Oastea Domnului: The army of the lord in Romania∗

Abstract

It is over three years since the world's attention turned to the events in Romania that ultimately led to the fall of dictator Nicolae Ceau~escu and his repressive regime. With the opening of its borders, this beautiful and sometimes perplexing Balkan country became the focus of mUltiple aid organisations, mission groups, churches, evangelists and faith healers as well as individual entrepreneurs. For most, Romania was a novelty: a European country with an educated populace but with Third World living standards; a country whose warm and hospitable people caught many first-time visitors by surprise; a country where that same effusive hospitality and graciousness often concealed the darker side of Romanian culture, a side characterised by bribes, favouritism and patronage. For most western visitors, then, Romania was an unknown quantity. To be sure, many Christian visitors came having heard or read of the large Baptist and Pentecostal churches with their fervent church services and meetings. In contrast, the Orthodox Church to many represented a compromised state church which had sold its birthright to the communists for a pot of privileged porridge. It therefore came as a surprise to many visitors to discover in the context of the Orthodox Church a strong and vibrant renewal movement: Oastea Domnului, the Army of the Lord. This grassroots movement today is in a unique position on the religious landscape of Romania. Perhaps its greatest challenge and task is remaining true to its mission of spiritual revival, of 'preaching the crucified and risen Christ' in the context of the Romanian Orthodox Church.