Crisis in Moldova’s Orthodox Church Highlights Wider East-West Division

Moldova’s autonomous Gaugazia region reiterates hope of forging closer ties with Moscow.

The sun sets behind a dome of the Christ the Saviour cathedral, the main Russian Orthodox church in downtown Moscow, on Oct. 25, 2022. Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images

Dozens of priests have reportedly switched allegiance from Moldova’s Moscow-linked Orthodox Church to the Orthodox Church of Romania in the belief that Moldova’s future ultimately lies with the West.

“This phenomenon foreshadows a thaw in the church,” Vasile Banescu, a spokesman for Romania’s Orthodox Church, said in an April 25 radio interview.