A Russian priest who held a memorial service for the late opposition chief and Vladimir Putin critic Alexei Navalny has been suspended from clerical duties for 3 years by the pinnacle of the nation’s Orthodox Church.
Mr Navalny, one among Mr Putin’s fiercest Russian critics, died immediately on 16 February within the distant Arctic penal jail the place he had been serving a 19-year sentence on extremism prices extensively seen as politically motivated.
Dmitry Safronov presided over a service by Mr Navalny’s grave in Moscow on 26 March to mark 40 days for the reason that politician’s dying, an essential ritual inside Russian Orthodox Church custom.
Earlier final month, Mr Safronov spoke on the grave, saying Mr Navalny had urged Russians not to surrender.
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He mentioned: “We are going to certainly keep in mind Alexei, keep in mind his testomony to us and we’ll pray for him and hope he’ll pray for us on the throne of the Lord.”
On Tuesday the Moscow diocese the place the cleric labored mentioned he had been demoted from priest to psalm-reader and couldn’t give blessings, put on a cassock or carry the church’s priestly cross for 3 years.
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He was additionally being moved to a unique church within the metropolis, the diocese mentioned in a press release on its web site.
“On the finish of the interval of penance, primarily based on suggestions from the place of obedience, a choice shall be made on the potential of his additional priestly service,” the assertion mentioned.
No motive was given for his punishment, which was signed by Patriarch Kirill, the pinnacle of the Russian Orthodox Church and a key ally of Mr Putin.
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The reason for Mr Navalny’s dying stays unexplained though his allies have blamed the Kremlin, one thing the Putin regime has denied.
His dying certificates mentioned he died of pure causes.
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Russian authorities initially refused to launch Mr Navalny’s physique, citing the necessity for additional investigations.
The politician’s crew later mentioned that that they had struggled to discover a hearse to move Navalny’s physique after funeral administrators had acquired threats from unknown people.
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Mr Safronov was among the many clergymen who beforehand signed a public letter calling for Navalny’s stays to be returned to his household.
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Throughout his greater than 20 years in energy, Mr Putin has massively boosted the Russian Orthodox Church’s standing, growing its status, wealth and energy after many years of oppression or indifference below Soviet leaders.
In flip, its leaders, like Patriarch Kirill, have supported his initiatives, together with the warfare in Ukraine.