Bessarabian Metropolis demands criminal prosecution of parishioners of Dereneu village for resisting the transfer of the church

The Metropolis of Bessarabia, part of the Romanian Orthodox Church, has appealed to the Moldovan authorities to immediately intervene and bring to criminal responsibility the priests and residents of the village of Dereneu, who opposed the transfer of the local church to the Orthodox Church of Moldova. As NewsMaker.MD reports, this statement was made against the background of night clashes between the police, who blocked the church, and parishioners.

In their appeal, representatives of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia claim that the church in Dereneu was handed over to them by a Moldovan court decision. They urge «all state institutions to intervene immediately and decisively» and to «identify, detain and prosecute all persons involved in acts of violence, incitement.»

The Metropolis emphasizes the gravity of the situation, warning that «any delay or downplaying of the seriousness of these actions risks provoking an escalation of violence and deepen the social divide» in society.

Recall, earlier we reported that the rector of the church in honor of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the village of Dereneu (Moldova), a priest of the Orthodox Church of Moldova, Alexandru Popa, barricaded himself inside the church with his family. This desperate move was a response to attempts by the authorities to take away the church and transfer it to the Bessarabian Metropolitan Church of the Romanian Orthodox Church.