MOSCOW, April 10. /TASS/. Law enforcement agents are conducting a sweeping operation to deliver subpoenas to monks and seminary students of the canonical Russian Orthodox Church on the premises of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra to appear for questioning as part of an investigation into the desecration and destruction of sacred objects, the Union of Orthodox Journalists said on Monday.
It said several dozens of subpoenas have been served by the evening of April 10. According to the journalists’ group, the investigation was started based on a complaint from the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra Museum, which had unilaterally terminated a lease agreement with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Ukrainian law stipulates a fine, community service or imprisonment for up to three years for the crime of desecrating or destroying sacred objects.
The Ukrainian news outlet Strana reported earlier on Monday that the Ukrainian Security Service had summoned for an interrogation a woman that had vigorously defended the Ukrainian Orthodox Church near the Lavra. The woman tried to talk to rabble rousers, answered their questions and explained the position of the church and the parishioners. Whenever approached by rabble rousers, she always made video recordings of the encounters, as is recommended by the church.
Kiev-Pechersk Lavra rector, Metropolitan Pavel, was charged on April 1 with inciting religious discord and justifying Russia’s actions. The court ruled on the same day to place him under house arrest for 60 days.
Kiev-Pechersk Lavra controversy
The situation around the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra - one of the first Russian monasteries and the oldest monastery in modern-day Ukraine - came to a head at the end of March. The government tore up its agreement with the canonical church for the lease of the Lavra and demanded that monks leave the monastery. UOC monks refused to comply with the unlawful demand and both sides took the matter to court.
The Ukrainian cabinet on March 30 rescinded the cabinet’s decree of 2013 that transferred the right to use the Lavra to the UOC. The church plans to appeal to the UN, other international organizations and the Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s Office and file lawsuits over the cabinet’s unlawful decision. The head of the UOC Information and Education Department, Metropolitan Kliment of Nezhin and Priluki, has said that the lease agreement between the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra Museum and the canonical church can’t be terminated by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, the cabinet or any government agency without an appropriate court ruling.