The Wages of Conscience

The editors of the religious website Holy Fire have called for the defrocking of 293 priests who last year signed a petition demanding an end to hostilities in Ukraine.

The site addressed its appeal to the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church and called the priests' petition "vile and treacherous," comparing it with "going over to the side of the Nazis" during the Second World War.

Father Ioann Burdin, former rector of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ in the village of Karabanovo, Kostroma Region, who signed the March 2022 petition, noticed the website posting and wrote about it on his Telegram channel:

I found myself listed as number 77. Curiously, I have always considered 7 to be my lucky number (it appears three times in my birthdate).

One other observation: there are 300 priests serving in the Kostroma metropolitanate. An interesting idea: with one swipe of the pen eliminate two dioceses – Kostromskaya and Galichskaya – from the priesthood. Very deep!

But, nothing tragic: seminaries are "still giving birth"

In March of last year, the same month as Burdin and others signed the petition, Burdin was fined for "discrediting the Russian armed forces" (Article 20.3.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). The following month he left the service and created his own Telegram channel.

Other known cases in which priests have been removed from service due to disagreement with military operations:

• The cleric of the Belgorod Cathedral, Fyodor Shumskikh, requested asylum in the United States due to his anti-war position. He left Russia after he was removed from his parish.
• Rosfinmonitoring has included Kirov priest Dmitry Bayev on its list of terrorists because of his anti-war position. Since last spring he has been a defendant in a criminal case on "fakes about the Russian army" (clause “e” of part 2 of article 207.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). A deacon in the Church, Bayev published social media posts in support of Ukraine and its army.

Original source: 7x7