Archbishop Pavel Pezzi, who chaired the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Russia for 15 years, has stepped down. Sources in Russian Catholic circles indicate that the authorities, either the presidential administration or the FSB, insisted on replacing the head of Russia’s Catholics.

This is stated in an article by religious scholar Lera Furman published in Novaya Gazeta Europe.

According to the author, Pezzi, Italian by nationality and worldview, maintained an overly explicit anti-war position. Although such a stance is generally close to that of the Holy See, the Vatican values its role as being “above the fray” and seeks to preserve an equal distance in relations with all states whenever possible.

Pezzi’s successor at the Moscow see, at least temporarily, is Bishop Nikolay Dubinin, who was born in Russia and is considered loyal to the authorities. Incidentally, he is the first ethnically Russian bishop of the Latin Rite in history.

On the very first day of the full-scale military action in Ukraine, February 24, 2022, Pavel Pezzi, as chairman of the national Conference of Catholic Bishops of Russia, signed an anti-war appeal.

“Unlike Patriarch Kirill and the Russian Orthodox Church, who attempt to ‘sanctify’ every action of Putin in the name of God, the Catholic bishops honestly testified that God is not with the aggressor, quoting the words of Pope Francis: ‘God is the God of peace, not of war… He wants us to be brothers, not enemies,’” Lera Furman writes.

Russian Catholics were forced to comply with the absurd requirements of Russian laws that banned direct anti-war preaching. On September 28, 2022, Pezzi responded to the abuses and violations of believers’ consciences connected with the “partial mobilization” announced in Russia. He described Putin’s “special military operation” as “a full-scale military conflict that has already claimed thousands of lives, undermined trust and unity among countries and peoples, and threatens the existence of the entire world.”

On the occasion of the second anniversary of the “special military operation,” Archbishop Pezzi once again condemned the war. Pointing to the deadlock into which the war had descended, the hierarch noted the social depression and moral apathy that had become the fruits of Putin’s adventure for Russian society: “A certain meek resignation has begun to spread, it has become difficult to make plans for the future, and fatigue has appeared.”

“Wartime became a test of basic Christian honesty and, from the point of view of the Kremlin and the Russian Orthodox Church, Archbishop Pavel failed this test by choosing loyalty to Christ over loyalty to Putin,” the religious scholar believes.