Ljubljana, Serbia, March 13, 2026
Photo: nova.rs
Slovenia’s district prosecutor’s office in Ljubljana filed a criminal indictment on January 12 against Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Porfirije on charges of workplace harassment. The indictment also names the Serbian Church’s Ljubljana Parish Community as a co-defendant legal entity.
The case has been referred to the Ljubljana Municipal Court, where a trial is expected in the coming months, reports nova.rs.
The charges stem from events during the period when Pat. Porfirije served as Metropolitan of the Zagreb-Ljubljana Metropolis (2014–2021).
According to the indictment, Pat. Porfirije violated Lubarda’s rights as an employee (parish priest) of the Ljubljana Parish Community between 2014 and 2017, ordering his termination on stated grounds of business necessity when prosecutors allege the actual reason was retaliation for refusing a transfer order. From October 2014 onward, Lubarda was allegedly subjected to psychological pressure, humiliation, and unequal treatment.
The underlying dispute involves a criminal proceeding against another priest, Peran Bošković, who was convicted and given a suspended sentence for embezzling parish funds. Lubarda had reported Bošković's suspicious financial activity at the direction of then-Metropolitan Jovan (Pavlović), and states that His Holiness subsequently pressured him not to testify in that case—pressure he refused to yield to.
The Ljubljana Labor and Social Court had previously issued a final ruling finding Lubarda to be the victim of one of the most severe cases of workplace harassment in Slovenian judicial history, identifying nearly 50 individual acts of harassment. That ruling formed the basis for the criminal complaint. The Patriarch has already been questioned by an investigating judge.
Lubarda states that the ordeal left him without income or housing, with his wife and four children, and he has been recognized as having a disability due to deteriorating health. The indictment cites medical findings of an adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressive symptoms resulting in reduced work capacity.
Yesterday, OrthoChristian reported that a criminal complaint has been filed against Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople as well.
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