Serbian cleric calls on archons to apologize for slandering U.S. hierarchs

Protopresbyter Vasilije Vranic. Photo: Facebook page of Fr. Vasilije

On November 21, 2025, Protopresbyter Vasilije Vranic, dean of the Washington Deanery of the Eastern American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church, issued a sharp rebuke of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (AEP). As the American edition of the UOJ reports, the priest demanded that the authors of the statement immediately apologize to the Serbian Orthodox Church and to all participants of the meeting with U.S. government officials organized in defense of the UOC.

According to Fr. Vasilije, he read the archons’ document “with shock and incredulity.” He stated that the accusation claiming members of the delegation were “supporters of Putin’s war” is not only baseless but distorts the very essence of their mission.

The Orthodox delegation, which included representatives of the Antiochian and Serbian Churches, the Orthodox Church in America, and ROCOR, presented U.S. officials with three key requests: the immediate cessation of persecution of UOC clergy and believers; ensuring medical care and the release of detained clergy and journalists, including Metropolitan Arseniy of Sviatohirsk; and preventing the forced involvement of clergy in hostilities, which contradicts international norms.

“One would think that advocacy for these honorable requests would be welcomed universally, let alone by an organization that purports to be the political arm of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in the United States, and by extension the Ecumenical Patriarchate,” he noted.

The priest emphasized that the archons’ statement effectively discredits efforts aimed at alleviating the suffering of millions of Orthodox Ukrainians – members of the country’s largest religious community.

Fr. Vasilije reminded that he took part in the delegation with the blessing of his bishop, Irinej of Washington–New York and Eastern America. He categorically rejected any insinuations of supporting any political or military agenda. “Our sole purpose remains peace and the end of human suffering. The Serbian people endured the horrors of fratricidal wars, and this has shaped our uncompromising stance toward such tragedies,” he stated.

Fr. Vasilije demanded that the archons issue an immediate and unconditional apology to the Serbian Orthodox Church and to all members of the delegation. He also called on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America to publicly distance itself from the organization’s statement and to condemn its leader for “deeply disrespectful and cynical accusations” directed at representatives of autocephalous Orthodox Churches.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that Fr. Vasilije had also commented on statements by U.S. Representative Joe Wilson and on an article published in The Hill, which likewise portrayed the pan-Orthodox delegation as agents of foreign influence.

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