Kosovo Crucified—Narratives in the Contemporary Serbian Orthodox Perception of Kosovo

Emil Hilton Saggau

doi:10.3390/rel10100578

Abstract

In contemporary Serbian Orthodox texts, Kosovo is often referred to as the Serbian “Jerusalem”: a city calling for a Christian defense. All Serbs are bound to heed the call in keeping with the Kosovo “covenant” or “pledge” dating back to the Battle of Kosovo Polje in 1389, when Serbian troops, led by Prince Lazar, were defeated by the invading Muslim Ottoman army. The battle and Kosovo in general have since then assumed a central symbolic role in Serbian nationalism and the Serbian Orthodox Church. Furthermore, it has been claimed that the imagery and narratives of Kosovo were the ideological backdrop for the wars in the Balkans in the 1990s. This article investigates the development of the Serbian narratives and imagery pertaining to Kosovo and their modern form in the Serbian Orthodox Church in order to trace what type of imagery is dominant. The main focus will be on whether and to what extent the narratives of Christian defense and holy Serbian warriors fighting in the name of Christ are dominant. This investigation seeks to discuss whether the Kosovo imagery and narratives are formed upon and influenced by a broader Christian European antemurale myth.

Highlights

In contemporary Serbian Orthodox texts, Kosovo is often referred to as the Serbian “Jerusalem”: a city calling for a Christian defense
Kosovo in general have since assumed a central symbolic role in Serbian nationalism and the Serbian Orthodox Church
This article investigates the development of the Serbian narratives and imagery pertaining to Kosovo and their modern form in the Serbian Orthodox Church in order to trace what type of imagery is dominant

Summary

The Christian Bulwark in the Balkans

Throughout the Balkans and Eastern Europe, various nations and states have depicted themselves as the Christian bulwark against invading Muslim enemies threatening Christianity or a specific culture. In Croatia, the Croats were often cast in various narratives as Catholic Europe’s last civilized frontier against the Muslim Turkish “barbarians” or “infidels” during the Habsburg period (Goldstein 2005; Zanic 2005) This image of the threatening Turks was not confined to Croatia, but spread throughout. This article is an investigation of the existence of the Christian bulwark and wall metaphors—often called the antemurale myth—as well as an analysis of the myth’s structure and its main themes in the Serbian and especially the contemporary Serbian Orthodox Church’s narratives about Kosovo. The terms arise from within the sources and their content is not critically assessed, because that is not the purpose of this article They mainly refer to the Serbian nation-state and its conception of its people, and it is from this point of reference that the older medieval sources are interpreted

The Function and Signs of an Antemurale Myth

The Formation and Rise of the “Kosovo myth”

The Emergence of the Modern Kosovo Narratives

The Serbian Orthodox Church on Kosovo

The Narratives of Kosovo in the 1980s

The Narratives of Kosovo around 1999

Concluding Discussion of the Antemurale Myth Today