Armenian Church Hails Georgia’s Religious Minorities Law

8/7/2011 YEREVAN — The Armenian Apostolic Church has welcomed the decision by Georgian authorities that will allow it to gain legal status in Georgia, RFE/RL’s Armenian Service reports. Depite fierce opposition from the leadership of the Georgian Orthodox Church and some political factions, pro-government lawmakers in Tbilisi on July 5 voted in accelerated second- and third-reading procedures to approve an amendment to the civil code granting five minority religious groups, including the local Armenian Church, the status of “legal entities of public law.” Other beneficiaries of the amendment that have long sought such a status are the Roman Catholic Church, the Evangelical Baptist Church, and the Muslim and Jewish communities in Georgia.