AUTONOMY OF RELIGIOUS CONFESSIONS, NEUTRALITY OF THE STATE AND PROHIBITION OF ARBITRARINESS IN THE RECENT JURISPRUDENCE OF THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

When analyzing the principle of neutrality defined by the European Court of Human Rights, and its impact on the collective dimension of the right to freedom of religion and belief, there is often a tendency to focus the attention on the relationship between the internal autonomy of religious groups / and the prohibition of the State to assess the legitimacy of religious beliefs. However, the autonomy of religious denominations is not confined to their internal sphere, but is also involved in the external activity of churches. Also, the principle of neutrality not only prohibits the assessment of the legitimacy of religious beliefs, but also any arbitrariness in the State management of religion. The latter prohibition has been invoked repeatedly in judgments regarding the recognition of legal personality to religious groups. This paper aims to present the reader with an overview of the current state of the Strasbourg jurisprudence on this matter, identifying its possible influence on other areas of the Court's activity that also affect the external autonomy of religious groups.