Abstract
<jats:p>The specifics of religious studies and legal reflection on freedom of conscience in the context of modern social, socio-cultural and spiritual-religious transformations, caused by state policy, which is aimed, on the one hand, at the full provision of human rights and freedoms and the democratization of state-confessional relations, and on the other hand, at the protection of the constitutional order, national security and identity, are updated. The phenomenon of freedom of conscience as a fundamental and inalienable right of every person to free ideological choice, its full realization, protection and inviolability is meaningfully understood. In this regard, the concept and content of the institution of freedom of conscience and religion in the context of human rights and freedoms is revealed and the ideological value of the dominant views in the humanities regarding the historical formation and development of ideas about freedom of conscience is expressed, including the influence of various philosophical and religious-theological traditions. The content of positive trends in the field of legal support for freedom of conscience and religion is substantiated in order to formulate proposals and effective approaches to improving the legislation of Ukraine in the field of state-church relations, issues of freedom of conscience, legal guarantees for the functioning of religious organizations, that would reflect national interests and not contradict international standards. The basic elements of the problem of protecting the religious rights and freedoms of Ukrainian citizens are outlined, which can be considered one of the key elements of novelty obtained as a result of historical and religious studies retrospection and legal objectification of worldview sources of interpretation of freedom of conscience and religion</jats:p>