In Moscow, a priest was defrocked for unauthorized change of prayer

In Moscow, a church court defrocked a priest for arbitrarily changing the text of a prayer

The diocesan court of Moscow has deprived the clergy of the Church of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called in Lublin, Priest John Koval, RIA Novosti reports with reference to the deputy chairman of the court, Archpriest Vladislav Tsypin

The reason is an unauthorized change in the text of the prayer “On Holy Rus'”.

According to Tsypin, the court’s decision will come into force after approval by the ruling bishop (in Moscow, he is Patriarch Kirill), but there will still be an opportunity to appeal to the general church court.

Earlier, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’ banned Koval from serving until the end of his case. Some media reported that he replaced the word “victory” with the word “peace” in a prayer that is recited daily in all temples. In this prayer, they ask the Lord for the victory of Holy Rus’ and for God’s help to her people.

However, Vakhtang Kipshidze, Deputy Chairman of the Synodal Department of the Russian Orthodox Church for Relations between the Church, Society and the Media, explained that the cleric was suspended from service for changing the text of the prayer as such, and not specifically for replacing the word “victory” with the word “peace.”

Tsypin explained that the court’s decision to depose Koval from his rank was motivated by his disobedience. The court referred to the apostolic canon, where, among other serious sins, perjury was mentioned.

“It is understood that the ordained takes an oath in which he promises to strictly follow the instructions of the hierarchy,” Tsypin said.

He said that the rector, the dean, and then the vicar, “instructed Koval that it was necessary to read the prayer in the wording in which it was established,” but “he refused to do this.” According to him, “Koval, of course, was given the opportunity” to repent in court and promise to “change his position,” but he refused and said that he insisted on his own.

The reasons for Koval’s decision to change the word “victory” to “peace” in this prayer remained unclear: he never answered the court’s question whether his decision to change the text of the prayer was an expression of his political position or principled pacifism. Tsypin also noted that “not just peacefulness, but pacifism, that is, the fundamental refusal for Christians to participate in wars” is usually an element of “heretical, sectarian doctrines.”

In his sermons, Patriarch Kirill traditionally speaks of the Belarusian, Russian and Ukrainian peoples as the peoples of Holy Rus’ who were baptized together.