Estonia wants domestic religious leaders to sever ties with the Moscow Patriarchate over the Ukraine conflict
Estonia’s plans to label the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) as a “terrorist” organization are reminiscent of a medieval witch hunt, church spokesman Vladimir Legoyda has said.
Earlier this week, Estonian Interior Minister Lauri Laanemets revealed that he will ask the Riigikogu (Estonian parliament) to order the severing of ties between the Estonian Orthodox Church (EOC) and the ROC, legally known as the Moscow Patriarchate, by declaring the latter a terrorist group.
The minister claimed that the Moscow Patriarchate is subordinate to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who, according to Laanemets, “fundamentally leads terrorist activities worldwide.”
In a Telegram post on Friday, Legoyda branded the initiative “a theater of the absurd.”
“[Laanemets’] statement takes Estonia back to the dark ages of religious wars, St. Bartholomew’s Night and witch hunts. It is obvious to any sane person that the Moscow Patriarchate is not engaged in terrorist activities,” the spokesman stated. “The fight against the Russian Church and Russian culture has become some kind of mental drug that they are trying to feed to the Estonian voter so that he forgets about real problems.”
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also commented on Laanemets’ proposal, describing it as bearing “all the signs of a mental illness.”
“There’s a problem with the logic: who then, in [Laanemets’] opinion, will the Pope [Francis] communicate with – terrorists?” she asked.