Orthodox charismatic communities and social change during the Bulgarian transitional period (1980s–1990s)

Abstract

The article is devoted to the relationship between religiosity and social action. It studies religious communities in Bulgaria as active subjects of social change in the period of transition from a totalitarian to a democratic society in the 1980s and 1990s. The subjects of the study are Orthodox charismatic communities, established formally as political formations in the mid 1980s but by the mid 1990s gradually transforming into religious ones. The article is based on the Weberian social action theory and value-spheres typology. Using historical and sociological approaches an analysis of documents and of semi-standardized interviews is done.