A religious community in Turku, Finland, linked to the Russian Orthodox Church, poses a threat to society.

This was stated by Archbishop Elia, head of the Finnish Orthodox Church, commenting to Yle on the activities of a community calling itself the “Ukrainian Orthodox Parish in Western Finland.”
“In the current global situation, when Moscow’s efforts to influence various regions are known, I see this phenomenon as a threat to society as a whole, not just to the Church,” said Archbishop Elia.

He believes that no other church may encroach on the territory of an autonomous Orthodox Church.
“This is completely wild activity. No Orthodox Church should intrude into the territory of another. This is an insult to the status of the autonomous Orthodox Church of Finland,” the archbishop emphasized.
The new Orthodox community belongs to a church operating in Ukraine that is linked to the Russian Orthodox Church. Although this church claims to have separated from Moscow after the war began, Ukraine has exposed pro-Russian activity within it.

The Security Service of Ukraine discovered, among other things, instructions regarding Russian propaganda from religious leaders, and according to the country’s foreign intelligence, the church’s overseas activities are funded by an oligarch associated with Russia.
The new Orthodox community founded in Turku is only one of many parishes operating across Europe. The network includes more than 80 new organizations.
What they have in common is that they were all established after the Russian invasion that began in 2022.

The Ukrainian Security Service also suspects that the churches’ activities are financed by a pro-Russian oligarch. Last autumn, a Ukrainian court issued an arrest warrant for him.
Previously, we reported that Ukrainian refugees in Russian Orthodox Church parishes in Europe were recruited under the guise of “spiritual support” or “assistance.”

As LF wrote, Vadim Novinsky is a Ukrainian oligarch of Russian origin and a former deputy of pro-Russian forces. Experts say that for decades he has been known in Ukraine as a key infrastructural and financial element of the Russian Orthodox Church’s influence in Ukrainian political and social life. Novinsky maintained close ties with Moscow and personally with Patriarch Kirill, which, according to Ukrainian law enforcement agencies, made him one of the informal overseers of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine. Due to suspicions of aiding Russian influence, treason, and inciting religious enmity, sanctions have been imposed against him, and he is now outside Ukraine.