Zorica Kuburić, Ph.D.

Philosophical faculty,

Novi Sad.

RELIGIOUS COMMUNIY IN SERBIA AND RELIGIOUS DISTANCE

Summary

Query about the happiness of those who are different in their given or ascribed identity, those who believe differently and belong to another "god", started at an early age, in elementary school, when I first met children who were rejected for emphasizing their religious identity. Before the collapse of the communist ideology, religiousness was generally marginalized and believers were a minority irrespective of their confession. However, with the onset of the 1990s, religiousness became desirable, as did, naturally, affiliation to the majority religion. I shall attempt to review the current situation in the religious sphere in general, by looking at it from several different angles. We shall first see who is the minority in Serbia today by referring to the 2002 population census. Sociological examination will tell us about the difference between confessional affiliation and religious self-identification as indicators in empirical research, and about the degree of religiousness of Serbian citizens. Another thing that merits our attention is an investigation into the social distance and attitudes towards the members of minority religions. The survey used for that purpose was initially conducted in 2003 and repeated in 2005. Finally, we shall also address the incidents as they reveal the position of the religious minorities.

Key words: religiosity, social distance, confesional distance, religious minority.