The Moldovan government, which is a fierce critic of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, has appealed to the country's clergy to "tell the truth" about the war, saying that as a result of military actions launched by Moscow, about 500 places of worship have been destroyed, Reuters reports, BTA reports.
The call, made by government spokesman Daniel Voda on the eve of the third anniversary of the Russian invasion, appears to be linked to the split in the Orthodox Church in Moldova into competing branches subordinate to Russia and Romania, respectively.
More than 90% of the laity in Moldova, located between Ukraine and Romania, profess the Orthodox faith. The invasion, enthusiastically supported by the Russian Orthodox Church, has accelerated the relocation of parishes from the Moscow-linked Moldovan Metropolis to the smaller, Romanian-linked Bessarabian Metropolis.
“Since the beginning of the invasion, more than 500 churches, synagogues and mosques have been destroyed or damaged. That is one church every two days,“ Voda said in his appeal. “Do not be silent. Tell the world the truth. Aggression is not only a battle for territory, but also the destruction of holy places,“ he added.
Metropolitan Vladimir of the Moscow-linked Moldovan Metropolis earlier said that his Church had condemned the invasion “from day one” and is organizing aid for more than 90,000 Ukrainian refugees in the country.
Local media reports have said priests in some parishes of the Russian-aligned church are supporting the Russian invasion. Reuters notes that it has not been able to independently verify this information. The church itself has acknowledged that groups of priests last year made "pilgrimages" to holy sites in Russia with Russian funding.
Meanwhile, the Romanian-aligned Bessarabian Metropolis has become increasingly involved in Moldova's bid to join the European Union by 2030.