Pat Kirill bans the priest who led Navalny’s funeral service from ministry
Patriarch Kirill has banned priest Dimitri Safronov, who performed the funeral service for Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny, from the priesthood.
On the website of the Moscow Eparchy, a decree signed by Patriarch Kirill states that "Priest Dimitri Safronov, cleric of the Church of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos on Lyschikova Hill in Moscow, is relieved of the obedience he held, prohibited from serving in the priesthood for a period of three years without the right to give blessings, wear a cassock, or a priestly cross."
The priest has been sent "for three years to the Church of the Venerable Pimen the Great in Novye Vorotniki in Moscow to perform the duties of a psalmist and to carry out the assignments determined by the abbot."
"After the term of bearing penance, based on reports from the place of obedience, a decision will be made on the possibility of his further priesthood," Patriarch Kirill's decree states.
The reasons for this decision are not specified in the document.
Earlier, the UOJ reported that during Navalny's funeral in Moscow, people chanted "No to War".
