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"It's Devil's Work": Vitsebsk Eparchy Commented On Verdict To "Pimp Priest"

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"It's Devil's Work": Vitsebsk Eparchy Commented On Verdict To "Pimp Priest"
PRIEST NIKOLAI KIREEV
PHOTO: SVIATLANA VASILYAVA

The church didn’t interfere in the matter during the trial.

Nikolai Kireev, a 39-year-old priest from Leningrad region, was sentenced to 5.6 years of imprisonment for an attempt of trading in prostitution and human traffic. Archpriest Uladzimir Rezanovich, the secretary of the Vitsebsk Eparchy Administration, has told Vitsebsk Kur’er what the church thinks about it.

According to the archpriest, during the trial, the church didn’t interfere in this matter.

– The priests were and will be different. They are exactly the same as all the other people and have their own human demerits. We believe that what happened is an abnormal phenomenon. However, no one condemns Nikolai Kireev: we are angry with a sin, but we must take care of a man. And in this sense, it is a pity that he has fallen into the demonic temptation. This is a tragedy for Nikolai's father, his family and his close people.

At the same time, Uladzimir Rezanovich noted that the society "is aware of cases of undeserved accusations":

– We hope that there are explanations why he has found himself in such circumstances. And if it's God's will, they will be found by an additional investigation.

Father Uladzimir says that if Nikolai Kireev’s guilt is finally proved, then the case will also be considered by the church court:

– In case his guilt is proved, according to the church rules, he will be deprived of the sacerdotal rite for the life term.

For the time of the investigation, Father Nikolai (Kireev),the priest of Peter and Paul church of the Vyborg Eparchy of the Russian Orthodox Church, was suspended from the church service.

The court verdict has not come into legal force yet. Nikolai Kireev announced his intention to appeal against it.

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