The fall of Nicolae Ceauşescu's regime after widespread mass demonstrations in December 1989 proved to be one of the most dramatic examples of political mobilization in the history of Eastern Europe. The first days of the post-Ceauşescu regime witnessed the public activism of religious communities. Religious symbols spread gradually across the country, from the mere presence of candles in the streets to the active role of churches in state education, political elections, and public discourse. Since 1989, close relations between religion and politics have remained as an important basis of post-communist Romania's path to democratization.

Lavinia Stan and Lucian Turcescu's book analyzes the interplay of religious and political realms in post-communist Romania by focusing in particular on the role of the Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC), the dominant religious confession in the country. As the authors indicate, religion is important for the democratic regime, particularly because “[it] has become a driving force of public affairs and a powerful legitimizer of political action that no longer can be ignored” (4). In particular, the ROC is one of the most active institutions whose influence has extended from the local level to the corridors of political power. The book sets out the most significant patterns between religion and politics, bringing together a broad range of actors and institutional mechanisms. It focuses on church-state relations; the relationships between religion and nationalism, elections, education, sexuality, democracy and European integration; the position of the ROC during the communist period; and the ROC's relation with the Greek Catholic Church.

Analysis of church-state relations in predominantly Orthodox countries is usually associated with the concept of symphonia, which developed in the Byzantine Empire. This concept, which supports intimate relations between the religious and political fields, has had an impact on the ways in which the ROC collaborated with the regime during the communist and post-communist periods. Stan and Turcescu claim that the process of democratization showed that symphonia was not the most viable model. Instead, a combination of distinct patterns of church-state relations has been applied according to each religious confession. This combination was distinctly visible in the ways in which the ROC communicates with the state. While the Church advocated the application of the “established church model” (drawing from symphonia), there was opposition to this model from the other churches, civil society, and even European institutions.

Competition between churches and a closer association with political institutions intensified after the 1996 elections, which brought the victory of Emil Constantinescu, Romania's first non-communist president. All political parties employed religious symbols in their campaigns, and discourses combining religion and politics became more prevalent. The ROC became extremely influential in education at the pre-university level, with the state simply adopting the Church's policy in this matter. In addition, the Church was verbally violent against homosexuality and the legislative measures that had decriminalized it. As these examples demonstrate, the ROC's role in public life is directly connected with its historical position of combining the religious and political spheres (for example, during the interwar period, when the Patriarch served as prime minister three times). As Stan and Turcescu suggestively argue, “The most serious threat to the Orthodox Church is reflected not by other religious groups, new and old […] The church's most serious enemy is itself” (39).

While the book provides valuable research material, there are two further under-researched areas that bring to light the contemporary ROC's influence in society and politics, namely Orthodox fundamentalism and the social fragmentation of the clergy.

First, in the last decade, significant segments of the clergy, dissatisfied with the ROC's stance, have adopted a fundamentalist discourse that has a direct impact on church-state relations. Clear examples of increasing Orthodox fundamentalism include: the public opposition of some parts of the clergy toward biometric passports, which were seen as carrying the Antichrist's sign; the Tanacu case, in which a monk was convicted of murdering a girl by saying prayers rather than administering medical care; the politics of building an extremely large number of churches disproportionate to the local number of faithful; and, the explosion of Internet websites that demonize the West and argue for a return to religious values. This increase has been visible in the mixture of mysticism, rural religiosity, and monastic authority in the public sphere. While fundamentalism has to be considered within the wider perspective of the Orthodox world, it relates profoundly to the current transformation of the Church.

Second, the post-1989 process of democratization has led to uneven levels of welfare and social strata. Romanian society is characterized by increasing fragmentation with a diminishing middle class. The Church is highly affected by this social fragmentation, and the clergy is separated between opposite classes rather than fostering social cohesion. In addition, the fragmentation of Romanian society is due to the nebulous relations between the clergy and the state security service during the communist period. The church has been reluctant in tackling this subject, so this episode continues to haunt the trajectory of church-state relations.

Finding a common terminology between religion and politics remains a complex topic. The tension between these two realms is present throughout the book as reflected in the academic background of both authors, with Lavinia Stan, a trained political scientist and Lucian Turcescu, a theologian. Some passages, particularly those on symphonia, reflect a theological dimension, while those on the models of church-state relation demonstrate astute political analysis. The book is a welcome contribution to the literature and a provocative read on the interplay between the two spheres.