Religious leader of Anglican Church praises Azerbaijan's secular approach to religion

Chairman of the State Committee for Work with Religious Institutions (SCC) Mubariz Gurbanli met with a delegation headed by the religious leader of the Anglican Church, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, Azernews reports.

According to the report, the chairman of the committee informed the guest in detail about the religious situation in our country, the model of coexistence based on respect and trust, and the activity of DQIDK. Noting that the majority of Azerbaijan's population is Muslim, the Committee Chairman said all religions are treated equally in Azerbaijan. Freedom of religion is fully ensured in our country, there is an ideal balance between secularism and religious values.

M. Gurbanli noted that 995 religious institutions are registered with the state, 37 of which are non-Islamic, and financial aid is regularly allocated to support the activity of religious confessions existing in the country.

The chairman of the National Institute of Religious Education in Azerbaijan informed about the state of religious education in Azerbaijan and noted that the Azerbaijan Institute of Theology, established by the decree of President Ilham Aliyev, is a specialized educational institution in this field and attached great importance to the contribution to the training of professional theologians and theologians.

Noting that Azerbaijan demonstrates an exemplary model of inter-religious dialogue and coexistence, Justin Welbin positively assessed Azerbaijan's secular approach to religion. The guest emphasized the importance of creating all necessary conditions for equal activity of non-Islamic religious communities in the republic and the activity of the National Council for Religious Affairs in this direction.

At the end of the meeting, attended by British Ambassador to Azerbaijan Fergus Auld and Azerbaijani Ambassador to the UK Elin Suleymanov, the guests were presented books published by the State Committee in English, which talks about the climate of religious tolerance in our country.