PARMA, Ohio — Members of St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Cathedral said they will continue protests outside their Parma Church until they get answers from church leaders about changes at their parish on Tuesday.
Dozens of members have been protesting outside the cathedral on Broadview Road for nine consecutive Sundays to draw attention to their concerns about the reassignment of the church's longtime priest and the replacement of the church's elected board with a temporary board.
Police have been called to the church multiple times during the protests, with officers telling protesters they were trespassing and threatening arrests. So far, only one person has been arrested for disorderly conduct, Parma police said.
"You can have infighting. You can have issues. But to be thrown out of your own church by the police is crazy," Nina Markovich, one of the protesting parishioners, said.
What changed
Markovich said Bishop Irinej Dobrijevic of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Eastern America abruptly reassigned the church's priest, Dragoslav Kosic, and created a "Temporary Trusteeship" board earlier this year.
Markovich believes the bishop's actions were "revenge" against parishioners who raised questions about what happened to money raised by the church.
"The Bishop needs to be a shepherd to his flock - and not a tyrant to us," Markovich said.
"From his standpoint, he doesn't think he should answer to anybody," Kosta Radivoj, another parishioner, said.
They said the church raised $75,000 for improvements at Monastery Marcha, which is located on Broadview Road in Richfield, but said no changes have been made to the building.
"Where's the money? Where did all this money go?" Radivoj asked.
Diocese's response
No one was available at St. Sava on Tuesday.
News 5 also reached out to Bishop Irinej Dobrijevic. Rev. Rade Merick, Episcopal Deputy, Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Eastern America, sent us the following statement:
"We have received your inquiry about incidents at St Sava Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma over the past several weeks. Relative to the same, please find the following response:
In accordance with the canonical structure of the Orthodox Church, every parish is under the supervision of its diocesan bishop. This includes the assignment and relocation of clergy and the approval of membership of congregation executive boards and of their work, at his discretion and for the good of the church. In this case, and in response to concerns of a pastoral nature over more than the past year, Bishop Irinej of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Eastern America has exercised his normal oversight to make a change in clergy leadership at the cathedral. In addition, and in response to numerous concerns over questions concerning the election and functioning of the cathedral's executive board, the Bishop has relieved the Board, which was near the conclusion of what would have been its term, of its duties and appointed a Temporary Trusteeship composed of good standing members of the Cathedral to oversee financial matters and physical plant upkeep until conditions allow for the election of a new Board. It is their intention that such elections will occur in a timely manner. All these actions have been done in accordance with canonical and legal church procedures.
Unfortunately, a group of parishioners taking issue with these decisions has undertaken to disrupt the peace and order of the parish by physically blocking access to the church for services, even tampering with locks to prevent opening the church for worship. These actions resulted in the cancellation of services on one Sunday, and necessitated police involvement. They have also attempted to gain publicity for their views by inviting media coverage, to the detriment of the reputation of the Cathedral and the Serbian Orthodox Church in general. The Diocese deeply regrets their actions and invites them to join the rest of the congregation in welcoming their new priest and cooperating with the Trusteeship for the good of the parish."
