Estonian Orthodox Church again pleads for its survival as state considers ban

Tallinn, February 21, 2025

Photo: gorthodox.com Photo: gorthodox.com     

The Holy Synod of the Estonian Orthodox Church, led by His Eminence Metropolitan Evgeny of Tallinn, issued another statement on Tuesday, again calling on the state to respect religious freedom and cease its plans and propaganda against the Church.

The EOC is an autonomous body within the Moscow Patriarchate, which means it’s administration is centered in Tallinn. Nevertheless, state authorities continually blame the Church for statements made about the war in Ukraine by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill in Moscow, although the EOC itself has distanced itself from these statements and repeatedly come out against the war.

Estonian Parliament is currently considering amendments to the Churches and Congregation Acts that will ban the Estonian Orthodox Church if it doesn’t leave the Moscow Patriarchate. The bill also threatens Pükhtitsa Monastery, which is directly under the omophorion of Pat. Kirill. Both the Church and the monastery have repeatedly emphasized

Estonian official tells monastery: You have to choose either the Moscow Patriarchate or Estonian valuesAbbess Philareta and sisters from Pükhtitsa Monastery arrived at the Estonian Parliament building on Monday to submit a petition to maintain the monastery’s current status.

that they are apolitical and that Orthodox canon law and their own statutes don’t permit them to simply change their jurisdiction.

In its latest statement, the EOC Synod again emphasizes that it’s a legally registered religious organization that maintains an anti-war stance and poses no security threat, despite facing negative media coverage and various restrictions. While acknowledging its canonical ties to the Moscow Patriarchate, the Church stresses its complete independence in daily operations and decision-making. The Church calls for a fact-based discussion free from hostile accusations, emphasizing its commitment to Estonian law and desire to continue religious activities peacefully within Estonian society.

Read the full statement:

In connection with the discussion of the draft law amending the Law on Churches and Parishes, we again want to draw attention to the fact that the Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate is a religious association legally registered in the Republic of Estonia, which operates within Estonian legislation and is guided in its activities exclusively by religious purposes. We have always maintained and continue to maintain an anti-war position, which we have repeatedly confirmed publicly. Thus, we confirm that claims that our Church poses a threat to state security are completely unfounded. Our sole purpose is to serve the religious needs of our parish members to achieve Christian salvation for people united by Orthodox faith, while fully complying with the laws and order of the Republic of Estonia.

A negative media background has formed around the EOC-MP that does not reflect the real state of affairs. Our Church and parishes have always been open to dialogue and have maintained constructive cooperation with both state institutions and other religious associations. Such unreasonable negative attitudes and stigmatization of our community cause concern, as this damages not only our Church’s reputation but also the cohesion of Estonian society as a whole. As a result, we have faced a number of unjustified restrictions, including obstacles to using rented premises and restrictions on activity subsidies, as well as refusal to register a new name and accusations in the press that could be interpreted as discrimination against a certain group of people on national and religious grounds. Our parishes wish to continue their religious activities in peace and mutual respect with all members of Estonian society.

Although in the canonical sense we are an autonomous part of the Moscow Patriarchate, this concerns exclusively canonical and Eucharistic unity and does not mean practical management and administration of our Church by political or governmental circles of a foreign state. Our Church is completely independent in its daily activities, economic decisions, and parish management. All our decisions are made by the governing bodies of the Estonian Church—the Council and Synod, guided by canonical law and the laws of the Republic of Estonia and taking into account the needs of local parishes.

In anticipation of the open session of the Riigikogu Legal Affairs Committee on 02/18/2025 regarding the draft law amending the Law on Churches and Parishes, we call on all participants in the discussion to refrain from unfounded generalizations and hostile accusations that harm public unity and freedom of religion in Estonia. We hope that the discussion of the draft law will take place in a constructive atmosphere, based on facts and respecting the rights and freedoms of all religious associations in the Republic of Estonia, and will not place our law-abiding activities outside the legal field.

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2/21/2025

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