During many centuries Uzbekistan and the whole Central Asia have been the crossroads of various religions. It was the religion that played a key role in uniting the peoples living in this territory regardless of their nationality and race.
Today young Uzbekistan is a secular state where all religious organizations and associations are equal as per the law. The predominant religion in Uzbekistan is Islam, and more specifically, Sunni Muslims. Islam is professed by about 93% of the population. The next religion in terms of follower is Christianity, of which Catholics are 3% and Orthodox christians are 4%.
There are 225 religious organizations and 16 religious denominations registered in Uzbekistan. This variety of religions shows absolute tolerance to any religion in the country. According to the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan every resident of the country has the right to profess any religion or to profess none.
In 1999 the Islamic University was established in Tashkent for the purpose of detailed study of the great heritage of Islam. There are many mosques which are coordinated by the Spiritual Administration of the Muslims of Uzbekistan. Two institutions are engaged in spiritual management: the Mir Arab religious school in Bukhara and the Islamic University in Tashkent.
Herewith, much attention is paid to Orthodoxy, thus in 2011 Uzbekistan celebrated the 140th anniversary of the Russian Orthodox Church in Central Asia. In Tashkent, there is the Holy Dormition Cathedral, as well as the Alexander Nevsky Church, the Cathedral of Prince Vladimir and the St. Nicholas Convent.
Armenian Apostolic Church and the Jewish synagogues сan be referred to the temples of other religious denominations.