Lithuania: the predicament of the segregation of religions

Abstract

Though the period of Lithuania’s current independence is comparatively short – it became independent in 1991, following the breakup of the USSR – it was rather a restoration of its statehood than the beginning, as Lithuania had been an independent state from 1918 to 1940. Soon after regaining independence, Lithuania embarked on the course towards EuroAtlantic integration, which culminated in its accession to both the EU and NATO in 2004. Lithuania’s legal system, including governance of religion, is, thus, permeated by EU standards, which it had to adhere to in order to join the bloc. The peculiarity, at least in the broader European context, of the Lithuanian regime of the governance of religious diversity lies particularly in the formal distinction between three or even four levels of recognition of religious collectivities and their organizations operating in the country. Lithuania has a special category, that of ‘traditional’ religious communities and Churches, which inter alia includes Sunni Muslims, while all other branches of Islam fall under other categories. Two other non-Christian ‘traditional’ religious communities are Judaist and Karaite. As such, ‘traditional’ religious communities, through their organizations, have exceptional rights to build temples and own property, expect tax exemptions, teach their religion to children in public schools, and seek assistance from the state for their projects. [...]