Archpriest Petr Prokoptsov from Belarus was admitted to the clergy of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the United States.This became known from Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, who announced the decision to accept a Belarusian priest into the clergy of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, Christian Vision reports.

Archpriest Peter Prokoptsov is the former rector of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the agricultural town of Pribytki, Gomel region, which is located 5 km from the airfield in Zyabrovka, which was used by Russian troops for air strikes on Ukraine.

The priest was repeatedly approached by the Russian military stationed near the airfield, with a request to bless military equipment. He categorically refused, and to avoid pressure, he went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Spirit Monastery in Vilnius for some time.

During this trip, Archbishop Stefan (Neshcheret) of Gomel threatened the priest with defrocking, forcing him to return to Gomel. Immediately after his return, Prokoptsov was summoned for a conversation with the bishop and afterwards received a call from the Gomel KGB department, where he was questioned about the reasons for his trip to Lithuania, how he obtained a visa, and whether he cooperated with the Christian Vision. They forced him to sign a document warning him about the inadmissibility of illegal actions, sponsoring terrorist activities, transmitting information defaming the political system and the President of Belarus to foreign media, and calling for strikes.

Fearing further pressure, Prokoptsov was forced to go abroad. He was banned from ministry by Archbishop Stefan (Neshcheret) of Gomel. (Quelle: www.risu.ua, 7. September 2024)