The Autonomy of Bulgarian Theological Scholarship: Institutional Control and Discursive Transformation Under the Communist Regime (1944–1960s)

Authors

• Diana Petrova Tyurkedzhieva, Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski"Follow

Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0009-0008-0901-6523

Abstract

The article examines the autonomy of theological scholarship in Bulgaria under the communist regime as part of the broader problem of academic freedom under authoritarian rule, focusing on 1944 to the 1960s. While existing research has primarily addressed the relationship between the Orthodox Church and the State through institutional restriction and political repression, this study analyses how theological scholarship was transformed institutionally and discursively. It combines historical and institutional analysis with an examination of speeches, public statements, and academic publications in ecclesiastical and theological periodicals. The article argues that the separation of the Faculty of Theology from Sofia University in 1950 and the establishment of the Theological Academy were not merely administrative changes, but part of a broader restructuring of the conditions under which theological knowledge was produced, regulated, and publicly expressed. The analysis identifies mechanisms of control including restricted access to education, reshaped academic careers, material and administrative dependence, ideological integration, and surveillance. It also shows how these constraints narrowed academic freedom by shaping the language, arguments, and public legitimacy of theological scholarship. The article introduces the concepts of conditional autonomy and conditional academic discourse to describe the persistence of theological scholarship within externally imposed institutional and ideological boundaries.

Recommended Citation

Tyurkedzhieva, Diana Petrova (2026) "The Autonomy of Bulgarian Theological Scholarship: Institutional Control and Discursive Transformation Under the Communist Regime (1944–1960s)," Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe: Vol. 46 : Iss. 6 , Article 2.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55221/2693-2229.2839
Available at: https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/ree/vol46/iss6/2