Bishop Marchel has spoken to RT after being repeatedly prevented from traveling to the Holy Fire ceremony in Jerusalem
Bishop Marchel of the Moldovan Orthodox Church spoke to RT late on Friday after he was once again prevented from leaving the country for Jerusalem to take part in an Easter ceremony. The bishop described the treatment he has received from the authorities as the “work of the Evil One,” but urged the Moldovan Orthodox parish to show the true “Christian calm.”
The bishop was originally set to travel to Jerusalem on Thursday but was detained alongside two accompanying clerics by the police at the airport for search and questioning, ultimately missing his flight. He received the same treatment on Friday, ending up unable to leave the country again.
In his remarks to RT, Bishop Marchel suggested that the difficulties he faced in leaving the country were part of a deliberate effort to disrupt Orthodox Christian Easter celebrations and to prevent the Holy Fire from being brought to his country.
“This, if you like, is the struggle of Archangel Michael with evil forces, with dark forces. Well, this battlefield is now happening somewhere in Moldova, it is taking place in Moldova. And in any case, behind this, of course, lies the work of the Evil One,” the bishop stated.
However, Bishop Marchel noted that attempts to disrupt the celebrations this year had already failed, as two senior Moldovan clerics had departed for Jerusalem before the Holy Fire pilgrimage drew “special attention” from the authorities.
“I was honored with such attention. In any case, I forgive them for everything and call on everyone and myself to maintain Christian calm despite everything. Life goes on, there will soon be a holiday, I hope the Lord will make us rejoice in his resurrection and make us partakers of this eternal joy,” he said.
