The Senate adopted on Monday in a plenary session a legislative proposal regarding the financial support provided by the Romanian State of the Metropolis of Bessarabia from the Republic of Moldova, a constituent part of the Romanian Orthodox Church, according to which it is allocated two million euros annually. , reports Agerpres.

The legislative proposal was initiated by PSD MPs Marcel Cholaku, Ciprian Sherban and Alfred Simonis and received 109 votes in favor and 2 against in the Senate.

“Every year, an amount in lei equivalent to 2 million euros is allocated from the state budget, through the budget of the State Secretariat for Cult Affairs, for the Bessarabian Metropolis of the Republic of Moldova, a constituent part of the Romanian Orthodox Church. The directions of the given amount are determined by the Romanian Patriarchate and the Synod of the Bessarabian Metropolis (Chisinau Archdiocese, Balti Diocese and Southern Bessarabian Diocese). The procedure for spending the allocated funds as intended, as well as the justification of their use, are carried out in accordance with the relevant provisions of the legislation, which regulates the financial support of religious units belonging to religious cults of Romania,” the legislative proposal states.

Funds allocated from the state budget are intended to cover necessary expenses, in particular, for the restoration and conservation of immovable and movable heritage objects; acquisition of real estate necessary for the implementation of cult units of liturgical, cultural and media activities; social and medical care activities supported by religious units organized by the Metropolis of Bessarabia in hospitals, reception centers, homes for the elderly; organization of cultural, religious and media events; construction, arrangement and repair of buildings intended for cultural, social and medical assistance, restoration, repair, maintenance and management of buildings belonging to diocesan centers, dioceses, parishes and monasteries, including buildings of spiritual education.

Two million euros annually also for the Romanian Hermitage “Prodrom” on Mount Athos

According to the amendment adopted by the Senate, a similar amount, equivalent to two million euros, is allocated from the state budget through the budget of the State Secretariat for Cults for the Romanian Hermitage “Prodrome” on Mount Athos, in Greece. .

The provisions of the law enter into force on January 1, 2024.

“This is a bill that is first of all necessary from a historical point of view and is the beginning of moral compensation, not primarily financial compensation. (…) Under the Soviet regime, the Bessarabian Metropolitanate, which had about 1,090 parishes of parish churches and 30 monasteries, suffered terribly, because most of the churches were vandalized, destroyed, burned or closed, and there were hundreds of priests and clerics. personnel who were tortured by the Soviet occupier were shot or sent to Siberia. Therefore, this legislative project, in addition to the necessary financial support, is an important historical gesture that the Romanian state is making to support the Metropolis of Bessarabia, and I assure you that we will not stop,” said Titus Corlacean, on behalf of the PSD senatorial group.

Korletsian recalled that the Bessarabian Metropolitanate was restored in 1992 by the decision of the Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church, but was recognized only in 2002, “after many obstacles created by the various governments of the Republic of Moldova”, and only after the European Court of Human Rights condemned the Republic of Moldova for violating several articles of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The legislative proposal will be discussed by the Chamber of Deputies, the decision-making body in this case.