INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Dutch city of Amsterdam, announced Saturday it was splitting from the Moscow church because
of threats to them over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.In a statement posted to its website it said that after a meeting, "the clergy
unanimously announced that it is no longer possible for them to function within the Moscow Patriarchate and provide a spiritually safe
environment for our faithful."It was "with a heavy heart" that the four priests of Saint Nicholas of Myra in Amsterdam had reached their
decision, they said.They had asked Archbishop Elisey, of the Russian Orthodox Church in The Hague, to grant them canonical dismissal and had
applied to join the Constantinople Orthodox Church, the statement added.In an early statement, the church clergy said that they would no
longer mention the name of the Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, in their liturgy because of his backing for the
invasion of Ukraine.In a Feb
27 sermon, the Patriarch described Moscow's opponents in Ukraine as "evil forces" fighting against the "unity of Russia."That early
Amsterdam church decision led to an unscheduled visit from Archbishop Elisey during mass, who told them that Moscow was watching their
actions closely, they said.The Amsterdam clergy said they felt that they were being pressured by both the archbishop and the Russian state
to go back on their stance.The Amsterdam branch of the Russian Orthodox Church is not the only one to object to the position taken by the
Paris-based Metropolitan Jean de Doubna, who heads up some 60 parishes following the Russian tradition across western Europe, expressed his
support for Ukraine in an open letter published on Wednesday.He also appealed to the Patriarch Kirill to intervene to stop the "bloodbath."
