The abbot of the Sinai monastery announced his resignation, accusing the Jerusalem Patriarchate and Russia

The abbot of the Sinai Monastery in honor of St. Catherine the Great Martyr, Archbishop Damian of Sinai, published a statement in response to the call of Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem to the next meeting of the Synod of the Church. Archbishop Damian blamed Russia, the Moscow Patriarchate, and Patriarch Theophilos for the crisis, stating that he would not seek to overthrow the Primate of the Jerusalem Patriarchate, but would transfer his powers to a new abbot to be elected by the monastery’s brethren. This was reported by The Orthodox Times.

“Crises always reveal the essence of people and phenomena. No one will forget those who immediately came to the defense of the monastery when the decision of May 28, 2025, became known: the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Bulgarian Patriarchate, the Church of Greece, and the Church of Cyprus. They were later joined by the Patriarchate of Antioch, the Serbian Patriarchate, and the Church of Albania. The eloquent silence of the Patriarch of Alexandria can be interpreted as support. All other Local Orthodox Churches remained silent, with the exception of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, whose statement was aimed solely at confirming its imperialist policy towards the monastery, the goal of which is to subordinate it and reduce it to the level of an ordinary monastery under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Jerusalem. The Moscow Patriarchate bears sole responsibility for this atmosphere of discord and division in the Orthodox world, but the consequences fall on the entire Orthodox world. It is no coincidence that the first to take advantage of the internal schism in the Brotherhood were organizations, networks, parties, and individuals associated with Russia’s attempts to divide Orthodoxy and promote views that are alien to Orthodox theology and morality,” – Archbishop Damian noted.

In addition, the hierarch rebuked Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem for his desire to subordinate the Sinai Monastery, which “has always remained autonomous.” However, in order to avoid deepening the crisis, Archbishop Damian announced that he would resign as abbot of the monastery.

“Yesterday I received a letter from Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem, whom I deeply respect and honor, but from a canonical point of view, he is, at the very least, weak and incompetent. Nevertheless, I am glad to receive this letter, because it finally revealed the role of the Patriarch of Jerusalem in this ecclesiastical adventure (in which, incidentally, he is a great expert) and, most importantly, in deepening the schism within the Brotherhood. The Holy Monastery of Sinai has no tradition of staging coups, overthrowing Patriarchs, and then imprisoning them in torture chambers to break them spiritually, mentally, and physically. Our monastery would never stoop to the pettiness that Patriarch Theophilus of Jerusalem personally displayed when the time came to lay his predecessor, Irenaeus, to rest. Who has forgotten that only the Greek government and the Church of Greece took care of a dignified burial for the deceased at that time? Without them, the late Patriarch would have remained unburied, because Patriarch Theophilos forbade his body to be buried anywhere within his jurisdiction. Yesterday, I informed the Greek government of my decisions, which have been agreed upon with the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Church of Greece. … The time has come for me to take responsibility and ensure continuity. The procedural details will be finalized in the coming days, announced after consensus is reached, and implemented with the assistance of the Egyptian authorities, the Greek government, and the Church of Greece,” – the bishop added.

We remind you that yesterday we reported that Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem sent a summons to the Synod of the Jerusalem Orthodox Church to the abbot of St. Catherine’s Monastery on Mount Sinai, Archbishop Damian of Sinai. The text states that the reason for the summons was “canonical and other violations” for which the hierarch is required to provide explanations.