Churches and Religious Communities in the Macedonian Constitution: Competing Visions of Recognition and Equality, 1991-2001

Authors

• Aleksandar Spasenovski, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje (Iustinianus Primus Faculty of Law)Follow

Abstract

This article examines competing constitutional visions concerning churches and religious communities at two defining moments in the Macedonian constitutional order: the adoption of the 1991 Constitution and the amendments of 2001. Through a legal-historical analysis of constitutional provisions, proposed amendments, and parliamentary debates, it reconstructs four competing proposals from 1991: the designation of Orthodox Christianity as the official religion, special constitutional status for the Macedonian Orthodox Church, the joint recognition of the Macedonian Orthodox Church and the Islamic Religious Community, and a general separation-and-equality clause without naming particular religious organizations. The analysis relates these proposals to the political orientations of their proponents, revealing different approaches to the relationship between historical tradition, religious diversity, and state neutrality. It then examines the constitutional changes of 2001, comparing the Ohrid Framework Agreement with the adopted Amendment VII. The central argument is that the 1991 Constitution already guaranteed separation from the state and equality before the law, while the 2001 revision expanded the express recognition of religious communities without introducing legal equality for the first time. The resulting constitutional model combined differentiated recognition with common legal guarantees, reflecting enduring tensions among European standards of religious freedom, Orthodox historical traditions, and religious pluralism. Subsequent European Court of Human Rights judgments help clarify the legal limits of historical recognition and institutional preference.

Recommended Citation

Spasenovski, Aleksandar (2026) "Churches and Religious Communities in the Macedonian Constitution: Competing Visions of Recognition and Equality, 1991-2001," Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe: Vol. 46 : Iss. 10 , Article 6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55221/2693-2229.2969
Available at: https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/ree/vol46/iss10/6