Published June 7, 2002
Magadan court rules for priest; government says it will appeal decision
In a short-lived victory for the Catholic Church in Russia, a Magadan city court ruled May 15 that an Alaskan priest can remain a pastor there. But the government announced two weeks later that it would appeal the decision.
The back-and-forth case involves Father Michael Shields, a priest of the Archdiocese of Anchorage who has served since 1994 as pastor of Nativity of Jesus Parish in the east coast city of Magadan.
The possibility of a favorable outcome in Magadan comes at a difficult time for the Catholic church in Russia, where the powerful Russian Orthodox Church continues to condemn Pope John Paul II’s February decision to upgrade the country’s four Catholic jurisdictions into full-fledged dioceses.
In April, an Italian priest and the Polish bishop of Irkutsk, Russia, whose diocese includes Magadan, were stripped of their Russian visas. The Vatican still has not received any official response to its requests for an explanation.
Demonstrations in front of Catholic churches have taken place in more than 30 cities across this massive country, where Catholics are less than 1 percent of the population. Federal lawmakers even considered but eventually defeated a measure to dismantle the Catholic dioceses.
Throughout the spring in Magadan, the local Orthodox bishop solicited signatures on a statement condemning the expansion of the Catholic church.
Bishop Feofan stepped up his criticisms over the June 1-2 weekend when, according to Father Shields, he publicly ridiculed Father Shields, his parish, and Catholics in general.
"I think all this will backfire on him but nonetheless we are surprised at the intensity of his attacks now," Father Shields told Brian Kuzel, director of the Anchorage Archdiocese’s Russian Desk.
"Never could I have imagined this even three months ago."
Three months ago is when the trouble first started in Magadan.
Nativity of Jesus Parish received two letters this spring — the first on Ash Wednesday, just two days after the pope created the new dioceses — from the Magadan Province Ministry of Justice.
The letters questioned the legality of a foreign pastor and demanded full financial and other records of the parish.
The parish tried to comply with the government demands but also hired a Moscow-based attorney who specializes in religion.
The matter went to the Magadan City Court when Ministry of Justice officials were not satisfied with the parish records.
The court’s May 15 ruling said Father Shields is allowed to serve Nativity of Jesus as its pastor because he is there at the request of the parish. A 1997 federal law on religious freedom allows churches to invite foreigners, including clergy, Kuzel said.
Father Shields and the parish thought the favorable ruling gave them reason to celebrate.
"We believe that this decision will close this particular question about whether a foreigner can serve as a pastor in a Catholic parish," the priest said May 16 via e-mail. "[O]ther parishes that may have the same problem can use this case."
Father Shields said at the time that the judge’s decision was so strongly in favor of the parish — it ordered the Ministry of Justice to rescind the letters it had written — that it seemed highly unlikely that the government would appeal.
But on May 28, he sent word that the Ministry of Justice was doing just that.
A court date for the appeal has not yet been set.