Nuns from the Belarusian monastery of St. Elisabeth are currently in Norway. Here they are raising money and calling for prayer for Putin. The monastery’s high priest supports Russia’s annexation of Crimea and Russia’s liberation of Ukraine as he calls it. In 2019, the monastery collected signatures in support of banning “Gay propaganda”. This summer, several congregations in Norway are visited by nuns from St. Elisabeth Monastery. The sisters are good Christians, say the congregations. The Belarusian association in Norway says that the nuns are spreading Russian propaganda.

Praying for Russian victory in Ukraine

The nuns come from a monastery where the priests in their prayers ask for Russian victory in Ukraine. They also pray for Putin, Lavrov and Lukashenko. According to the priests in the monastery, the world is against Russia and the Russian Orthodox Church.

The monastery’s attitudes to LGBT people are, to put it mildly, special. According to them, gays and leptics pose a danger to families. The monastery claims that the devil’s goal is to destroy the family. I encourage you to read the article in Quest. Quest is a website for LGBT people in the Catholic Church in the United Kingdom. There they tell about St. Elisabeth Monastery’s attitude towards gays.

Following the elections and the post-election riots in Belarus 2020, the monastery actively supported the incumbent dictator Lukashenko. Many employees were fired at the monastery because they supported the opposition.

Say no to the nuns from St. Elisabeth Monastery

The nuns of St. Elisabeth in Minsk have been diligent in their visits to Europe for many years. There they sell their articles and collect money for a monastery. The monastery itself is huge. There are 130 nuns there besides 12 lavish churches and chapels. The monastery is a large economic enterprise, which hardly needs money collected in Europe.

My appeal to congregations around Norway is simple. Say no to Russian propaganda in the church. Say no to the nuns from St. Elisabeth Monastery in Minsk.

Sources:

Putin-friendly monastery on Norway tour – VG

Belarusian association in Norway warns against “Putin-friendly monastery” – Vårt Land (vl.no)

St Elisabeth Convent (Minsk) – Wikipedia

Belarusian Convent Operating in Britain Engages in Homophobic Campaigning | Quest (questlgbti.uk)