The Metropolitan Church of Moldova has criticized the Moscow Patriarchate, as Moldovan priests are calling for the annexation of their Church to the Romanian Patriarchate. The latest developments are tied to the Russian Patriarch’s support for the war in Ukraine.
The decision to move the Metropolitanate of Moldova into the subordination of the Romanian Patriarchate, in response to the Moscow’s Patriarch’s support for the war in Ukraine
Several priests in Chișinău, led by archpriest Pavel Borșevschi, have sent Metropolitan Vladimir of Moldova a letter calling for moving the Metropolitanate of Moldova into the canonical administration of the Romanian Patriarchate.
“Considering the exceptional situation of the Orthodox Church in the Republic of Moldova and the context of Russia’s unjust and insidious war in Ukraine, the majority of priests and churchgoers in the archdiocese of Chișinău, District II […], call on His Eminence to start the process whereby the Metropolitanate of Moldova can join the Romanian Patriarchate”, a post on the Facebook page of the “Saint Demetrius” Church in Chișinău, where Pavel Boroșevschi serves as parish priest.
The request came after on September 5, Metropolitan Vladimir had submitted a judgmental letter to Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia (the Metropolitanate of Moldova is canonically subordinated to the Russian Patriarchate), stating, among other things, that ties between the Moldovan Orthodox Church and the Russian Patriarchate “are tantamount to the former’s disappearance […] from the religious and social sphere in Moldova”.
Furthermore, the post on the Facebook page of the Saint Demetrius Church states that “the letter sent by His Eminence Vladimir to Patriarch Kirill on September 5, 2023, which claims that our Latin-origin people has nothing to do with Russkii Mir [the Russian World] encourages us to believe that never has the timing been better to make amends for historical transgressions and reclaim the dignity Russian occupiers robbed of us. […] We, the priests signing this letter, are increasingly confused and discontented with our subordination to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Kirill”, who “after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, stopped being the spiritual leader of the Church he leads, becoming politically engaged, openly and unfairly calling for brotherly bloodshed, which goes against every teaching of the Orthodox Church […]”.
Priests from Chișinău who called for the transfer of their Church to the administration of the Romanian Patriarchate also want the Metropolitanate of Moldova to remain “under the omophorion” of Metropolitan Vladimir.
It is unclear how that can happen, however, so long as the Romanian Patriarchate already has a rightful representative in the Republic of Moldova – the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia.
In his letter to Patriarch Kirill, which has an unusually critical tone, Metropolitan Vladimir pointed out that “this request to Your Holiness is the result of an increasingly worrying set of circumstances that push the Orthodox Church in Moldova to the periphery of Moldovan society at an ever-growing pace. […] This phenomenon is the direct consequence of our Church associating itself with the promotion of pro-Russian interests in the Republic of Moldova, as a result of our being subordinated to the Patriarchate of Moscow, which is itself perceived as an outpost of the Kremlin in Moldovan society and a supporter of the Russian campaign in Ukraine. To the Orthodox Church of Moldova, this association is tantamount to our disappearance from the religious and social sphere in Moldova, based on our citizens’ firm opposition to Russia’s aggressive interference in the affairs of friendly and neighboring Ukraine, as well as in our own domestic affairs”, Metropolitan Vladimir writes in his letter to the Russian Patriarch.
According to the Moldovan cleric, “another tendency that is of great concern to our people and the clergy, 80% of whom are citizens of Romania as well, is Patriarch Kirill’s increasingly persistent plan to make the Metropolitanate of Moldova part of the so-called ‘Russian World’, which is incompatible with our national aspirations and values. Unfortunately, this tendency is a carry-over of the harsh denationalization policy promoted by Tsarist Russia and later by the USSR, which the Russian Orthodox Church wants “to perfect”. Unfortunately, Moscow fails to understand to this day that the people of Moldova has Latin roots, and it is only natural Moldovans should aspire, draw closer to and remain anchored in this civilizational domain, after decades of artificial divisions, without breaking with Orthodox canons”.
Metropolitan Vladimir also expressed concern with “the ever open and consistent support the governments of the Republic of Moldova and Romania provide to the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia (and with its growing influence)”.
The Metropolitanate of Moldova, a source of leverage of the Russian Empire in Bessarabia. The conflict with the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia
There are two existing Christian Orthodox Churches in the Republic of Moldova: the Metropolitanate of Chișinău and All Moldova, which is canonically subordinated to the Russian Patriarchate (not to be mistaken for the Metropolitanate of Moldavia and Bukovina, which is a part of the Romanian Patriarchate) and the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia, which is subordinated to the Romanian Orthodox Church.
To better understand how these two churches appeared in the Republic of Moldova, some historical context is needed. After the annexation of Bessarabia to the Russian Empire in 1812, the territory between Prut and Dniester rivers broke with the authority of the old Metropolitanate of Moldova and was thus integrated as a self-standing bishopric into the Russian Orthodox Church and hence became known as the Archbishopric of Chișinău and Hotin. More often than not, the bishopric was led by Russian clergymen who pursued denationalization policies targeting Romanians in Bessarabia. After the union of 1918, the Church of Bessarabia became subordinated to the Romanian Orthodox Church, and the Archbishopric of Chișinău and Hotin became the de jure Metropolitanate of Bessarabia in 1925. The Church continued to operate until the Soviet occupation of 1944, when the Church in the Republic of Moldova was again transferred to the authority of the Russian Patriarchate.
In 1992, under circumstances somewhat similar to present-day Ukraine, namely against the backdrop of an armed conflict, when the then Patriarch Alexey II of Moscow would bless the battalions of Transnistrian separatist fighters (who had proclaimed their independence the previous year, 1991) before an attack on Moldovan troops, several priests from Chișinău called on the Romanian Orthodox Church to reinstate the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia, which came to pass on December 19, 1992.
Three days later, on December 21, 1992, Patriarch Alexey II elevated Vladimir, previously Archbishop of Chișinău, to the rank of Metropolitan. In November 1993, the Moldovan government officially recognized the Metropolitanate of Moldova as part of the Russian Orthodox Church. Since then, the two churches have operated in parallel on the territory of the Republic of Moldova in a state of frozen conflict, disputing their canons, historical succession as well as their rightful claims to certain properties which, prior to 1944, had belonged to the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia. The conflict periodically re-escalates, also fueled by certain clerics of the Metropolitanate of Moldova, such as the Bishop of Bălți and Fălești, Marchel, known for his anti-Romanian rhetoric and the historical fallacies he promotes.
Right now, the Metropolitanate of Moldova totals approximately 1,200 places of worship, compared to the 300 administered by the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia. Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, several religious communities switched from the Metropolitanate of Moldova to the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia. The latter claims some 60 parishes were transferred into its administration, while the Metropolitanate of Moldova claims only 13 communities switched sides.
Efforts to unite the two Orthodox Churches of Moldova are met with reluctance by the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia and frowned upon by most clerics of the Metropolitanate of Moldova
Representatives of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia believe both the letter of Metropolitan Vladimir to Patriarch Kiril as well as the one sent by archpriest Pavel Borșevschi, are deceitful.
The archpriest of Orhei, Ion Marian, who takes charge of formalities and applications submitted by religious communities and priests in the Republic of Moldova to accede to the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia, doubts the honesty of the undertakings of the Metropolitanate of Moldova. He suspects a “ploy” devised by Metropolitan Vladimir, meant to secure special status within the Romanian Orthodox Church (BOR) for the “Russian Church” he currently administers, while at the same time preventing the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia from building further momentum:
“Transferring the Metropolitanate of Moldova into the subordination of BOR is a cheap ploy, the backstory of which speaks to their inability of stopping the Metropolitanate of Bessarabia from gaining a higher profile. This project seeks to directly discredit the Romanian Patriarchate, in the hope that the Metropolitanate of Moldova will be awarded special status at the level of BOR. “We already have one canonical structure in the Republic of Moldova, so we cannot have a second one, lest we should cause turmoil and a new exodus from one church or the other”, Patriarch Daniel previously said.
The idea of integrating the Metropolitanate of Moldova into the Romanian Patriarchate was rejected also by the majority of priests in the Metropolitan Church of Moldova. On November 16, numerous archpriests and abbots convened to vote against their annexation to the Romanian Patriarchate.
The auxiliary bishop of the Metropolitan Church of Moldova, Ioan Moșneguțu, said that the Metropolitanate of Moldova will preserve its current status. He pointed out there will be no talks regarding the accession of this Metropolitanate to the Romanian Patriarchate.
Archpriest Pavel Borșevschi says however the topic remains open for discussion. He said that, in early December, Metropolitan Vladimir is expected to visit Moscow, to discuss with Patriarch Kirill also about the letter he sent in September.
“Metropolitan Vladimir said this won’t be the end of it. Upon his return from Moscow, talks will continue… He said ‘Once I return from Moscow, we will meet again and resume dialogue’”, archpriest Pavel Borșeveschi pointed out.
By the time the article was published, no public announcement was made about Metropolitan Vladimir possibly visiting Moscow.
The latest string of events might have also been influenced by the problems facing the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
The letter Metropolitan Vladimir sent to Russian Patriarch Kirill, in addition to the request to move the Metropolitan Church of Moldova into the authority of the Romanian Patriarchate, might be an attempt to avoid the Metropolitan Church of Moldova from sharing the fate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. This country also has two major Orthodox Churches operating in parallel – the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, an autocephalous religious entity recognized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which was formerly part of the Moscow Patriarchate, with which it broke after Russia’s invasion. Kyiv has accused the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of continuing to be subordinated to the Russian Patriarchate, exerting pressure to unite with the other Orthodox Church. The authorities have actually conducted searches in churches, closing some of them and launching criminal proceedings against certain clergymen suspected of cooperating with Moscow.
Metropolitan Vladimir probably understands that if the Metropolitan Church of Moldova remains subordinated to the Russian Patriarchate, which openly supports the war in Ukraine, this would inevitably deteriorate relations with pro-Western and pro-Romanian authorities in Chișinău, and stir the disgruntlement of many churchgoers and priests, who are outraged by the support Patriarch Kirill has shown for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It would ultimately isolate and marginalize the Metropolitanate of Moldova, something which the letter to Patriarch Kirill suggests, among other things.
