PATRIARCHATE: REFUSAL TO TRANSFER ST. ISAAC'S CATHEDRAL TO CHURCH ILLEGAL; MAY BE APPEALED
Interfax-Religiia, 2 September 2015
The Moscow patriarchate declared the decision of the government of St. Petersburg to refuse to transfer St. Isaac's cathedral to the local diocese to be illegal.
"The refusal is illegal. If such a refusal follows, it will be appealed in court," the head of the legal service of the Moscow patriarchate, Sister Kseniia (Chernega), told an Interfax-Religiia correspondent on Wednesday.
She recalled that federal law No. 327, "On transfer to religious organizations of property designed for religious use, owned by the state or a municipality," defines a closed list of grounds for refusal to transfer property. These grounds, specifically, include the following circumstances: the object is not designed for religious use, application for its transfer was submitted by a foreign religious organization, and there exists a court decision determining another procedure for disposal of the property.
"This closed list of grounds does not include the reason that the governor's press service declared. After all, the press service says that in the event of the transfer of the cathedral for the use without charge by the diocese, all expenses for maintenance of the cathedral will be borne by the city," the news agency's interlocutor noted.
However, she emphasized, such a reason as, for example, a budget deficit is not provided for by law. In addition, chapter 36 of the Civil Code puts the responsibility for maintenance of property for use without charge upon the user.
"We consider that grounds for refusal do not exist. It is a house of worship; it was built for religious purposes. The fact that this building did not belong to the church before the revolution and was state property has absolutely no significance in light of law No. 327, which does not provide for restitution but provides for transfer to religious organizations of property designed for religious use regardless of whom it belonged to before the revolution. It is not necessary to prove the fact that the building belonged to the church; it is sufficient to prove its design for religious use. St. Isaac's was built for worship services and not for museum activity," the head of the legal service emphasized.
She added that hierarchy will decide the question of whether the decision of refusal will be appealed.
As the press secretary of city governor Georgy Poltavchenko, Andrei Kibitov, told Interfax, the government of St. Petersburg made a final decision about the status of St. Isaac's cathedral. He said that in the event of the transfer of the cathedral for use by the diocese, all expenses for its maintenance, restoration, and security lie on the owner, the city of St. Petersburg, "and this will involve additional serious expenses in the city budget and a reduction of financing for other socially significant projects and programs, which is unacceptable in the current economic situation." (tr. by PDS, posted 4 September 2015)
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