Is It a Matter of Time Before the Moldovan Metropolis Is Banned?

Sergiu CEBAN

Despite the attempts of Maia Sandu and PAS to dissociate themselves from the scandalous statements of a ruling party deputy about the forthcoming ban of the Moldovan Metropolis of the Russian Orthodox Church, the process itself has long been launched and is moving towards its logical end    

The dramatic events unfolding in the spiritual life of the neighboring Ukraine are resonating with the devout Christians around the world. It is very difficult to stay absolutely indifferent to the attempts to ban one of Ukraine’s leading churches. Moreover, it is quite clear that such actions will only lead to an even greater split in Ukrainian society, and the armed conflict between Kyiv and Moscow will take on an additional religious dimension. If the church crisis worsens, our territory is likely to host not only refugees fleeing the war, but also migrating Orthodox Christians who were visiting the Ukrainian Orthodox churches and parishes. However, Moldova has already hit the Ukrainian news after the reports that MP Artyom Dmytruk, who spoke in defense of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, fled through our territory to escape the persecution of law enforcers. It is also inevitable that religious persecution will also lead to squabbles with neighboring countries and especially with Romania, since Romanian-speaking Orthodox parishioners are one of the largest communities in Ukraine. The country’s State Service for Ethno-Politics and Freedom of Conscience reported recently that it had refused to register the Romanian Patriarchate as the “Romanian Orthodox Church of Ukraine” because setting up such a structure allegedly contradicts the principle of locality, which is fundamental in Orthodox practice. That all this will end in a mere exchange of remarks is quite doubtful, but while Kyiv and Bucharest are dealing with yet another mutual problem, we should remember that our spiritual life is also turbulent. The main cause of intra-confessional tension, as before, is the increasing tendency for Moldovan clergy to move under the omophorion of the Metropolis of Bessarabia, which is subordinate to the Romanian Orthodox Church, during this year migration has occurred almost monthly. One of the catalysts for a deeper church split in Moldova and increased centrifugal processes in the Metropolis of Chisinau and All Moldova was the scandal that erupted last year after the publication of Metropolitan Vladimir’s letter to Patriarch Kirill. He listed a number of concerns and grievances that had arisen among the clergy in recent years. There were also direct accusations against Kirill, who was said to be showing complete indifference and lack of support in a difficult period, as a result of which the Metropolis is gradually being pushed to the periphery of Moldovan society. No doubt, the bickering between the Moldovan Metropolis and the Russian Orthodox Church, which was leaked to the public, was received with enthusiasm in the backstage of the current government. Pro-Romanian MPs and representatives of the right-radical wing of PAS viewed this as not only another opportunity to bolster the stance of the Metropolis of Bessarabia, but also as a historical chance for the “spiritual purification” of Moldovan Orthodoxy through its smooth integration into the unified Romanian clerical space. However, since this year and the next year are pre-election ones, the President’s Office and electoral headquarters of Maia Sandu apparently decided not to “play with fire” for the time being, in order to avoid a sharp public reaction, and to return to the issue later. Moreover, following the long-standing principle of “if you cannot prevent an outrage, you must lead it”, Sandu’s advisers even made attempts to portray her as an arbiter of inter-metropolitan controversies. And then, as if out of the blue, the MP from the ruling party Vasile Soimaru, breaking, perhaps, an unspoken ban, announces in the air of TVR Moldova about the possible termination of the Moldovan Metropolis of the Russian Orthodox Church already this autumn. This radical way of settling the old dispute between the two metropolises and the two churches was enthusiastically welcomed by the Ukrainian media which spread the statements of our deputy across all news channels. They were taken seriously in Kyiv as yet another manifestation of Moldovan solidarity with Ukraine and as an important contribution to the fight against the remnants of the Russian “soft power” and cultural and spiritual influence in our regional space. It is reasonable that such an outbreak could not be missed by Igor Dodon, “the main advocate of Russian interests in Moldova” and permanent leader of the Socialists. In his opinion, such plans of the president and the ruling party would provoke a dangerous confrontation in society. This rumor was also resonated in Tiraspol, according to which the ban on the Moldovan Metropolis could trigger mass protests. However, these are all quite routine reactions, which are not particularly surprising. What’s interesting is that the PAS was by all accounts most disturbed by Soimaru’s revelations, given its rapid steps to quell the unplanned religious scandal. The ruling party immediately distanced itself from the statements of its MP, calling them his personal position, and said that according to the Constitution the church is separate from the state, autonomous and does not participate in political activity, and the government is not preparing any such laws or initiatives. It was said that PAS supports both metropolises and good understanding between the parishioners. Having realised the scale of the problem, the authorities used all their fire-fighting arsenal, and even compelled the sick president to personally claim that the MP’s words had nothing to do with reality. Unexpectedly for many, Ms. Sandu almost guaranteed the safety of the ROC parishes, saying that there is no danger for the Moldovan Metropolis, “On the contrary, during these four years we have done more than anyone to promote peace and mutual understanding between these metropolises. We have good relations with both. Every time I meet with representatives of the Metropolis of Moldova and the Metropolis of Bessarabia, I say that we need unity and peace for the sake of our citizens.” It must be said that Bucharest, to put it mildly, did not applaud such appeasing messages from Sandu and her team, and sent signals expressing dissatisfaction with the attempts of the Moldovan authorities to dampen the religious scandal. Obviously, according to the ideas of certain political forces in Romania and Moldova, now is the most appropriate time to move the matter forward and finally close the issue of the Moldovan Metropolis. Therefore, Romanian experts encourage an urgent internal discussion on whether the presence and activity of the clergy subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Church is a problem for the security of Moldova. All this suggests that Soimaru’s remarks are not just an accident or stupidity of a careless talker. It seems that a year later someone is again consciously stirring up the topic of the aggravated church schism. No matter how much PAS insists that he was expressing his personal opinion, diametrically opposite to that of the party, it is hard to believe this. The very content of the MP’s statements suggests that the “problem of metropolises” is on the table at closed meetings of the party’s staff, and a decision in principle is most likely only a matter of time.