The Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia calls upon the Moldovan authorities, Romania’s Embassy in Chisinau, the Delegation of the European Union to Moldova, the foreign diplomatic corps and representative offices of international organizations in Chisinau to monitor the abuses committed by the so-called Metropolitan Church of Chisinau and all Moldova (Moscow Patriarchate) against the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia and to intervene promptly to end any injustice.

In a news conference at IPN, secretary of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia, priest Ion Cosoi said the request comes after a group of Christians faithful to the Moscow Patriarchate, supported by the Bishopric of Ungheni and Nisporeni, on March 5 abusively occupied the Church “Assumption of the Mother of God” in Dereneu, Calarasi, because this joined the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia last August. “But the transfer of the church in Dereneu under the management of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia was absolutely legal,” said the priest.

According to Florin Marin, bishop in Dereneu, the decision to join the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia was taken as a result of consultations with active Christians and in accordance with the law and the reason was that they found increased morality and understanding at the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia.

Priest Valeriu Enache, of the Bishopric of Calarasi, called on the central authorities to suspend the activity of the Bishopric of Ungheni and Nisporeni because this organized the vandalizing of a church and incited hatred.

The priests said that since the Church “Assumption of the Mother of God” joined the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia until the acts to vandalize the church, the organizers of these haven’t expressed wish to communicate on the issue. In the recent past, the attacks on some of the components of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia have been constant.