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Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l Avenue d’Auderghem 61/16, 1040 Brussels Phone/Fax: 32 2 3456145 Email:
[email protected] – Website: http://www.hrwf.net Non-Muslim Religious Minorities in Azerbaijan From their Inception through Russian Empire and Soviet Repression to Present-day Secular State of Azerbaijan By Willy Fautré October 2013 Table of Contents Introduction The (Caucasian) Albanian Church and Albanian-Udi Christian Community in Azerbaijan Jews in Azerbaijan Russian Orthodox in Azerbaijan Catholics in Azerbaijan Protestants in Azerbaijan Baha‟is in Azerbaijan Hare Krishna in Azerbaijan The State Committee on Work with Religious Associations Conclusions Annex Introduction Located in the Caucasus region of Eurasia and at the cross-roads between the West and the East, Azerbaijan has not only considerable strategic importance; it also has symbolic value as an example of openness and exchange. At different times in history, the present-day territory of Azerbaijan was part of several empires as well as the homeland of various ethnic groups which contributed to the shaping of its current cultural, religious and linguistic identity. Though massively populated by Muslims (96%), Azerbaijan is a secular country where people of different confessions – Islam, Christianity, Judaism and others – have lived together for centuries in peace and harmony. In the last week of August 2013, a delegation of Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l visited a dozen non-Muslim religious communities and their places of worship in Baku and in the north of the country, talked to ordinary believers, interviewed their spiritual leaders and collected a wide range of testimonies about the mutual perception of their communities, their inclusion in the construction of the Azerbaijani identity since independence from the late Soviet Union, inter-religious relations and relations with the state authorities. Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l also met with representatives of the Caucasus Muslim Board (CMB) that oversees state-registered Muslim organizations and is the official face and voice of Azerbaijani Islam. Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l visited the famous Bibi-Heybat Mosque in Baku, built in the 13 th century and blown up in 1934 by the Soviet regime, reconstructed and enlarged by the Presidential decree in 2005 with state fund 1 . Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l also paid a visit to the modest place of prayer of a charismatic imam whose peaceful and inspiring sermons attract thousands of Muslims on Friday, particularly many youth. Last but not least, an important meeting could be organized with Minister Elshad Iskandarov, who is in charge of the State Committee for Work with Religious Associations, and his staff. Fundamentalist ideas have no success in Azerbaijan, anti-Semitism is non-existent and inter-religious peace prevails both inside the Muslim community 2 and between the main historical religions because mutual respect, solidarity across the denominational borders, dialogue and tolerance are the core values underpinning Azerbaijan‟s secularism. 1 See photos at https://www.google.be/search?q=Pictures+of+Bibi-Heybat+Mosque+in+Baku&client=firefox-a&hs=HAj&rls=org.mozilla:fr:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=QU1HUrztAsujhgeS9oHQBg&ved=0CDQQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=638&dpr=1 2 Approximately 65 percent of the Islamic population is Shia and 35 percent Sunni. The (Caucasian) Albanian Church and Albanian-Udi Christian Community in Azerbaijan History The formation of the Albanian Udi Church is closely linked to the Christianization of the Caucasus and, in particular, of the Albanian Kingdom. 3 The latter existed in the northern part of present-day Azerbaijan from the 4 th century BCE until the Arab Muslim invasion at the beginning of the 8 th century. The Apostle Bartholomew, one of the twelve early followers of Christ, is said to have laid the foundations of Christianity in the Albanian Kingdom. On his way back from India to Caucasian Albania in 71 CE, he carried out missionary activities in the Albanian Kingdom, established a church in modern-day Ordubad, preached Christianity in Albana (now Baku) and managed to convert the local king and his family. However, the king‟s brother, incited by pagan priests, ordered the capture of Batholomew and then had him crucified on a cross with his head down, allegedly at the well-known Maiden Tower in Baku where a chapel was built later on. Eliseus, a disciple of the Apostle Thaddeus, ordained by St Jacob in Jerusalem, continued the work of the martyred Bartholomew and founded a church in Gish. In 313, King Urnair declared that Christianity would be the religion of the Albanian Kingdom. The Albanian Apostolic Church was at first independent from any other Church and remained autocephalous until 1836. Its clergy was appointed by the Albanian kings. The Bible was translated into their language, which had its own alphabet. In the 5 th – 8 th centuries, there were twelve episcopacies in the kingdom, including in important regions of consequent Azerbaijan state as Karabakh, Ganja, Shaki, etc. Like other Eastern Churches, the Albanian Church was also involved in theological disputes that would later fragment Christianity. At the time when Arab caliphate started to invade the region Nestorian and Chalcedonian Christianity was popular among the people of Caucasian Albania which was close to the ideology of the Byzantine Empire. Using tension between Byzantium and Arab Caliphate, the Armenian Catholicos sent a letter to the Caliph telling him about rebellion ideology in Caucasian Albania and as a result the Caliph ordered that the Albanian Church should be subordinated to the Armenian Church. In 705, the Albanian Kingdom collapsed and Arab emirs began to rule the country. Albanians were massively subjected to Islamization. However, the Udi ethnic group managed to preserve its cultural, linguistic and religious identity. At the beginning of the 19 th century, the Caucasus was conquered by tsarist Russia. In 1815, the office of the Caucasian Albanian Catholicate was abolished. In 3 The Albanian Kingdom in the Caucasus is not synonymous with modern Albania in Europe. The Udis are one of the most ancient native peoples of the Caucasus. They were first mentioned in Herodotus‟ Histories (5 th century BCE).They are considered to be the descendants of the people of Caucasian Albania and one of the ancestors of the Azerbaijani people. According to the classical authors, the Udi inhabited the area of the eastern Caucasus along the coast of the Caspian Sea in a territory extending to the Kura River in the north as well as the ancient province of Utik. Both capitals of Caucasian Albanian Kingdom - Kabalak (today Gabala) and Partav (today's Barda) - were located in the historical territory of the Udi. 1836, the status of the Armenian Apostolic Church within the Russian Empire was regulated by a decree of Nicholas I and the office of the Caucasian Albanian Metropolitan Bishop was abolished. Its jurisdictions were directly subordinated to the Armenian Apostolic Church. The Udi Christians successfully resisted this new attempt of assimilation. Under the Soviet regime, the churches were confiscated by the state and fell into disrepair, and all religious activities were banned. Visit of Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l On 29 th August 2013, Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l visited an Albanian Udi church in Nij and talked with Prof. Robert Mobili, one of the main actors behind the revival of this church. The site has been visited twice by President Ilham Aliyev and by prestigious foreign personalities such as Prince Andrew from the British Royal Family, U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan Richard Morningstar and French actor Gérard Depardieu. In early August, an event was held in the northern Gabala Region to commemorate the 1700 th anniversary of the official adoption of Christianity as the state religion in Caucasian Albania and the ten-year anniversary of the revival of the Albanian Udi Church. The ceremony was organized by the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations (SCWRA) in cooperation with the Albanian Udi Christian Community of Azerbaijan. A photo exhibition entitled "The Tenth Anniversary of the Revival" was also organized as part of the anniversary celebration. A variety of publications on the history of the Albanian Udi church were likewise presented to the attendees. The event continued with a cultural program. Speaking at the event, which was held in the Jotari church of St. Eliseus in the village of Nij, the chairman of the Albanian Udi Christian community, Robert Mobili, pointed out that 170 years ago the Albanian church was transferred to the Armenian Gregorian Church by a decree of Tsar Nicholas I. However, the Udi people boycotted the religious services in an effort to preserve their language, culture and loyalty to the Albanian church, and met in private homes for their religious activities. During the Soviet period, the church was closed and converted into a warehouse. The Caucasian Albanian Udi Christian Community was registered on 10 th April 2003 and recently re-registered under the 2009 Law on Religion. Afterwards, work began on the restoration of a number of churches so that worship could be resumed. The church in Kish (Sheki Region), which is one of the oldest in the Caucasus and is considered to be “the Mother of Albanian churches”, was restored in 2003. The 17 th -century Jotari church of St. Eliseus, one of three Albanian Udi churches in the village of Nij, was also restored and inaugurated on 19 th May 2006 4 . In both cases, the Norwegian Humanitarian Enterprise contributed to archaeological excavations and restoration. 4 Pictures of both churches can be seen at http://www.udi.az and http://www.panoramio.com/photo/87996543
