300
PARISHIONERS ASK
PATRIARCH KIRILL TO REMOVE BAN ON MINISTRY OF SCHEHEGUMEN
SERGIUS
by
Oksana Maklakova
EkaterinburgOnline,
21 June 2020
Today
parishioners of
the Central Urals convent signed a petition for removing the ban
on ministry of
Schehegumen Sergius. The petition was signed by 300 persons and
sent to
Patriarch Kirill.
"The
founder of
the Central Urals convent, Schehegumen Sergius (Romanov), is a
deeply respected
spiritual father to the nuns of the Central Urals convent and
also to an
enormous number of laity from various parts of our country, and
he is a patron
and helper of many sick people who have limited physical
capability and of
orphans," the document says. "In view of the enormous
contribution of
Father Sergius to the spiritual life of the Ekaterinburg diocese
over the
course of a great period of time, we ask you please to admit
Schehegumen
Sergius to full-fledged ministry within the walls of the convent
that he
founded.
In late
April, the
Ekaterinburg diocese deprived Schehegumen Sergius of the right
to preach. This
happened after he published a video with criticism of the state.
The cleric
affirmed that the epidemic in Russia is a fabrication. However
after the next
video he was punished more severely: he was forbidden to perform
sacraments and
scheduled for a church trial on 15 June.
Several
days before
the trial, Schehegumen Sergius, who will also be tried for fake
news in late
July, composed a video appeal to Metropolitan Kirill, in which
he declared that
he will not leave the church and it will be necessary for the
Russian Guard to
drive him away. After arriving at the church court, he began
reading a speech
from a paper, after which he left the diocese. The judges were
not able to come
to a decision and they postponed the session until 26 June.
Later
police came to
the convent and determined whether there were disorders in the
cloister about
which local news media had written. At that time we talked with
Father Sergius
and created a large photo report about him. (tr. by PDS, posted
22 June 2020)
Radical
conservative Orthodox cleric defies church court
June 18, 2020
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