Pope Francis stripped holy orders from nine monks in Ukraine, following reports that they had engaged in unapproved exorcisms and listened to a “prophetess.”
Investigators found monks violating monastic discipline and performing exorcism prayers without authorization at monasteries in Kolodiivka and Velyki Borky. Some of the monks did not follow the rules and were guided by the orders of a so-called “prophetess.”
“The priest who wants to do this should get the special permit, blessing from the local bishop. But they did not heed the comments,” Teodor Martynyuk, bishop-assistant of the Ternopil-Zborowski archdiocese, claimed after an investigation last year, Ukraine’s 112.ua news agency reported.
The Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (UGCC) reported the dismissals on Tuesday, but Pope Francis chose to defrock the priests last month. The church reported that the defrocked former monks are “illegally staying in the village of Posich, Ivano-Frankivsk region.” – READ MORE
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