архивни материали)
Unclarified Aspects of the Crisis in the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in America (1938 – 1999) – Part I (1938 – 1989)

Summary/Abstract: This study explores various aspects of the crisis within the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in the United States and Canada during the period 1938 – 1989, aspects that have largely remained unclarified by history scholarship both in Bulgaria and internationally. Two main reasons motivate this focus. Firstly, these aspects have either not been addressed in the existing literature on the subject or have not received adequate scholarly attention.Secondly, newly available archival materials in the Central State Archives (CSA) at the State Archives Agency (SAA) of Bulgaria offer new insights into divisions within the Bulgarian Diocese in America (BDA).Foremost among these aspects is the influence exerted by the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation (IMRO) during this period within the Macedonian–Bulgarian emigrant community in the United States. Scholarly attention has traditionally focused on the role of the Macedonian Patriotic Organisation (MPO) and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in shaping community life, while the impact of IMRO and its former activists in the diaspora has been largely overlooked. A second dimension examined here is the little-known role of Ivan Mihailov (Radko), the last leader of the historical IMRO, in the genesis and the evolution of discord within the BDA. This analysis draws on previously unknown sources, enabling a reassessment of the issue from a new scholarly perspective. In this context, the second part of the study also considers the significance of Rome as a center of Macedonian political activity following the Second World War.A third aspect, not less important, concerns the cultural policies pursued by IMRO, MPO, and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church among Macedonian–Bulgarian church communities in America – policies directly linked to the influence of these three entities. Fourth, the study examines the strategies of IMRO, MPO, and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church aimed at preserving the Bulgarian identity of the diaspora that originated from the geographical region of Macedonia in the New World. This discussion highlights the roles of emigration policy, ecclesiastical institutions, and national movements in maintaining the community's cohesion and identity. The fifth aspect analysed in the study is the relationship between IMRO, MPO, and the Bulgarian state during the Cold War – a relationship that proved pivotal to developments within the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in America from the end of the Second World War to the global transformations of the late 1980s. Given the extensive chronological scope of this inquiry, the study is divided into two parts: the first covering the years 1938 – 1989, and the second addressing the period 1990 – 1999.

• Details
• Contents