Moldovan parishioners tried for resisting temple transfer to Romanian Church

The Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos in the village of Grinăuți, Moldova. Photo: zivotcrkve.rs

In the Rîșcani District of Moldova, a trial has begun against six parishioners of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in the village of Grinăuți, who are accused of "hooliganism" after they attempted to prevent the transfer of their church to the jurisdiction of the Bessarabian Metropolis of the Romanian Patriarchate. This is reported by the Serbian portal zivotcrkve.rs.

The incident occurred on July 15, 2025, and is related to the actions of the former rector Constantin Turturianu, who is under canonical prohibition.

According to the Serbian portal, the priest announced the "transition" of the parish against the will of the community. At a meeting of the faithful, the decision was rejected: 267 parishioners voted against, while only 9 supported the initiative, and 8 abstained. Despite this, Turturianu refused to leave the church, leading to a conflict during which the faithful escorted him out of the building.

The General Prosecutor's Office ignored the decision of the religious community and initiated a criminal case against six villagers aged 38 to 59. They face a fine of up to 52,500 lei (about 2,700 euros), up to 240 hours of community service, or up to three years of imprisonment.

The parishioners call the charges unfair and consider the events as pressure on the faithful of the canonical Orthodox Church of Moldova, who were merely trying to keep their church within the legitimate ecclesiastical jurisdiction.

As reported by the UOJ, on November 4, 2025, a trial against six residents of the village of Grinăuți in the Rîșcani District began in Moldova.

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