The Constitution provides for the freedom to practice the rights of one's religion and faith in accordance with the customs that are observed in the kingdom, unless they violate public order or morality.
Members of unrecognized religious groups and converts from Islam face legal discrimination and bureaucratic difficulties as well as societal intolerance; Shari'a courts have the authority to prosecute proselytizers.
There are a number of Syriac Christians (who are overwhelmingly ethnic Assyrians) and Shi'a among the estimated 250,000 to 450,000 Iraqis in the country, many of whom are undocumented or on visitor permits.
The northern part of the city of Azraq has a sizable Druze population, as does Umm Al-Jamal in the governorate of Mafraq.
[5] The Constitution provides for the freedom to practice the rites of one's religion and faith in accordance with the customs that are observed in the kingdom, unless they violate public order or morality.
Matters of personal status of non-Muslims whose religion is recognized by the Government are the jurisdiction of Tribunals of Religious Communities, according to Article 108.
According to the law, all minor children of male citizens who convert to Islam are considered to be Muslim.
The Government refers to the following criteria when considering official recognition of Christian churches: the faith must not contradict the nature of the Constitution, public ethics, customs, or traditions; it must be recognized by the Middle East Council of Churches; the faith must not oppose the national religion; and the group must include some citizen adherents.
Recognized non-Muslim religious institutions do not receive subsidies; they are financially and administratively independent of the Government and are tax-exempt.
In June 2006, the Government published the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in the Official Gazette.
According to Article 93.2 of the Constitution, acts published in the Official Gazette attain force of law.
Additionally, the Covenant stipulates that no one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.
The government-sponsored Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies organized several conferences and seminars to support its effort to provide a venue in the Arab world for the interdisciplinary study and rational discussion of religion and religious issues, with particular reference to Christianity in Arab and Islamic society.
These included an international conference in January 2007 to debate a common approach to reform in different religious traditions, a February 2007 seminar that addressed the role of religious traditions in the context of social and political modernization, and an April 2007 conference entitled "The ‘Universal' in Human Rights: A Precondition for a Dialogue of Cultures."
Some religious groups, while allowed to meet and practice their faith, faced societal and official discrimination.
The Government does not recognize Jehovah's Witnesses, or the Church of Christ, but each is allowed to conduct religious services without interference.
Shari'a, in theory, provides for the death penalty for Muslims who apostatize; however, the Government has never applied such punishment.
The Jordan Evangelical Theological Seminary (JETS), a Christian training school for pastors and missionaries, was registered with the Government and operates as a cultural center.
Parliamentary elections law historically has under represented urban areas that are centers of support for Islamist candidates.
This stipulation was designed primarily to prevent government opponents from preaching politically oriented sermons in mosques.
On April 29, 2007, government authorities reportedly deported Pastor Mazhar Izzat Bishay of the Aqaba Free Evangelical Church, an Egyptian national and long-time resident, to Egypt.
In November 2006, the authorities deported Wajeeh Besharah, Ibrahim Atta, Raja Welson, Imad Waheeb, four Coptic Egyptians living in Aqaba, to Egypt.
On January 20, 2006, a Shari'a court received an apostasy complaint against Mahmoud Abdel Rahman Mohammad Eleker, a convert from Islam to Christianity.
In September 2004, on the order of a Shari'a court, the authorities arrested a convert from Islam to Christianity and held him overnight on charges of apostasy.
The verdict declared the convert to be a ward of the state, stripped him of his civil rights, and annulled his marriage.
It stated that he lost all rights to inheritance and may not remarry his (now former) wife unless he returns to Islam, and forbade his being considered an adherent of any other religion.
Editorial cartoons, articles, and opinion pieces with antisemitic themes occur with less frequency in the government-controlled media, but are more common and feature more prominently in privately owned weekly tabloids such as al-Sabil and al-Rai.
In June 2006, the Government published the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in the Official Gazette.
According to the survey in 2010 by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, 86% of Jordanians polled supported the death penalty for those who leave the Muslim religion.
[7] Parents usually strongly discourage young adults from pursuing interfaith romantic relationships, because they may lead to conversion.