Парадоксы равенства религиозных объединений

Закон. 2021. № 6. С. 36–43.

Mitko A.

The article is devoted to the problem of implementation of the constitutional principle of equality of religious associations before the law in the federal legislation on freedom of conscience and religious associations. This problem is considered through the prism of an innovative concept — the paradox of equality. Consistent implementation of the constitutional principle of equality of religious associations is expressed in the adoption of general legislative norms that uniformly regulate the activities of religious associations, which should ensure their real equality. However, in the everyday legal consciousness, historically associated with the Soviet past, legal equality is replaced by the idea of de facto equality as an ideal that should be embodied in lawmaking. This is facilitated by the high degree of legal ambiguity of such constitutional terms as religion, secularism, secession, and equality. The understanding of religion laid down in the Constitution is based on its general characteristics, without taking into account the differences of specific religions. At the same time, the differences between specific religions determine the basic situation of their actual inequality. Therefore, the adoption of general and uniform legislative norms and their application puts different religions in a position of de facto inequality. This is the paradox of the equality of religious associations.

Keywords: конституционное право, религия, constitutional law, свобода совести, religion, свобода вероисповедания, freedom of conscience, конституционные принципы, constitutional principles, legal uncertainty, freedom of religion, secularism of the state, separation of religious associations from the state, equality of religious associations, legislation on freedom of conscience and religious associations, paradoxes of equality, законодательство о свободе совести и религиозных объединениях, отделение религиозных объединений от государства, парадоксы равенства, равенство религиозных объединений, светскость государства, юридическая неопределенность