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The article seeks an answer for several questions, as: Why was Syriac Christianity not an imperial Church? Why did it not enter into a relationship with the authorities? It might be explained by pointing to the political situation of the Syriac Chrstianas community under the reign of the Persian king Chosroes II Parviz. ; The article seeks an answer for several questions, as: Why was Syriac Christianity not an imperial Church? Why did it not enter into a relationship with the authorities? It might be explained by pointing to the political situation of the Syriac Chrstianas community under the reign of the Persian king Chosroes II Parviz.

Christianity, filtered through the heritage of Enlightenment, is a founding stone of European identity. Western Christianity is of particular importance here, as only in the region it dominated we can speak of Enlightenment and periods that precede it, that is Renaissance and Reformation. European Union is primarily constituted by countries that are culturally related to Western (Latin) Christianity. Enlightenment (secular rationalism) as such was not sufficient for creation of European identity. The paper describes the evolution of European identity closely linked with Christianity, that was later on left for rationalism and national identities. I try to prove that the identity of Europeans is historically closely linked to the diversity of nations that constitute Europe and that a national identity serves to underline European Community rather than deny it. Existing European identity has its roots in common history, contrary to popular believes that Europeans identify only with their nations. The paper also explains why new European identity needs to be constructed in relation to common European past and not in relation to the future of Europe.

This paper deals with the role of religious parties in the Indonesian political system. It demonstrates the importance of Islamic parties and explains the declining significance of Christian parties in the last dozen or so years. In the conditions of deep religiosity in Indonesian society, religious parties are understood as political parties that meet the following criteria: 1) are created by and for the followers of Islam or Christianity, respectively, 2) serve to pursue their interests (specifically the interests articulated by the political and religious elites of religious communities) and 3) build their programs based on the principles and values of faith, and also promote and protect them.

The declining years of the communist regimes towards the end of the 80s as well as the on-going process of a thaw in political relations was also reflected in the Vatican's policy towards Christians in Eastern Europe. The task was not easy as the hierarchs of the Orthodox Church in Russia were afraid of ecumenical slogans propagated by the pope. They even presented their own, competitive ideas, whose aim was to discredit John Paul II's diplomatic efforts. The Pope's policy towards churches in other European countries (Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland) did not assume a common approach as the fate of Christians there was shaped independently from each other and even with certain respect granted by the Kremlin towards the uniqueness of each country. The key aspect of John Paul II's policy towards the countries of Eastern Europe was the pursuit of spiritual renewal of Christianity in the East, which was supposed to be started with the pilgrimage to the USSR (Ukraine, Moscow and Lithuania). ; The declining years of the communist regimes towards the end of the 80s as well as the on-going process of a thaw in political relations was also reflected in the Vatican's policy towards Christians in Eastern Europe. The task was not easy as the hierarchs of the Orthodox Church in Russia were afraid of ecumenical slogans propagated by the pope. They even presented their own, competitive ideas, whose aim was to discredit John Paul II's diplomatic efforts. The Pope's policy towards churches in other European countries (Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland) did not assume a common approach as the fate of Christians there was shaped independently from each other and even with certain respect granted by the Kremlin towards the uniqueness of each country. The key aspect of John Paul II's policy towards the countries of Eastern Europe was the pursuit of spiritual renewal of Christianity in the East, which was supposed to be started with the pilgrimage to the USSR (Ukraine, Moscow and Lithuania).