“This Is Our Professional Feast”: Religious Exopraxis and Work Identity in the Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria Detelina Tocheva

To cite this version:

Detelina Tocheva. “This Is Our Professional Feast”: Religious Exopraxis and Work Identity in the Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria. Common Knowledge, Duke University Press, 2020, 26 (2), pp.276- 289. ￿10.1215/0961754X-8188880￿. ￿halshs-02635573￿

HAL Id: halshs-02635573 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-02635573 Submitted on 9 Jun 2020

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. "This Is Our Professional Feast": Religious Exopraxis and Work Identity in the Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria

Detelina Tocheva

Common Knowledge, Volume 26, Issue 2, April 2020, pp. 276-289 (Article)

Published by Duke University Press

For additional information about this article https://muse.jhu.edu/article/755585

[ Access provided at 27 May 2020 12:21 GMT from CNRS BiblioSHS ] cial political discourse. political fcial of in and media public and is not framed in terms of tolerance or good interfaith relations, as it is in the region, the mutual involvement the of in Christians life and everyday Muslims to is also regardedand asritual intrinsicto belonging practices of multitude a of ample space for Muslims as well. the framework In ofcelebration, this as that in leaving while Orthodoxy, to belonging signal that observance and knowledge beenremarkable, found having in ways of including loosethe forms of religious Mountains. Rhodope central the of part southern the in Smolyan, from km 30 some located focus was on the interactive metamorphoses of ritual and the local and domes and local the and ritual of metamorphoses interactive the on was focus main myf eldwork,of year rst f my During past. the in numerousmore been workings of this socialist legacy socialist this of workings f of cially to build a society without religion. At present, ironically, the protracted religion, especially Orthodox andChristianity (even more harshly) Islam, aiming mil aog ugra Muslims, Bulgarian among mainly , 2009 in feldwork began I Discreet Divisions and Inconspicuous Boundary Crossings outside. the from invisible mostly are that level the two religious groups are taken for granted and articulated in a way and at a cial discourses inconspicuously. discourses cial f of rather, ual, draws on while, atthose institutions samethesubvertingtheir time, izednot by avoiding interaction or referencewith, to, church and state. The rit and becoming socially meaningful. This alternative confguration has been feastreal attests to alternative an con off guration religious shape coexistence taking closelyBut intertwined. Orthodox de factoparticipationMuslimBulgarian a in from nationalists in whose discourse anti- pices of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. The church has strong political support in the framework of a Christian- fourteenth century and lasted until the late nineteenth nineteenth late the until lasted and century fourteenth late the in established was domination Ottoman period. Ottoman the of vestige a tradition, f Hana Sunni the to tion may be closer to 12 percent. The vast majority belong tion identifed themselves as Muslims; the actualtionCensus propor 4. Hashamova, and Dragostinova See place organizations. cial f of take of outside necessarily configurations alternative such 2. Post- 3.

Onreligious coexistence inthe see Balkans, Bryant, In Bulgaria, according to the last census ( Hence my analysis departs from the argument that that argument the from departs analysis my Hence Ottoman Coexistence percent of the total popula total the of 10 percent www.nsi.bg), , Beyond Beyond Mosque, Church, and State 5 Bulgarian Christians form a tiny minority in this village but havebut village this in minority tiny a form Christians Bulgarian .

— Muslim ritual that has developed under the aus the under developed has that ritual Muslim

the elevation of work identity 2 2011Popula . The fofexibility the Orthodox Church has Ottoman and Ottomananti- - - - 3 The mutual care and support care The of mutual years. ten past the over region the affected strongly has decline ing is villages atestimated around 41. ,000 A demographic tants; the municipality that also includes the neighbor 5. Eminov, seeperiod,Neuburger, socialist post early and socialist late the in Bulgaria in Muslims ish- rk Tu the from distinct group ethnoreligious an form Muslims Lesde Musulmans l’Europe de Sud- (Clayer Bougarel, and Muslims ,000 900 oflation around is are Bulgarian, estimated at 130 ,out000 of a total popu century. Muslims, Bulgarian those whose native language

The town of SmolyanoftownThearound has 30 inhabi ,000 speaking Muslim speaking minority of the country. About Turkish and Other Muslim Minorities in Bulgaria in Minorities Muslim Other and Turkish Muslim motifs are motifs Muslim

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are expressedare in a village village a in TheOrient Within Est ,

18 - - - -

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). Bulgarian 19Bulgarian ). , and and , . - - - - Tocheva • Xenophilia: Part 6 277 More than a quarter century after the fall of the com the of fall the after century quarter a than More nomenclature. popular the tolerates nonetheless church the but Church, Orthodox Bulgarian the by recognized been ever has saint Nosuch Spas. named saint a is there ( 7. the privacy of my informants. 6. Spasov den

COMMON KNOWLEDGE 278 In Bulgaria, the Ascension is known as Savior’s Day Day Savior’s as known is Ascension the Bulgaria, In “Rhodope “Rhodope Travel” is a pseudonym that I use to protect ). A vast majority of the population thinks that that ). A vast ofmajority population the thinks the buses of Rhodope Travel (in additionondoride,mostlocals,believers. atIofasarea, Muslim workthe the When in to a private car). I was able to witness and assess one of the numerous practices open Christian to profession- are practices Driver,ritual whosethe of Day the economy. in interesttic fspeci c Hencemy he had just used (in accordance with tradition) for sprinkling the water.the ofOne tradition)accordanceforsprinkling (in with used justhad he women from the company, a of pail holy water and the bunch of that geraniums moreprayers andblessed plaquethe holy with water. He thenpresented, to two readcelebration.priest The this organized had years many employeesforwho two of memory the to dedicated was plaque the day,previous the wall the on commemorativecompanyatravel movedfacingentrance, plaque. the to Placed end the of service. the until stood silently and respectfully case, any in Everyone, Christians. Orthodox others and Muslims, Sunni were Orthodoxtradition. thoseAmong who did not signmakethe of cross,the some Eastern accordance with themselvesin crossed administration, the positions in of the attendees, among whom the director and the few women who occupy high them and on a large sheep tied up nearby. During the short service, about a third parish church, recited prayers and blessed the public holyby sprinkling water on day. Beside the garage, a priest, the head of the neighboring Bulgarian Orthodox next the on Ascension the celebrationof the forpreparation in held be to was tor of Rhodope Travel, gathered in front of the company’s garage.main A ritual out of employees,eighty the direc the oftown along with Smolyan, some thirty area. depressed economically this in striking is rituals, religious Day of the Driver the of Day organize on the Day of the Ascension, here called are the festivities that Rhodope Travel and other local transportation companies typical region. Also ofthis oldthe typical regime.areSuch nostalgic narratives oldpridedaysandtheir beingprofessional in fordrivers Rhodope Travel under the passionately recall age,retirementreached having after working still some andthat it transporter was thein late socialist period. Old drivers, some retired, tainous area, though nowadays the company is but a shadow of the mass employer sengeris oftransportation great f cance and practical in moun symbolic signi this When this part of the ritual was nished,f the priest and the people from the MayIn 2017 on,the morning of the thirty-

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Savior’sDay). based. And working in a mainly Muslim environment, environment, Muslim mainly a in working And based. - 7 “Mount of the Cross,” 73Cross,” of“Mount the in the period in Valtchinova,ofisrule analyzed Ottoman relevance its and region, Rhodope central the in tianity” Chris “diffuse of pattern There is a historical observance. still barely versed in the norms of religious knowledge and from aboveChristianity since 1989 atheism fc scienti impose to attempt failed its and regime munist The vibrancy of ritual life, and especially of especially and life, ofritual vibrancy The

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and despite the political promotion of Orthodox Den na shooraf ninth day after Easter, in the the Easter, in after day ninth

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. 75 6 This company for pas for company This

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Spasov den

the population is is population the (the - - - - few minutes earlier, while another man, a specialist in sheep slaughtering (not an is why we continue our tradition. We do it for health.” women explained: “We have never had a serious travel accident or a fatality. That and garages, the sprinkling buses and the director’s own car with holy water. The other woman received the pail. The group then went throughout the parking lot the geraniums; the took administration, the in up higherone the women, the eted over the last twenty years. eted over twenty last the garia, because the number of car accidents has skyrock 8. tradition,”I was told. A dozen men the is “This garage. ofthe ramp main the todown blood Its mal.trickle had to ani fcial sacri the of throat the through slicing was company), the of employee with the question: “Why do Muslim employees take part in this Christian event?” day, but the gathering at the Chapel of St. Savior is the most popular. other localities in the region where transportation companies get together on several are this There music. folk of local sound the to afternoon the throughout ued the sacrif cial of Smolyan presented seven awards, two of which went to Rhodope Travel. Then the company’s director exhorted exhorted all to pray for good health and unproblematic travel. third roads;a the on safety with blessdriversSavior appealedtoSt. next to the stage.froma One commended participantsthe Ascensionthein celebrations; saidprayers outside and blessed themeal. politicians Local made short speeches transport companies. After a liturgical service in the chapel, a priest and a deacon atmosphere. A part of the covered space is reserved for locals not belonging to the Employees, members of their families, and guests enjoy a free meal in the festive place. in settables and bencheslong with space,roofed own its has companies Sveti Spas chapelis yard,the to entrance main over itsarch the an on written name,popular Ascension, the of Chapel the as consecration its during named Although forest. Rhodope the of view in Smolyan,of vicinity the in chapel adjacenta to three decades ago. people have enacted ritual this every year since the fall of the communist regime the ritual and of processing the meat was executed with impressive agility. These of phase Every noon. until lastedevent The organizers. former assisting from day.skills his acquiredcookworksTravelforRhodopeTheand driver bus a as next the cooked be to were evening previous the slaughteredone of and sheep meat into piecessmall on tables cleaned and set the day before. The meat of this

Safety on the road has been a major concern in Bul in major aconcern been has road the on Safety Meanwhile,fourmen were holding sheepthe priest the hadthat blessed a Before the ritual, I had addressed some of the employees of Rhodope Travel The feast of the Ascension took place the next day on a hillside meadow,hillside a on day next the placetookAscension the of feast The (St. Savior). Surrounding the chapel, each of the largest transportation kurban soup, cooked with mutton, was served, and the feast contin feast the and served, was mutton, with cooked soup,

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had brought knives from home and began cutting the the cutting homehadbroughtfrom began and knives

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Christians and Muslims alike, along with with along alike, Muslims and Christians - - 8 Finally, the mayor - -

Tocheva • Xenophilia: Part 6 279 friends, in accordance with the local Orthodox custom.seen Muslims lighting candles at the offunerals Christian often have I Smolyan, near villages In occasions. special 9.

COMMON KNOWLEDGE 280 Local Muslims perform some Orthodox rituals on on rituals Orthodox some perform Muslims Local by the Bulgarian com Bulgarian the 1961 by in established was company The legacy. socialist a profession, prestigeofthe driving the whichpaystowith itsiscontrasts drivers currently it that salaries low the and times, hard onTravel fallenRhodope has Profession and Religion Intertwined is the ofassertion the drivers’ professional identity that is clearly at stake. collective expression of religious devotion is essential to the day’s observances. It between sexes. Religion provides the framework, but neither the personal distinction northe overshadowed bythe is distinction religious the Driver the of Day men who attend. Driving is a markedly male profession in this region, and on the celebrationyounger and women, chapel,also at althoughare children, there the middle- whole, a As women. forreserved tasks the tablesatare serving andsideexception. dishesPreparing an be soup,toseemsbuther participationthe making in joinswhowoman a is raised some disapprobation: “We do not divide!”notdisapprobation: dosome“We raised misunderstanding.andIt even of surprise Mymix questiona metwas gin. with I had been told that previously moreemployees their half than are of ori Muslim this rule goes unvoiced. Christian men, thus far, have sacrifced the sheep and cooked the others saw to matters of organization, set up the tables, and served the food. Only minutes. The employees of Rhodope Travel were mostly a few just seated after on returned who went inside benches, of those most chapel; the in while dox service ofnumber peopleOrtho the attended limited a liations). very Only f af religious (whatever their colleagues one’s fof ce for and oneself for both protection, for wish a express religious, they Toareunnoticed. almostthey godegreethat the they that Bulgaria in publicand throughout services offprivateof rms ces f the widely so spread have Iconsdécor. fof ce in one’staste express may icons ing expressionan ofreligious devotion ofone’sthan jewelry,tastein justhangas less be may cross a director’s.wearing companyBut the including walls, fof ce employees of Rhodope Travel wore crosses. Orthodox icons hang on a couple of belongingrituals.Christianeasiertherecognize:coupleising to awomen of “This is our professional feast.” for granted by my interlocutors: “Of course everybody attends,” one driver said. whereas neededtaken it exopraxiswasimplied explaining, sometimesdo.that I publicwhich the wantedBulgaria way in mediaemphasizeto the in in division, I must stress that no external signs indicated the presence of Muslims dur of presence Muslims the indicated signs no external that I stress must 9 I was told that, in another company’s celebration, there agedandolder men overrepresentedare the during

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as if by raising this issue I issue this raising by if as kurban soup, but - - - - - privatization of 2007restructuring. privatization , employees the were some faced with painful itself and selling the remainder to a private holding company. holding private a to remainder the selling and itself formed it into a jointoneofonly for shares stock company,the quarter retaining trans , 2007 in which, Smolyan, of municipality the to enterprise the in shares its the company remained state property. In 1997 the of Ministry Transport gave all 1989 in regime , communist the collapseof period).the Evenafter postsocialist munist state (the other companiestransportation in the area are creations of the . 10 agriculture. productive regardedareawas backward, asunderdevelopedwith underandinfrastructure the region: of during the rstf half ofmodernization the twentieth the century, to the Rhodope Mountaincontributed company The family. same the of erations people solocal many have worked for company, the gen or two three sometimes buses connect the town of Smolyan to most surrounding villages but also because its becauseonly not inhabitants local all to Travelknown Rhodopeme.istold hundred people in the 1970s and 1980s. It even had a football team, an old driver rious past. Retired employees told me that the company used to employ over f ve sources of income and self- an old- receivecompany the work in tocontinuebut reached retirementhaveagewho Thoseabroad. working relatives and children from remittances on and beans, isnot enough to live on. They rely on homegrown potatoes andfoods, typically ist- l socia salary DAP a ndthatproliferation andf butarea, they ofthe precarious jobs in s it by ny whom compa I spoke are happy to he have a t stable job, given the deepening to unemployment iskarefer zaplata employees negativeahas resonance. Employees ( now of“DAPsalary” rent speak their r u c nd a mer era acronym, DAP (for “State for Automobile Enterprise”). h At present, the acronym bot Today, Rhodope Mountain region would open up to the rest the of that theand citiescountry. outsidethe modernization improvelifewould In thatevidence those days, transportation public for introduced were buses logical slogans about progress and the radiant future. radiant the and progress about slogans logical teleo socialist with intertwined a project region’sthe infrastructure, modernizing access. Beginning in the 1950s and 1960s, the state undertook a titanic project for Ltd., was registered as a private company for passenger passenger for company private a as registered was Ltd., . 11 privatization. who woman fted postsocialist has from bene business uential f in an to belongs company holding The to real and estate, andfuel distribution tourism, banking. production wine from ranging Bulgaria, of sectors ious

rm that I am calling Rhodope Travel, Travel, Rhodope calling am I that rm f 2017 the In This holding company is an important actor in var This current situation is at odds with what locals recall as the company’s glo age pension in addition to their salary. It is only the combination of these ) as a synonym forinadequate employeespayment.synonym Mostofthea as )with 12 Most villages, scattered around the hills, were f cultdif to provisioning that allows them to remain in region. the to them allows remain that provisioning -

— Rodopskiia Krai (1944 Krai Rodopskiia . 13 Voina.” Svetovna Vtorata Prez Naselenie Srednorodopskoto na . 12 employees. transportation,with forty-

a novelty viewed at the time as

Damianov, “Sotsialno- Damianov, Monov, “Ikonomicheski i Sotsialni Izmenenia v Izmenenia Sotsialni i “Ikonomicheski Monov, 13 As a part of the process,theof part a As 10 Even before the

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),” and and ),” 1977 Ikonomichesko Polozhenie Polozhenie Ikonomichesko one buses and eighty- and buses one dapadzi Rodopskiiat Krai 11 ------

. four four

Tocheva • Xenophilia: Part 6 281 . 1912 until rule Ottoman under remained Smolyan of region . 14 COMMON KNOWLEDGE 282

Bulgaria Bulgaria became an independent state in 1878, but the professional associations. professional to equally assume wrongheaded a lack ofbe continuity in the support would of the it church for But the drivers and their regime. national the in change each at drivers, irrespective of the radical in shifts ideology and in the economy endured arrangedtheexhibition wished toemphasize thecontinuing importance ofthe socialist- ofday. Pictures our of professionals transport the of predecessors presocialist are pictures the in men the that wrongheaded assume towouldbe it site,and religious this of use presocialist the aboutevidence historical decisive means no by is offers ofchapelthe whileit undergoing wasagain renovation.exhibit small this What site the peopleon of group a blessing1990 earlys the in priests showtographs by the communist regime, which had been established shortly before. Other pho 1948dissolved associationin was transport Thepriest.Orthodox blessed an by being and Ascension the celebrating chapel the at men these of group a show photographsSomeAutomobileTransportation. for Association Economic the on to men, all show belonging a exhibit and owners car local drivers, group called to celebrate Savior’s Day. Driver, has taken advantage of this decline to insert itself into the professionalthe intoitself insert to decline this ofadvantage taken Driver,has are now worn; its buildings are crumbling, and its offces poorly equipped. as one sign, among others, of their region’s passengers decline.of numbers The buses of diminishing the and buses of number reduced the regard even to the most remote villages and yet were always full. Atfrequently traveledpresent, buses spoken, havethe villagersI whom with villagers the toaccording pendent state. in the style of an Orthodox revival then in progress, as Bulgaria became underMuslimauspicesthe an renovatedempire,of Ottoman the inde was fully 1937 in , Savior began in the decades before socialism. The chapel, which was built in 1637 moreobviouslybackground. Indeedatgatheringsocialist, Chapel the the of St. a as well as presocialist, a on builds Driver the of Day the on practice religious conducted1989 aftercurrently onlyas began rituals eventhe Contemporaryif. seem, mayprofessionalit recentcelebration as notas this is with church the of co- and period socialist the during meaningful symbolically madebeen hadcelebration thata people.decadesmountain of theof lifeimposed atheism,church After took the socially useful and ideologically correct ideologically and useful socially cially recognized profession recognized cially f of every socialism, Under ofchapel,the hall recently dozenathe old erected In dining photographs It could be argued that the Orthodox Church, in sponsoring the Day of the 14 optedor,perhaps oneshouldsay,association Butthe it.rescued, By the 1930s, workerstransportation already had gathered there era cars posted in the same place attest only that whoever that only attest place same the in posted cars era

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was celebrated on its own special day. special own its celebratedon was

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those regarded as

Rhodope Travel - - Balkans.” . 15 sions had ofbecome apart new celebration under religious auspices. work was implicitly correlated with Christian feast days. feast Christian with correlated implicitly was work celebrationsof socialist of calendar new the explains, she as yet, and practice, work- ship between the social and religious meanings of the rituals by overstressing the that the communist authoritiesValtchinova argues way.Galia original an aimedin piety Christian toof use made bias,dislocate the strong traditional relation celebration Thesocialist atheist of professions,itsintrinsically notwithstanding cial endorsement of the state. Not only bus and truck drivers drivers truck and employeesworkers,pilots,railwaybutsailors, also all professions and in relatedbus only Not state. the of endorsement fcial of the with era ing the Day of the Transportation Worker have continued into the postsocialist the authorities suppress the practice. butkeptDaylestitquietAscensionSavioron St. Chapel of workers the visited Rhodope Travel told me, even under the communist regime some transportation bolism was obvious to at least some participants, and, as a long- sym but religious the present, was priest a or awarded lamb sheep. No Orthodox a folk- with socialism, late under ebrated, didnot succeed inerasing religion. The Day of the Driver inSmolyan was cel of the Vinegrower, and St. Elijah’s as the Day of the Beekeeper. Clearly, socialism aegis of scientifc atheism as the Day of the Breeder, St. Trifon’s feast as the Day Orthodox feast of the Ascension. St. George’s feast day was celebrated under the the toclose date a June, in Sunday last the forsetprofessional ers’ holidaywas year. previous the ofachievements their lauds whoTransport, of Minister the with celebrate totransportation professionaltheir holiday lastSundayonJunethe in Feast of the Driver the of Feast Metropolitan of Plovdiv consecrated the renovated chapel “on the occasion of the commemorativeJune1995plaque in Savior’s atSt. that, fOrthodox es testi the , Driver the “celebrateofsaid,Day he region, Rhodopethe the ofcompanies transport doesnot fholiday,of observe cial the promoted centralgovernment.bythe The undoubt now of Travel Rhodope director the Indeed, religious. edly is told company me his that framework institutional the Still, religion. of that over identity professional of importance the stress asked, when participants, the socialism, which involves fmainly of cial addresses, folk music, food, and dancing. work- As under and national, secular, the emphasizes without ( travel accident” and feast “happy a other each wish and hands shake ticipants

Valtchinova, “Orthodoxie et communisme dans les les dans communisme et “Orthodoxie Valtchinova, 16 In a wayaInthat is ironically analogous, thesocialist traditions for celebrat related character of the celebrations and by suppressing explicitly religious The popular celebration, however, takes place on Ascension Day. Par

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Savior’s Day,” and they do so on the Orthodox feast of the Ascension. A Chestit praznik i bezavariino patuvane bezavariino i praznik Chestit

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Savior’s Day.” legacy The of socialist celebrating the profes dance contest, in which the winner was related aspects of the celebration, celebration, the of aspects related ). The discourse on this occasion this on).discourseThe _pdf.php?id=3400. . 16

See, for example, www.mtitc.government.bg/saveexample,for See, 15 The date of the driv term term employee of ------

Tocheva • Xenophilia: Part 6 283 “Praznikat na “Praznikat Vrah”;Liaski Iankov, and Kolev, “Zhertvoprinosh Kurban”; ‘Star’ “Noviat Manova, and Hristov Blagoev, Sikimi´c, and Hristov Balkans?”; les 17. COMMON KNOWLEDGE 284

See Givre, “Un ouRituel ‘Balkanique’ un Rituel dans Kurbanat v Traditsiiata na Balgarite Miusiulmani left by the Communist Party, the Orthodox Church has become by defaultbecomeby hasthe Church Orthodox Party,the Communist the byleft andworkers arecontentall tobeassociated withreligion since, thevacuumin for meal a communal ers’ professional feast may have begun, and still may be explained, as preparation fces mandatedsacri the Oldin Testament. The slaughter of a sheep for the driv xion f ofCruci Christ, as the Lamb of God, superseding permanently the animal the on depends Christianity of denitionf very TheDriver. the of Day the on the clergy, who introduced the slaughterOrthodox parish priests. Surely, of it was athe lay employeessheep of Rhodope Travel,in notthe bycompany’s blessed and attended theologically,questionableare howeverlaity, main socialist garage unproblematictheimprovisations nds f ofpopular traditionalism, religiosity. and rigor Novelties toward tendency itsof thepost despite hierarchy, Church wellbeeneagerso do toso? One major Orthodox reasonthe appearsthat beto cal in Bulgaria.postsocialist But why have such and f gures the general public as typi become has administration public the in of departments heads and owners, The promotion of Orthodox religious practices by business managers, company Orthodox Christianity as Headline, Religious Coexistence as Subtext they were not necessarily of sorts understood Different sheep. as a religious monly practices by the participants. itsheep is orcomMountains Rhodope the lamb; though be in it a also calf, can a necessarily not is animal The specialist. ritual Islamic an or priest Orthodox an by sanctioned is ritual the and others, and acquaintances, friends, kin, with kurban se may be offered to commemorate one’s miraculous ofsurvival a car accident). (acommemorations sonal life- the at cases some in performed ia, r a lg is Bu ritual ofdifferentThelocalities.daysfeast the onand days,saints’ Orthodox n I ish. rk Tu The“sacri term, meaning fce,”was adopted from the language theBulgarian in Muslim ritual that came to be adopted by Christians during the Ottoman period. celebratecompanies a with Ascension the celebrationtransportation aTheAscension. atChrist’s of presence Muslims of tol unproblematicchurch’s the explains the part, in also,and that past fcantsigni a has iterationofritual this But ritual. the sanctions priest Orthodox an of animal’s blood spill over the ramp seems like apotropaic magic, and the presence Meanwhile, it appears that government administrators, business managers, means that an animal is slaughtered, means animal that an cooked, and shared as a free meal Kurban in the Balkans

— kurban

a simple act of butchering kurban is practiced at Muslim religious celebrations, on celebrations,religious Muslim at practiced is - ; ; meal, to take one especially relevantoneexample, especially take tomeal, Rodopi Prez 70 - and Stamenova, Ustovo,” ot Kurbana “Dva Iordanova, see region, dope of practice the About Miusiulmani.” TrapezaBalgari- u Obredna i enie kurban cyclerituals ofeither religion, andat per continued under socialism, although socialism, under continued kurban te I 80 - Etnosotsialni Aspekti na Bita v Iztochnite Iztochnite v Bita na Aspekti Etnosotsialni . In the Balkans, the the Balkans, the . In

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but the requirement that the te Godini, 137

– Hristiiani i Balgari-

86. kurban kurban in the in Rho Koli is a 17 ------

. 19 the ‘Ethic of Capitalism.’ . 18 . 0034 &p= 4 /vis/vis.pl?n= and Christians is inbuilt into the daily routine. It is at this level that modest, resil at forced assimilation. forced at man oppression. The Muslims of Bulgaria became ofvictims numerous attempts past. ing the socialist regime,Ottoman and theirthe religion of was stigmatized as aremnant residue of every Otto In lineeliminate withto this ideology,decided elite the Muslim populationpolitical the was, 1878 repressed before in and state dur independent an became Bulgaria When nation. Orthodox Bulgarian a of utestodeepening much a older politicaltradition,intimately related ideatothe in the tasks of nation-oftasks the in early and twentieth nineteenth centuries, late all levels the of In the practice.Orthodox popularhierarchy and were more institution involved an as church the But there are deeper historical reasons shaping fthis speci c relationship between conjecture. this of evidence persuasive isSavior, St. of renovatedChapel ishly lav RhodopeTravelthecrumbling tothe garage frompath, ritual thealong most prestigious institution in the country. To proceed, on the Day of the Driver, nation- riography, a trouble- histo of nationalist narrative or grand the media, public the architecture, mental Vissarion is an early twentieth- This consecration was carried out even though historians have Ottomans. demonstratedthe by that death to tortured hagiography,was fof cial his to according who,seventeenthbishop Orthodoxthe of century Smolyan,of an Vissarion St. martyr the of name the in 2006 in consecrated and erected was businessman, fuentialin an by funded partly cathedral, monumentalTurks.” A“the against Christians Bulgarian of resistance the glorify Smolyanmonuments in on tions inscrip and churches in plaques Commemorative characters. and stories such of plethoraaoffer Mountains Rhodope the ofdenizens theempire, and Ottoman is densely populated andof heroic myths martyrdom with resistance the against Republic of Bulgaria is the Eastern Orthodox confession.” Orthodox Eastern is the Republic of Bulgaria are in from religion 3separate the state, the ( ) the traditional institutions religious “(1991while adopted 2in constitution, that, statesthe whichpostsocialist ) , the 13replicatesclausearticle This religionBulgaria. of.traditional the ofis 3 doxy freedom of conscience and religion, also states,and the state.in Thearticle 2002 Confessions 10 Act, while rming f the ,af individual’sthat right Eastern to Orthodoxy between symbiosis Orthoa of idea the promoteto continuedhave ments

Kalkandjieva, “The Bulgarian Orthodox Church Orthodox and “The Bulgarian Kalkandjieva, Accessedfromwww.government.bg/cgi- Atthesame however, time, at a level of social life unrepresented monu in tt, hn n oml clsatcl occupations. ecclesiastical normal in than state,

” free and taken- 20 building, supporting the consolidation of the Bulgarian Bulgarian the ofconsolidation the supporting building, Both socialist and contemporary Bulgarian Orthodoxy Orthodoxy contemporaryBulgarian and socialist Both century fabrication. century for- bin/e- granted religious coexistence of Muslims cms

Ragaru, “Faire taire l’altérité.” Lory, Natsia’Sotsialisticheska natsioanlizam’do‘Edinnata . 20

See, for example, Gruev, “Ot ‘Proletarskia Inter ‘Proletarskia Gruev,“Otexample, for See, Les BalkansLes 18 19 Postsocialist govern This policy contrib policy This ; Neuburger, Neuburger, ; TheOrientWithin ------; and and ;

”; - Tocheva • Xenophilia: Part 6 285 Mother of God Zhivonosen Istochnik/Zoodochos Pege/ Istochnik/Zoodochos Zhivonosen God of Mother . 22 Ritual.” a of Transformations . 21 COMMON KNOWLEDGE 286

See Tocheva, “Kurban: Shifting Economy and the the and Economy Shifting “Kurban: Tocheva, See e Luban´ska,See “Life- to do so is a conscious objective. conscious a is so do to social bondsstrengthen across religious without boundaries, ever that suggesting Driver,the ofDay the on practiced those like rituals, local anddomestic,ient, want the disease, then went the to woman. thank He said: “Tell me what you recoveredfrom quickly and so did Hedry. itlet and skin his wateron Chapel ofthe St. Savior now She stands. told Pasha the to pour Kerim Chokmanovo [a neighboring village] took him to a spring close to where womanfromTurkishThe Ahelp howhim.todoctorsnotknow did disease. skin a from now. issuffered Hechapel the whereplace the in temporarily settled Pasha Kerim century, fteenth f or fourteenth the in sometime Turkishyoke, the of time the during that, legendtells A the best way to do good and wash away sins. in accordance with a traditional belief that bringing water where there is none the tains: Rhodope Mountains are fountains, with whichstrewn is the locals build foun mention to him expected I fountain.” a build and family, a create house, a greatest“especiallyachievementformen,the that, explained build to is further water sitethereonyears,notthe has ofbeenchapel.” therunning Thedirector hadeffort sizedbeenthe that collective. Then he added “for that, fourhundred personal contribution, mentioned colleagues who had been involved, and empha When I asked him about his reasons for initiative, this at rst f he downplayedSavior. his St. of Chapel the tobrought be water running that proposed rst f had who rm f the of director the EmployeesTravelwasRhodopeit of thattold me Kerim Pasha’s Pipeline: A Conclusion life. social and religious Bulgarian oppressionOttoman notpossibleisonly element butan alreadyintrinsically of theother side, theaffable coexistence ofChristians andon thebelief,so- and practice local and side,one law,on canon and hierarchy church “four hundred years” he had referred. years” hundred “four [ man rich a century, eighteenth the in on, Laterhere. built was chapel rst f the howis that and Sultan, the from permit a obtain to managed grantedpermita[ was oneif possible only was church Christian a building time, that At Ascension. the glorify to site this on chapel Christian a erect to sion chorbadjiia

— In explanation, the director told me this story:

gold, oryou anything wish.” The woman asked only for permis ] renovated and extended the old one. It is Kerim’s water that Giving Springs and the the and Springs Giving ferman ] by the Ottoman authorities. Kerim Pasha Kerim authorities. Ottoman the by ]

21 Writings and Ritual Practices in the Region of Plovdiv.” of Region the in Practices Ritual and Writings Religious Iconography, in Aftereffects its and uence f In Balu˘kliyska.Byzantine- uid, transitional space between the the between space transitional fuid, the In 22 But I did not understand to which Greek- Ottoman Intercultural Ottoman - called heirs of heirs called - - as an alien,an heaswas unaware. respondsKerim bypermissionobtaining fromthe which, of spring natural a from water using Pasha Kerim cured Chokmanovo from woman The Bulgaria. in Muslims Ottoman and Christians Orthodox of line from the small lake up to the site of the chapel. ago. We a brought a up years few chapel pipe to the built company our Givre, Olivier. “Un Rituel ‘Balkanique’ ou un Rituel dans les Balkans? Approche Approche Balkans? les dans Rituel ou un ‘Balkanique’ “Un Rituel Olivier. Givre, Ali. Eminov, eds. Yana Hashamova, and Theodora, Dragostinova, “Sotsialno- Nikola. Damianov, Bougarel. Xavier and Clayer, Nathalie, ed. Rebecca, Bryant, Blagoev, Goran. eds. Couroucli, Maria and Dionigi, Albera, References Islamophilia on the part of Christians. and Muslims of part the on Christophilia bespeak legendsthat with associated are know, locals some as that, sites Christian at exopraxis Muslim encouraged unwittingly have clergymen, Orthodox of part the on fexibility extraordinary workings protracted identities professional proud and Strong also more fcientef in organizing social life, both pragmatically and symbolically. acknowledgedprominentexplicitlyless butand are that exclude alliances other not does story that that realize to important is it but narrative, fof cial the of part is nation Bulgarian the and Church Orthodox the between alliance an is forgratitude in one Christian’smunity aidto“oppressor.” Muslima That there from the lake to the chapel wouldTravel recallbuiltRhodope “pipeline”that the woman’s), thethat soChristian Muslims’ the than gift to the Christian com tor of Rhodope Travel identifes a “small lake” nearby as “Kerim’s water” (rather chapelsite. Orthodoxtheon Christian buildSultantoan Thedirec Ottoman Alternative Narratives of the Nation in the Balkans in the of Nation Narratives Alternative . 1972 53 Dimitrov, Strashimir Voina.” Vtorata Svetovna Prez In Naselenie Balkaniques États aux Empires 2016 New York: Berghahn, . . 2004 Drinov, Marin 2012 Press, . University Indiana Bloomington: University Press, 2016 Press, . University This legendThis about the oforigin the chapel is a story of the mutual support Turkish and Other Muslim Minorities in Bulgaria in Minorities Muslim Turkish Other and Kurbanat v Traditsiiata na Balgarite Miusiulmani. Balgarite na v Traditsiiata Kurbanat Post-

—

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