Church re-registration rejected; forbidden to worship

BAKU, Azerbaijan — Cathedral of Praise Protestant church in Baku — which claims 1,500 members — has been unable to meet for worship since its tent was destroyed in an apparent arson attack in January, its pastor Rasim Halilov said. Its re-registration application was rejected because some of its founders had changed since 2002, a decision it failed to overturn in court. The State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations said it cannot use another church for worship. Eight months after the deadline, only 448 communities have gained compulsory re-registration, including 431 mosques and only 2 Protestant churches. Re-registration for the Catholics — who were forced to apply only for their Baku parish, not for a community covering the whole of Azerbaijan — awaits the outcome of discussions between the nuncio and the Foreign Ministry.