Patriarch Kirill dismissed the rank of deacon Kuraev

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, dismissed the rank of protodeacon Andrey Kuraev, who criticizes the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian authorities.

Kuraev himself published a photo of the patriarch’s decree on demotion. The document states that more than two years have passed since he was banned from serving, he has not changed his position and continues his “anti-church activities”, which is why the decision was made to remove him from office.

“The right to co-serve with the current Patriarch Kirill, that is, with the way he made himself, is a dubious honor. I did not consider it necessary to achieve it and do not consider it necessary,” Kuraev commented on the decision. He did not rule out that he would send the mourning to the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.

In December 2020, the Diocesan Church Court dismissed the rank of protodeacon Andrey Kuraev. Patriarch Kirill, however, imposed a moratorium on this decision, giving Kuraev time to “rethink his position.” At the same time, from April of the same year, Kuraev was temporarily banned from serving by Patriarch Kirill. The reason was his harsh words about one of the deceased priests.

Andrey Kuraev is one of the most famous missionaries of the Russian Orthodox Church. He regularly gathered large halls for sermons, performed at rock concerts, on television, and was one of the first to come to church on the Internet. He was the referent of Patriarch Alexy II and one of the closest associates of Metropolitan Kirill (Gundyaev) before his election as the head of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2009.

In recent years, Andrey Kuraev has actively criticized church structures and the patriarch, accusing the church of alienation from parishioners, bureaucracy and inertia. Now Kuraev lives abroad. He opposes the war in Ukraine and the position of the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church on the issue of war.