In Abkhazia, believers disappointed by suspension of church services

Church services should not be stopped under any circumstances, especially because believers need spiritual support during the pandemic and crisis, parishioners of Abkhaz churches say.

Since February 20, in Abkhazia, temples suspended church services, with the exception of the Cathedral in Sukhumi. The church services will not be resumed until the status of the Abkhaz Orthodox Church is determined, states Priest Vissarion Apliaa, the head of the Abkhazian Orthodox Church (AOC).

Natalia, a parishioner of the Gagra Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, says she is disappointed by the suspension of church services. According to the woman, 20 years ago, her faith and a local priest helped her get through the grief when she lost her entire family in a fire and found herself alone.

Adgur, a parishioner from Pitsunda, believes that the Abkhaz Orthodox Church should simply exist and work for parishioners.

Meanwhile, Dmitry, a parishioner from Sukhumi, suggests that Orthodox believers should humbly accept deprivation together with their church.

Vissarion Apliaa explains that the lack of an official status of the AOC means that all its church services are "illegal," and therefore, liturgies and ceremonies have been temporarily suspended.

Journalist Nadezhda Venediktova notes that the intra-church split in Abkhazia divided both priests and parishioners.

Most of residents of Abkhazia are Orthodox believers, but there are quite a few deeply religious people and the temples in the region are visited by tourists rather than by local residents, editor Izida Chaniya says.