Source: Novaya Gazeta The Russian Orthodox Church’s supreme administrative body has decided to remove the scandal-prone head of its Budapest and Hungarian Diocese, the church’s Holy Synod announced on Friday. Grigory Alfeyev, who took the religious name Metropolitan Hilarion, was temporarily suspended by the body in July following an investigation by Novaya Gazeta Europe that uncovered evidence of misconduct in both his financial and personal affairs. As the head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department of External Church Relations since 2009, Hilarion had been touted as a possible successor to Patriarch Kirill, the current head of the church, until he was…
Hilarion and Suzuki together at mass in Hungary. Photo: Parish of the Holy Trinity
