Russian Orthodox reject Catholic protest on seized church property

November 15, 2010

The Russian Orthodox diocese of Kalingrad has rejected a Catholic prelate’s complaints about the seizure of a Catholic parish church in Kalingrad.

The Orthodox diocese said it is “more than strange” that Moscow’s Catholic Archbishop Paolo Pezzi protested the transfer of church ownership, since the residents of the region, which was once mostly Catholic and Lutheran, now identify themselves as Orthodox.

Disputes over church properties in the nations that once composed the Soviet bloc often revolve around questions of changing religious allegiances. These questions are complicated by the fact that the Communist regimes generally allowed some liberty to the Orthodox churches, while repressing Catholic churches.

 

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Further information:

• Kaliningrad Orthodox diocese advises Catholic archbishop "not to throw stones in glass house" (Interfax)