B a k u – Despite Azerbaijan’s constitutionally-guaranteed religious freedom, Christians are discriminated against in this majority-Muslim country, on the basis of their faith. This was pointed out by Elnur Jabijev (Baku), General-Secretary of the Azerbaijani Baptist Union, in a conversation with the European Baptist Press Service (EBPS) at the German “Federation of Evangelical-Free Churches” national conference in Kassel. In early May, two Christians lost their jobs at a recreational centre in Baku simply because of their faith. According to Jabijev, they were even explicitly told that their faith was the reason for their dismissal without notice. The General-Secretary has had similar experiences himself. After working for three years as a policeman, state secret police observed and photographed him as he visited Baptist Sunday services. He was then interrogated by them and discharged. After that, he was forced to keep his family alive without any income or social benefits. Yet the Baptist congregation in Baku assisted as best it could, even though it also had very limited spare funds. He explained: “Our congregations remain very poor.” Without financial aid from elsewhere, the congregations could hardly survive. He expressed thanks for all aid received to date from Europe, yet he noted that the need in his country was vast. More help is needed in order for the church to avail itself of the genuine opportunities for mission.

He noted that in his own 250-member congregation in Baku, between two and six visitors find Christ every Sunday. But in general, the Baptist Union enjoys little growth on the national level. After conversion, many Christians are pressured by their Muslim families and neighbours to recant. Consequently, many of them cease living out their Christian faith. Such persons are in dire need of more intensive spiritual counsel. Yet such possibilities are still very limited due to the lack of qualified co-workers. Jabijev reported that the planting of additional congregations in the capital city of Baku is also a high priority. The four-million-strong city still has only a single Baptist church. Azerbaijan’s Baptist Union has three duly-registered congregations and 19 meeting places with a total of 3.000 members.