Andrea Sterk

This study places the phenomenon of Christian missions to southeastern Europe within the broader context of eastern Christendom. Older studies have traced the close connection between Christianization and Byzantinization in the Balkans. Yet despite differing interpretations of Byzantine influence, most of these studies focus on the political and diplomatic ambitions of the imperial government. This project considers the religious ideals and motives of Christian missionaries themselves and the missionary models they passed on to the Slavs. In dialogue with recent treatments of western Christianization and burgeoning work on ethnogenesis, this study reassess the history of Christian mission and the formation of cultural identities in southeastern Europe.