Eastern Orthodoxy in Azerbaijan
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Eastern Orthodoxy in Azerbaijan is the main
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
and the second largest religious group in the
Republic of Azerbaijan A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...
(after
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
). According to statistics, the
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...
, or
Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
tradition in Azerbaijan is 2.3% (209.7 thousand people). The territory of Azerbaijan is in the jurisdiction of the Baku-Azerbaijan Diocese of the
Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...
.


History of Eastern Orthodoxy in Azerbaijan

Serious changes in the Caucasian Albanian church occurred under the Arab rule, when the Catholicos Nerses I Bakur (688-704) attempted to convert to Chalcedonism, thus recognizing the spiritual authority of
Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
. He was deposed by the Grand Duke of Albania Shero and other feudal lords who remained faithful to the Albanian church, and cursed at the national church cathedral. In the second half of the 10th century, the population of the left-bank Albania (
Hereti The Kingdom of Hereti ( ka, ჰერეთის სამეფო ''heretis samepo'') was a medieval monarchy which emerged in Caucasus on the Iberian-Albanian frontier. Nowadays it roughly corresponds to the southeastern corner of Georgia's Ka ...
) was included in the sphere of influence of the decision of the Chalcedon Council of the
Georgian Church The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonly ...
, adopted in the 7th century and got a great impact of Georgia. When the territories of
Transcaucasia The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...
entered the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
, jurisdiction of ''Georgian Exarchate'' was expanded, encompassing territories of modern-day
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
,
Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
and
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
. In 1905, ''Eparchy of Baku'', nowadays ''Baku and Caspian Eparchy'', was established.Православие в Азербайджане / Православие.Ru
The Albanian Catholicos of the church in 1813 by the decree of
Tsar Nicholas I , house = Romanov-Holstein-Gottorp , father = Paul I of Russia , mother = Maria Feodorovna (Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg) , birth_date = , birth_place = Gatchina Palace, Gatchina, Russian Empire , death_date = ...
passed into the status of the metropolite of the Albanian church. Eastern Orthodoxy became wide spread in Azerbaijan at the beginning of the 19th century.


Eastern Orthodoxy in Azerbaijan nowadays

In 1815, the first Russian Orthodox church appeared in
Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
. Later such churches were built in
Ganja Ganja (, ; ) is one of the oldest and most commonly used synonyms for marijuana. Its usage in English dates to before 1689. Etymology ''Ganja'' is borrowed from Hindi/Urdu ( hi, गांजा, links=no, ur, , links=no, IPA: aːɲd ...
, Goranboy (Borisi-Russian village, 1842),
Shemakha Shamakhi ( az, Şamaxı, ) is a city in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Shamakhi District. The city's estimated population was 31,704. It is famous for its traditional dancers, the Shamakhi Dancers, and also for perhaps giving it ...
(Alty-Aghadj village, 1834),
Lankaran Lankaran ( az, Lənkəran, ) is a city in Azerbaijan, on the coast of the Caspian Sea, near the southern border with Iran. As of 2021, the city had a population of 89,300. It is next to, but independent of, Lankaran District. The city forms a dis ...
(Vel village, 1838), and Gedabek (Slavyanka village, 1844). There were 21 sectarian villages in Baku during 1868. In 1905, the Baku Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church was established. During the Soviet era, the authorities repressed the priests of the Baku diocese, but in 1944 two churches were opened. In 1998, the Baku-Caspian Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church was established. On March 22, 2011, the decision of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church was changed to the Baku-Caspian diocese in Baku-Azerbaijan. In 2011 there were six Eastern Orthodox churches in the country. Five of them belong to the Russian Orthodox church (ROC): three of them are located in Baku one in Ganja and one in Khachmaz. Another temple belongs to the jurisdiction of the Georgian Orthodox Church - the Church of St. George in the village of Gakh-Inguila in the
Qakh district Qakh District ( az, Qax rayonu; ka, კახის რაიონი, K′akhis raioni; Tsakhur: Къахын район) is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the north of the country and belongs to the Shaki-Zagatala Ec ...
, where the Ingiloy Georgians live compactly (about 7,500 people). In 2013, November, President
Ilham Aliyev Ilham Heydar oghlu Aliyev ( az, İlham Heydər oğlu Əliyev, ; born 24 December 1961) is the fourth president of Azerbaijan, serving in the post since 31 October 2003. The son and second child of the former Azerbaijani leader Heydar Aliyev, ...
participated in the opening ceremony of Orthodox Religious and Cultural Center of Baku and Azerbaijan Eparchy. Firstly, The President visited the
Holy Myrrhbearers Cathedral , native_name = az, Müqəddəs Mürr-daşıyan Zənənlər kafedral kilsəsi , image = Müqəddəs_Mürdaşıyan_Zənənlər_Kafedralı.jpg , pushpin map = Azerbaijan Baku , country = Azerbaijan , denomination = Russian Orthodox , former na ...
. There is also the
Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...
Archangel's
Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
in the capital city Baku.


The Albanian-Udin Christian community

In 2001, during his visit to Azerbaijan, Patriarch Alexe II met with representatives of the Udin community who expressed the desire of their people to join the ROC. However, this did not lead to any real results, and the community of Udin remained outside the church's nourishment. On May 28, 2003, the Albanian-Udin Christian community was established in Azerbaijan. The Chairman of the community was Robert Mobilea. This was due to the restoration of the ancient Kish temple in Shaki (according to legend, the foundation was laid by the apostle Eliseus). In 2006, the restoration of the second Udin temple, the church in the village of Nijgabalinsky district, was completed. Restoration works are also continued in the village of Gum of the Gakh region and the basilica in the village of Gyumriuk with the intention of restoration of the Albanian basilica which is related to the 5th century. In 2006, the bishop of Baku and the Caspian Sea, Alexander (Ishchein), reported that Orthodox worship will be performed in Udin churches, and priests for them are trained in Russian religious schools. The Baku diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church took part in some solemn events, and even held baptisms, but there is no general progress on the involving of Udin into the ROC. Meanwhile, the Albanian-Udin Christian community exists in the form of a separate ethno-religious group with its own ideas about the "Udin Church", in which rituals are conducted not by canonical clergymen, but by the members of the community. In particular, the right to baptize was taken over by the Chairman of the AUHO Robert Mobilea and the self-styled "spiritual figure" Rafik Danakari.


See also

*
Religion in Azerbaijan The majority religion in Azerbaijan is Islam, though Azerbaijan is the most secular country in the Muslim world. Estimates include 96.9% (CIA, 2010) and 99.2% (Pew Research Center, 2006) of the population identifying as Muslim. Most are adhere ...
* Christianity in Azerbaijan * Russian Orthodox Church in Azerbaijan *
Georgian Orthodox Church in Azerbaijan The Georgian Orthodox Church is a major part of Christianity in Azerbaijan#Eastern Orthodoxy, Orthodox Christianity in Azerbaijan. Georgian Churches in Azerbaijan are under jurisdiction of Eparchy of Khornabuji and Hereti.Vladimir Moss, The Orthodox Church in the Twentieth Century


External links


An official website of the Orthodox Union

An official website of the Eparchy of Baku
{{Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe