Priest Wants Legalized Prostitution, Patriarch Bartholomew Gives Him Award

Alexander Dediukhin, a controversial "priest" in Ukraine who works for "Patriarch" Philaret, has scandalized many Christians with his outrageous posts on Facebook.

Dediukhin has publicly stated that prostitution should be legalized, that pilgrims in an Orthodox Christian cross procession are "Moscow vampires" and "ghouls", and that the violent overthrow of the Ukrainian government [at Maidan] is "the action of the Holy Spirit". He has also said that the Miracle of the Holy Fire in Jerusalem is a fraud. Dediukhin claims it is actually lit by an oil lamp, and timed according to the schedule of TV stations in Moscow. He says it is not really a miracle.

Patriarch Bartholomew has just given a prestigious award to this "priest", as can be seen in this photo posted on Dediukhin's personal Facebook page: 

Fr. Nikolai Danilevich commented on the event. According to him, earlier in conversations with representatives of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Bartholomew has emphasized that he personally does not meet and does not accept schismatics.

Fr. Nikolai said,

“Patriarch [Bartholomew] gave this as an example of the observance of the principles of canonicity and his non-recognition of schismatics. . . . Now, we can say that Patriarch Bartholomew already considers the schismatics to be canonical, since he not only officially accepts one of them, albeit as part of the state delegation, but also presents a patriarchal cross.”

This "priest" — Alexander Dediukhin — is well known for making scandalous statements. In addition to advocating legalized prostitution, and after calling Maidan "an action of the Holy Spirit", he also claimed that the fatal St. Petersburg Metro Bombing was a result of prayer & fasting.

A few days earlier, Patriarch Bartholomew had signed an agreement with the Ukrainian President, in an attempt to cement his takeover of the churches in Ukraine.