Adrian Nicolae Petcu, Christian Spirituality versus legionarism in communist detention. Case study: Ioan Ianolide
Ioan Ianolide is known today mainly through his memoirs, “Return to Christ. Document for a New World”, written under Communist persecution, but published in 2006 by the nuns from Diaconeşti monastery, Bacau County.
In our approach, our purpose is not to check what Ianolide wrote in his book, but to know him better in the light of the documents the Security had on him, thereby contributing to shaping his biography and deeds, but also to understanding the spirituality that marked his detention in the prison of Tg. Ocna.
While consulting the archives, we see that we are dealing with an eminently political language, aggressive towards Christian spirituality, which was meant to embody the most heinous legionary conspiracies against the communist regime. Security believed that in Tg. Ocna was concealed a Legionary activity of indoctrination and recruitment, so that after their release, the protagonists to strike the foundation of the communist regime.
Therefore, the trial in 1959 against the 30 defendants, with Ioan Ianolide and Constantin Voicescu to the fore, as well as other trials from this period, were directed precisely against those who, despite being in a communist prison, had adopted the Christian way of life above all political attitude. In other words, it was a lawsuit against Christian conscience in communist prisons.

Keywords: Communist persecution, Ioan Ianolide, Christian spirituality, Security files, legionarism

ADRIAN NICOLAE PETCU