April 2010 – Provo, Oslo, Moscow, Kiev

The International Center for Law and Religion Studies at Brigham Young University has sponsored the Russian translation and publication of two important reference works in the field of law and religion: Facilitating Freedom of Religion or Belief: A Deskbook, co-sponsored by the Oslo Coalition for Freedom of Religion and Belief, and State and Church in the European Union, by Gerhard Robbers. Both works will provide significant resources for comparative understanding of issues affecting religious believers and groups for the Russian-speaking world.

The Russian translation of the deskbook will be published in May 2010 by the Russian Institute for Law and Religion. It was originally produced in English through the collaboration of the Center and the Oslo Coalition, with the editorship of Center Director Cole Durham and associate editorship of Center Associate Director Elizabeth Sewell, among others. The Russian translation of the Deskbook includes key chapters on international systems for protecting religious freedom, ones addressing issues that arise in national systems such as registration, and a new chapter on state and religion in Russia by noted Russian lawyer and scholar Anatoly Ptchelintsev. Launches of the Deskbook will be held in Moscow, Almaty, Yerevan, and Kyiv.

Robbers’ text includes chapters on each of the church-state systems of the European Union countries and is a tremendous resource for study of law and religion in Europe. The Russian translation of the textwas published in December by the Institute of Europe under the editorship of Anatoly Krasikov. Launch events, which were attended by scholars, journalists, Orthodox and other religious leaders, and government officials, were held in Moscow and Kyiv.