National Identity. Confessional Identity. Romanians in Transylvania in the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century
National Identity. Confessional Identity. Romanians in Transylvania in the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century

Summary/Abstract: Inside deeply religious bounds, such as Transylvania, confession plays an important role in the effort to emphasize the identity phenomenon. Within the same nation, two Churches competed for the title of National Church. The relationship between the two faiths was not infrequently affected, in part because each Church attempted by various means to prove its own identity. The Romanians’ position of inferiority compared to the other ethnic groups in Transylvania and the possible threat coming from “the other” are elements that also drafted the definition of identity. The two Romanian Churches engaged in the struggle to preserve national identity and they gradually evolved from a Church autonomy into a political one. The Romanian identity discourse outlines into a point where the confessional and political elements become thoroughly intertwined. At the end of the nineteenth century and given the political context, national identity is preserved with the joint effort of both ecclesiastical and political elites despite the differences. Although the secular spirit gains ground, the Church has undoubtedly its extremely important role in preserving and defending a, not only religious but also national right.

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