The Russian Orthodox church has sacked one of its most high-profile priests, an ultra-conservative who had called for the church to play a stronger and more independent role in public life.



Father Vsevolod Chaplin, who, since 2009, had been head of the church’s department for cooperation with society, was relieved of his duties on Thursday. Chaplin had called for the church and the Russian government to take a more active role in east Ukraine, and recently referred to the Russian military intervention in Syria as a holy war. However, he had criticised the current Russian political elite for corruption.



“Everything started a year ago, as I disagreed in principle with our Ukraine position. We should have not waited but worked to make sure our authorities heard the voices of people who think themselves Russian,” Chaplin told the newspaper RBK on Friday. Chaplin said Russia’s current political leaders were an “immoral elite who are stopping the country from developing”.

Under Vladimir Putin, the Russian Orthodox Church has enjoyed a renaissance in power and authority, but essentially functions as an arm of the state. Patriarch Kirill has been present at planning meetings for Russia’s military operations in Syria and enjoys a warm relationship with the Russian president.

Church leaders have often made conservative statements. The patriarch has said feminism is “very dangerous” and could destroy Russia, while Chaplin himself complained in 2011 that women who wore miniskirts and got drunk should not be surprised if they are raped. “A woman who is barely dressed or made up like a clown will certainly not find a man as a partner in life with an ounce of sense or self-respect,” Chaplin said.

The church has come in for criticism over allegations of corruption and the extravagant lifestyles of its top leaders. In 2012, an expensive Breguet watch worn by Kirill was airbrushed out of a photograph before it was released on the church’s official site. Unfortunately, the patriarch’s press service had omitted to airbrush the reflection of the watch, which could be seen clearly in the table.



Chaplin himself attracted many comments in the Russian blogosphere earlier this month, when he was photographed eating a McDonald’s burger on the day of an Orthodox fast, during which believers are meant to abstain from meat. Chaplin claimed he had been eating a vegetarian burger.

Chaplin said on Friday that he did not think the patriarch would last much longer, but observers said Chaplin’s calls for dissent were unlikely to draw wide support among church leaders.