Archbishop Markell: property of Moldovan churches to be transferred to Romanian Church after "transition"

Churches of the Orthodox Church in Moldova that transfer to the jurisdiction of the so-called Bessarabian Metropolis — a structural division of the Romanian Orthodox Church — lose their local property and fall under the control of the Romanian state. This was stated by Archbishop Markell of Bălți and Fălești, who emphasized that such transitions are carried out with violations and in fact lead to the transfer of church property abroad. He spoke about this on the «Puls» program with Yurii Dziatkovskii on CANAL 5.

According to the Archbishop, “The Bessarabian Metropolis lures Moldovan priests with money and deception,” as was the case with the church in the village of Grinăuți, Rîșcani District. He emphasized that the decision to change jurisdiction should be made by the local community at a village assembly, however, “this assembly did not actually take place, as in other cases.”

Archbishop Markell also noted that “those false priests who make such decisions should remember that they lose control and ownership rights over these parishes after transferring to the jurisdiction of the Bessarabian Metropolis.” He reminded that “these provisions are contained in the Statute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, which is subordinate to the Romanian government.” The archbishop emphasized: “In essence, all these Moldovan churches become the property of Romania.”

To support his position, the archbishop cited Article 169 of the Statute of the Romanian Orthodox Church:

“The entirety of property belonging to parishes, sketes, monasteries, deaneries, vicariates, dioceses, archdioceses, metropolises and the Patriarchate, associations and foundations established by the Church, funds intended for church purposes, as well as the property of founding churches, constitutes the church property belonging to the Romanian Orthodox Church, and its regime is regulated by this statute. Property in use is also part of the church property and is managed in accordance with the acquisition acts and the provisions of this statute.”

As a reminder, on June 29, 2025, supporters of the Bessarabian Metropolis (Romanian Patriarchate) attempted to seize a church of the Orthodox Church of Moldova in the village of Grinăuți, Rîșcani District. According to eyewitnesses, Romanian Patriarchate clergy were actively assisted by the Moldovan police and local government officials.