ABSTRACT
International law is generally speaking the law that governs interaction between state entities, or between individuals and states. Religious organizations do not per se fall into the scope of international law. Nevertheless, there are certain aspects of human rights law, for example, that guarantee religious rights. These guarantees are not conceived of in terms of religious communities’ rights, but rather the individual’s right to profess his or her religious beliefs freely. Such a conception is the result of a long process of secularization, primarily in the areas of the world dominated by western Christian denominations, mainly Protestants. As a result, the societies outside the scope of western Christianity occasionally struggle to fully embrace the notion of individual human rights, seeing them as a form of western cultural colonialism. Such an approach is clearly visible in the case of the Arab world, which has adopted various alternative human rights charters since 1981. A similar, yet less oppositionist stance is adopted by the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC). The chapter focuses on how the ROC posits itself as an actor of international law. This is particularly visible in relation to human rights law, but there are also other issues where the ROC attempts to or is called upon to become involved. The chapter is divided into three main parts. First, a section provides the background, highlighting the transnational dimension of the ROC and its evolution. The second part focuses on human rights law, and the role the ROC envisages for itself within this discourse. The final part covers other aspects of international law, and instances where the ROC is involved in legal disputes outside Russia.
