Moldovan police have stopped a bishop from traveling to Jerusalem hours ahead of the Easter celebration on April 20
The Russian Orthodox Church has condemned Moldovan authorities for blocking a bishop from traveling to Jerusalem for the ‘Holy Fire’ ceremony ahead of Orthodox Easter on April 20. Patriarchate spokesman Vladimir Legoyda called the move “outrageous” and politically motivated.
The Holy Fire is believed by Orthodox Christians to miraculously descend each year on Holy Saturday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the presumed site of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection. Pilgrims traditionally light candles from the flame and bring them home as sacred relics.
Bishop Marchel of the Moldovan Orthodox Church said police prevented him and two clerics from boarding their flight to Jerusalem. “They didn’t let us depart. They announced a second-category search. After that, they issued a protocol stating that nothing suspicious was found or confiscated. Our passports were returned 30 minutes after the plane had left,” the bishop told TASS on Thursday.
Legoyda condemned the move in a Telegram post on Friday. “This is a completely outrageous decision by the Moldovan authorities, a deliberate mockery of the faithful of the Orthodox Church of Moldova,” he said. “To deprive people of the opportunity to touch the holy relic delivered from the ancient city of Jerusalem on Holy Saturday!”
He accused Moldovan leaders of using religion for political leverage. “The advisers to the Moldovan authorities, who are clearly far from Christianity, believe they are achieving some kind of a political goal. Do you think you will excommunicate people from Christ, prevent them from rejoicing in the Easter holiday? As the prophet David said, you will fall into the very pit you are digging for others.”
Moldova has faced religious tensions involving two major Orthodox factions: the Moldovan Orthodox Church, which is affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate, and the Metropolis of Bessarabia, under the Romanian Orthodox Church. Amid rising geopolitical tensions with Russia, the pro-EU government in Chisinau has largely backed the Romanian-aligned metropolis.
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Former Moldovan President Igor Dodon previously accused Chisinau of pressuring the Moldovan Orthodox Church in a bid to reassign it to Romanian jurisdiction. Last year, MP Vasile Soimaru suggested the government intended to “denounce” the Moldovan Orthodox Church, claiming that it planned to follow the example of Ukraine, which last year outlawed the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church affiliated with Moscow. However, Moldovan President Maia Sandu later denied the claim, saying her government “has relationships” with both Orthodox metropolises.
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