The priests' revolt

Orthodox priests in the Romanian city of Craiova have founded a union with the goal of demanding higher salaries. The daily criticises the move: "The official version is that the trade union will help poor priests and make the autocratic hierarchy more down-to-earth. Regardless of the real problems of servants of the Church, this comes across as a revolt. There were a few priests' associations during the inter-war period. Even the church elite were members of these organisations, but they were not trade unions. ... The times when servants of the Church were as obedient as lambs have come to an end. Perhaps a false understanding of democracy has gone to their heads. They have forgotten that the Church is a theocracy, not a democracy, because they are high priests of Christ and not trade union employees. ... But crazy, dissatisfied priests keep turning up. This is precisely why we need a patriarch who is strong and respected as head of the church."

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