SURVIVAL OF THE FAITHFUL.

TO MANY AROUND THE WORLD, THE WORD TRANSYLVANIA SUGGESTS THE DARK TALES OF DRACULA. BUT TO THOSE WHO LIVE IN THAT MOUNTAINOUS REGION OF ROMANIA TODAY, THE HOPEFUL SPIRIT OF CHRISTIANITY IS FAR MORE REAL.

An ardent Christian faith has been a reassuring constant to most Transylvanians during the many hardships of the 20th century, especially since World War II, when Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu vigorously suppressed religious expression. Since Ceausescu was toppled from power in 1989, though, religious freedom has been able to flower again especially for the Roman Catholic and Protestant Hungarian minority who make up much of Transylvania's population.

Traditional religious festivals have been revived throughout the region. A two-day Pentecost festival, for example, draws more than 200,000 Catholics to the town of Miercurea-Ciuc each spring. Many make the journey on foot and travel through the mountains from all over Transylvania, proudly carrying their village flags. When these pilgrims arrive, many camp outdoors to take in the event, which features outdoor Masses.

The inhabitants of Transylvania have preserved a simple, devout culture for centuries in large part because of the historical and geographic isolation of the mountainous area. In the small villages, life resembles the simple, agrarian environment of biblical times.

Transylvania has always put Christian religious devotion at its core. The region, which borders present-day Hungary, has for centuries been home to several key minority communities, including large groups of Catholic Hungarians and Germans. To the east, the rest of Romania is predominantly Eastern Orthodox.

Transylvania has a mixed tradition of both religious tolerance and interreligious strife. In 1568, the Edict of Turda recognized the diverse religious character of the province and marked acceptance of it at a time when religious wars were raging elsewhere in Europe. The edict officially recognized the Catholic, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Unitarian creeds and tolerated the Eastern Orthodox faith.

Tensions between the country's Orthodox majority and the Catholic and Protestant minorities, however, persist to this day. During this century, each group has occupied the other's territory, and since the end of the Ceausescu regime, interreligious strife has been a constant concern. Still, a tenuous peace has held, and Pope John Paul II's recent visit to Romania--the first papal visit to a predominantly Orthodox nation since the schism of 1054--was an ecumenical milestone.

How long the traditions of Transylvania will remain as they are is uncertain at present. Indeed, the high-tech Western world is at last having an influence on the region. Such forces as satellite TV and American fast food are presenting a challenge to revered traditions.

As Transylvanians encounter the new ways of Western culture and the free market, just what will they assimilate and what will they reject in maintaining their own history? There's little doubt that religious devotion will continue to burn brightly in the mountains of Transylvania.

By KEVIN CLARKE, managing editor of online products at Claretian Publications in Chicago.