Paper short abstract:

Based on observations of practices of contemporary Pagans, actions of the Catholic Church and representatives of relevant secular institutions, the paper focuses on a conflict that has arisen around use of and rights to nationally significant historical sites in the Old Town of Vilnius, Lithuania.

Paper long abstract:

Religious groups are among the most active users of heritagized objects and sites that are often controlled by secular actors. Developed and supported by various ideologies, popular assumptions about building of Christian churches and other objects in previously Pagan sacred sites are held by many contemporary Pagans and in some cases may cause clashes between representatives of the two religious traditions. Based on observations of communal practices of a contemporary Pagan community Romuva, actions of the Catholic Church and representatives of the municipality and other relevant secular institutions, the paper focuses on a conflict that has arisen around use of and rights to nationally significant historical sites in the Old Town of Vilnius, Lithuania. The objects, such as the Vilnius Cathedral Basilica of St Stanislaus and Vladislaus and the Cathedral Square, are central for Lithuanian Catholicism; while speculations about remains of a Pagan temple existing under the Cathedral and some interpretations of historical records offer a vision of the location as a central sacred site of pre-Christian Grand Dutchy of Lithuania. In this case several heritage discourses established in the national narrative of various periods are available for competing religious groups. Their statuses within the state and arrangements with local secular institutions determine relationships of power. The Catholic Church has power to allow or restrict the use of the heritagized site by other interested groups, including contemporary Pagans; the latter employ a variety of strategies to contest and break the rules set by their powerful competitor.