Church process against monks unlawful says their lawyer (Updated)

Monks and their lawyers involved in the Avakoum monastery scandal filed a memo to the church investigative committee arguing that the process being followed by the church was unlawful.

The two monks, archimandrites Nektarios and Porfyrios, who oversaw the monastery, have been charged with money laundering and engaging in sexual activity with each other, by church court.

They appeared with their lawyers Adrianna Klaedes and Anastasios Vavouskos at the archbishopric, where the lawyers presented the church’s investigative committee with the memo explaining why they considered the process being followed unlawful.

Vavouskos said that the memo recorded recommendations regarding the validity of the proceedings and noted that “we will await the response of the investigating committee.”

He added: “For so long we have been trying and fighting for a fair trial and judgement and we are happy because since yesterday the media have also supported our positions, after the revelations from authoritative church sources that the deposition has already been predetermined. It is a sad situation, but it is the reality”.

Reports on Wednesday suggested that the monks faced defrocking by the church. If they opposed their defrocking, they could appeal the decision.

Vavouskos said on Thursday that the two suspended archimandrites of the five-member brotherhood have been called to testify before the Ecclesiastical Investigative Committee as witnesses next Monday and Tuesday. Despite their disagreement with the process, they would respect it appear before the Ecclesiastical Investigative Committee.

He went on to say “it is now the responsibility of the Holy Synod to prove that there is no such pre-determined decision [about defrocking] and it should exonerate our clients and legally initiate the process for the Bishop of Tamassos [Isaias]”.

Asked whether the monks will call their own witnesses, Vavouskos said that “the charter provides for this. We will see with my colleague whether we will do it or not”.

Later in the day, it emerged from church sources that spoke to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) that the church would wrap-up its investigations by the end of May.

The same sources said that the ecclesiastical court will probably not be able to reach a majority decision and an appeal would be filed, which will then lead to the Holy Synod deciding ahead of its schedule June meeting.

The scandal broke in March, when two monks were accused to be laundering money by Bishop Isaias, under whose authority the Avakoum monastery was. Isaias told the Holy Synod they were also engaging in sexual acts together.

Since then, both church proceedings and a police investigation have been initiated against the two monks.

Police are examining the case of money laundering, while the church is also examining the alleged sexual acts.

Following the break of the scandal, videos began to surface of fake miracles and monks beating people at the monastery.

The two monks, however have also filed complaints against Bishop Isaias, who they claim had them violently removed from the monastery on March 5 and forced them to sign confessions.