Moldovan Liberal Party calls for Metropolia to be banned over ROC ties

Illustrative image of a temple of the Orthodox Church of Moldova, a cross, and a judge's gavel. Photo: UOJ

The Liberal Party of Moldova has called on parliament to require the Metropolia of Chișinău and All Moldova of the Orthodox Church of Moldova to sever its canonical ties with the Russian Orthodox Church and, if it refuses, to declare it illegal, Cotidianul reports.

The liberals proposed adopting a special law that would effectively allow the state to interfere in the internal structure of the country’s largest Orthodox jurisdiction. The authors of the initiative described the Metropolia’s affiliation with the Moscow Patriarchate as “an instrument of foreign influence” and “a threat to national security.”

The party cited Estonia as an example, where the authorities demanded that the local Orthodox church structure cut its ties with the Moscow Patriarchate. In the liberals’ view, similar restrictions should be introduced in Moldova under the pretext of protecting the country’s European course.

The statement also included accusations against Patriarch Kirill and the clergy of the Moldovan Metropolia. Party representatives claimed that some priests were allegedly promoting ideas contrary to the republic’s national interests.

At the same time, the liberals voiced support for the Bessarabian Metropolia of the Romanian Orthodox Church and linked criticism of it to a struggle over more than 800 churches and monasteries designated as historical monuments.

As previously reported by the UOJ, the Moldovan Church said that its Primate had become the target of a media campaign.

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