Russia | The priest who led Navalny's memorial service is no longer allowed to work as a priest

of Moscow and Patriarch of All Russia Kirill has been arrested by the opposition leader To Alexei Navalny of the priest who led the memorial service Dmitry Safronov of the priesthood.

Independent Russian media report on the matter Medusa and a British magazine The Guardian.

The Moscow Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church says that Safronov has been “demoted” from priest to psalm reader. The diocese also announces on its website that he is not allowed to participate in blessing ceremonies for three years and he is not allowed to wear the priest's robe and the priest's cross.

In addition, Safronov will be transferred from his current church to another church in the Moscow region, where he will have to practice “repentance” for the next three years.

Safronov may not return to the priest's position even after three years. According to the Moscow Diocese, after Safronov's “repentance exercise” it will be decided whether he will be excommunicated from the Church completely. The decision will be decided by the feedback Safronov receives from the church where he will spend the next three years as a psalm reader.

Safronov has held several memorial services at his grave after Navalny's funeral.

Safronov arrived to hold a memorial service also in March, when 40 days had passed since the death of the opposition leader. Then Navalny's wife Yulia Navalnaya urged supporters of the opposition leader on social media to donate to the Safronov family.

“I am very grateful to him. Let's help him and his family,” Navalnaya wrote.

The Moscow Diocese has not given an official reason for its decision to suspend Safronov from the priesthood.

Aleksei Navalnyi died in February in a prison in Siberia at the age of 47. The cause of death and the details of the death are not known. The official cause of death is a heart attack, but no evidence has been provided.