A Cathedral Rises in Romania

Romania, an eastern European country, former Soviet satellite, but now a prospering member of the EU and NATO. The country has a population of over 20 million, but is now a little nervous with the confrontation between Russia and neighboring Ukraine. Map from www.danubedelta.delta-dunarii.info

To this country bumpkin, Romania is a bit of a mystery. Teatree thinks of it as one of those former Soviet Union satellites that was run by a particularly coarse and nasty duo, Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife Elena. Romania was one of the few countries that suffered some violence during the collapse of the Soviet Empire. And then of course, there was a Romanian gymnast, Nadia Comaneci...

The strongman Nicolae and his wife Elena prior to 1989 ... Photo from the BBC

Mr CeauSescu came to power in 1965, approved apparently by the Soviet Politburo. Over time, he built his own platform of power and ran a slightly independent course from the USSR. In the later years, he and his wife Elena emphasized their own egos by concentrating on a cult of personality (think Kim Jong-Un in North Korea).

This is how the official court painter portrayed the CeauSescu's, with the court poet pronouncing him a “lay god” with a voice of “planetary resonance.” Sycophant Romanian newspapers referred to him as “the Genius of the Carpathians” and compared him to Napoleon. Photo of painting at http://bluenred.com

Increasingly isolated from the Romanian population, they were stunned as the Soviet Empire collapsed with the various Eastern European communist governments falling in rapid order. After street mayhem in the capital Bucharest, the CeauSescu's attempted to flee the People's Palace on December 22, 1989 (they had this built earlier as the symbol of their national seat of power). However, within hours, the CeauSescu's were captured nearby, tried by a hastily assembled military tribunal (on charges of genocide, damage to the national economy and abuse of power), convicted on all charges, and immediately executed on Christmas Day 1989 - just three days later.

If one is a dictator, and all these people in front of your palace are against you, it is likely not going to be your best day ... Photo in 1989 of the demonstrations in Bucharest in front of the Palace of the Parliament, from www.dailymail.co.uk

Romania's new direction since 1989

As with many former USSR satellite countries, Romania regrouped with its new freedom, creating a western style democracy, worked on its economy, etc. etc. What is a little different and controversial, is a surge of rebuilding churches across the land. Romanians are 90% Orthodox, and their religious buildings suffered greatly under the CeauSescu regime - many buildings bulldozed for various reasons, and many more shuttered under state atheism. In a BBC article in 2013, the building of new churches was going on at a rate of one every three days.

A rather beautiful new Orthodox church ... photo from www.patheos.com

Another ... photo from www.patheos.com

The building spree has become controversial. It highlights a close connection between the Orthodox church and the government (a bright line in the US, though much less so in many Western democracies - think of Great Britain and the Anglican Church, progressive Sweden which had its state church right up to 2000, etc). There is public money in a poor country being used for building churches when many critics say the money should be spent on other priorities.

The ornateness inherent to the Eastern Orthodox church is rather amazing. Photo from www.sgroc.org

But others say that the CeauSescu government destroyed many church assets, so it is right that the government redress that damage.

The biggest is yet to come

With the monies being spent, past grievances being dealt with, there remains the biggest project of them all. A huge new Eastern Orthodox church is being built right across from the monumental Palace of the Parliament (renamed from the People's Palace).

Called the Cathedral for the Salvation of Romanian People, plans for its construction began in 1990. Once built, the cathedral complex will include the cathedral building itself; , a soup kitchen with capacity for 1000 below the cathedral building; two hotels; and parking for about 500 cars. The cathedral is designed with seating for approximately 5,000 worshipers (though for Americans this amount of room is merely a mini-megachurch ...). One can assume there are several statements being made - "the church more important than man's governments" ? "I can mispend money too" ?

The new Cathedral going up next to the People's Palace. Photo from 2013 at www.johnsanidopoulos.com

CeauSescu's infamous People's Palace - at the time, the second largest public institution in the world, right behind the US Pentagon ... Photo from www.ungersteel.com

A rendering of the new complex - it seems as this will beat the People's Palace in size.... If one wishes to see a video on the new project, access the one here ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAELHDNKzik

Well, we can muse, click our tongues thinking of what else might be built with the money, but we all know there are much more destructive forces at work in the world. We can wish the Romanians much good will, and hope for a tad more humility among religious, government, and corporate leaders wherever we encounter them.

Romania holds referendum on impeaching its President

This weekend, Romanians will be headed to the polls to vote on the impeachment of a very unpopular President. However a larger judgement will also be rendered on the health of Romanian democratic institutions. The country's Prime Minister has been widely condemned for engineering the vote as a manipulation of power politics.

Romania, with a population of just over 21 million, is another Eastern European country struggling to rise from its subservient role, over 20 years ago, within the communist Soviet Union.

The European Union (and the US) have weighed in on the rough politics, after an EU report on Romania concluded that the country's political elite does not understand how democracy works, an indirect admission that the country should not be in the European Union at all – just five years after it joined.

As the UK Guardian put it, "The political crisis has left many Romanians confused and unsure about how to vote on Sunday. Endemic corruption and disenchantment with the political class have led many to believe that, regardless of the outcome, the referendum is a no-win situation. ... it is a referendum forced by a left-wing government looking to ensure the right-wing head of state faces impeachment charges."

The main figures are Traian Basescu, President of Romania since 2004 with a conservative perspective, while the Prime Minister is a 39-yr old lawyer, Victor Ponta, with clear leftist leanings. As the Guardian article concedes, "Ponta's arrival unleashed brutal trench warfare in Romanian politics; the prime minister is eager to use his ascendancy to settle scores."

President Basescu, has not been successful in working with a string of six Prime Ministers since 2004, and has already been suspended once from his Presidential duties in 2007.

Prime Minister Victor Ponta, after just 5 months in office, has also raised alarm bells over his use of powers. One of the major clouds has been charges of plagiarism. The allegations were first brought in June by the British scientific journal Nature, which reported that Ponta copied large portions of his 2003 thesis while at the University of Bucharest. The Romanian National Council for Attestation of University Titles concluded a few days later that the thesis had, indeed, been plagiarised. Ponta responded by rescinding the council's legal authority.

Basescu is unpopular; his rightwing party took a pounding in local elections last month, taking only 15% of the vote. He had over the past 8 years failed to tackle real and perceived corruption within the political system, while his latest push for austerity measures was the basis for Parliament suspending him pending the referendum vote. But the manner in which the new Prime Minister Victor Ponta has waged his war against the president is the reason that Brussels - representing the European Union - has intervened. From another newspaper account, "Ponta felt the full weight of EU wrath after his government took on the Constitutional Court, threatening to replace judges, reduce its powers and ignored one of its decisions ..." in his drive to push Basescu from office.

The second poorest country in Europe, Romania joined the EU with Bulgaria in 2007. Both states were not really viewed as properly fit for entry but admission was seen as a clever geo-political move in the contest with Vladimir Putin's Russia for influence in the Balkans, particularly in countries with historically close ties to Moscow.

Romania has struggled to improve basic infrastructure, such as this degraded country road

So, apparently a number of countries are watching not only Romania's vote on Sunday, but even more closely, the aftermath. If Basescu is impeached, a new presidential election will be held within 3 months, and it is likely that Ponta's left wing party will triumph. Whether that leads to any deeper change from corruption and lack of respect for democratic institutions is now at stake.

Bucharest is Romania's capital, and likely best known city

Several international observers have become concerned over the trajectory of a number of Eastern European countries, freed from Soviet domination in the early 1990s, who are showing signs of slipping back towards more authoritarian governance. A USA Today article recently noted, "The political crisis in Romania could derail years of democratic progress and analysts say that the West must act decisively to arrest backsliding among Eastern European nations such as Hungary and Bulgaria before autocracy makes a comeback. ... The events unfolding in Romania echo events in neighboring Hungary. Earlier this year the Hungarian government implemented a new constitution that limits individual rights, the judiciary and the independence of the central bank. Analysts say more than harsh words from the West are needed to reverse the trend.

The economic downturn is not helping matters. Romania has been forced to cut wages and benefits to public workers, and enact layoffs, opening the way for Ponta to argue that free markets and democratic reforms are not working for Romania."