Basics of Regulation of the Activities of the Russian Orthodox Church in Africa

This publication is devoted to the study of international events of the last three years i.e. the deployment of organizational and missionary activities of the Russian Orthodox Church on the African continent. The aim of the work is to find out, within the framework of comparative law and interdisciplinary approach, on what organizational and legal basis this activity is carried out by the Patriarchal Exarchate of Africa, established by the Russian Orthodox Church at the end of 2021. The diversification of normative forms and methods of deployment of this work is related both to the peculiarities of the constitutional framework and to the specialized legislation of African countries on the organization and implementation of church-pastoral activities in Africa. The review of the normative base of the activity of religious associations of the Patriarchal Exarchate in Africa pays special attention to the difference of African State systems based on the sources of Islamic law, on the one hand, and in the states with the traditions of Romano-Germanic and Anglo-Saxon law inherited from the metropolises, on the other hand. This analytical study leads to observations and conclusions that the missionary activity of the Russian Orthodox Church in Africa unfolds in a complex and contradictory legal context of the States of the African continent. At the same time, in-depth study and practice of work on this continent, which is entering the global arena, can have far-reaching consequences for the growing international significance of the Russian civilizational presence in the world. In addition, a brief overview of national legislation regulating religious organizations may be of practical interest.