Garčević Explores Synergy Between Serbian Church and State
On November 11, 2022, Ambassador Vesko Garčević, Professor of the Practice of International Relations at Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, participated in a workshop hosted by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs from Georgetown University, and the United States Instituted for Peace on the geopolitics of religion and culture in the Western Balkans.
Garčević was joined on a panel titled “Projections of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Balkans” by experts from the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), the University of Belgrade’s Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, and the McCain Institute. In his presentation, titled “The Serbian Orthodox Church: A Church of Prayer or of Politics,” Garčević addressed the synergy between the church and state in Orthodox countries.
Recent surveys confirm that more people in Orthodox-majority countries than in other Christian countries support church-state ties. This symbiosis or symphony of authorities – known as Byzantine symphony – means the state supports the Church while the Church affirms the government’s policies. Garčević says this is why it is politically opportune for political elites to play the Church card to influence people’s orientation. At the same time, it is appropriate for the clergy to support the government and its policies. For example, the Russian Orthodox Church often lavishes praise on President Vladimir Putin.
As the most trusted institution among Orthodox Christians, Garčević notes that the Church is not only seen as an instrument of soft/sharp power that can be utilized by the state for political purposes. It can also serve as an effective political tool to interfere with the domestic affairs of other states since it often enjoys a privileged status, sometimes operating in a grey zone outside the legal system of the host.
During his diplomatic career, Ambassador Vesko Garčević dealt with issues pertinent to European security and NATO for almost 14 years. In 2004, he was posted in Vienna to serve as Ambassador to Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He had been Montenegro’s Ambassador to NATO from 2010 until 2014 and served as Montenegro’s National Coordinator for NATO from 2015 until he joined the faculty at the Pardee School. Learn more about Ambassador Garčević on his faculty profile.