According to the Law “On the Status of Judges”, retired judges are not recommended to serve as a priest or become a catechist. This conclusion follows from the conclusion of the commission of the Council of Judges of the Russian Federation on ethics dated March 25, 2022 No. 4-KE.
In addition, the commission recommended avoiding excessive public demonstration of one’s religious views in extrajudicial activities.
In turn, the legal department of the Russian Orthodox Church reported that “a retired judge continues to remain a judge, which makes it impossible to combine his profession with the priesthood.”
The department also spoke about the draft document “Professions Compatible and Incompatible with the Priesthood” developed in the Church, which states that the profession of a judge is incompatible with the priesthood.
I, in turn, want to remind you of Art. 120 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which contains provisions that judges are independent and subordinate only to the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal law, and cannot be subordinate to the clergy.
According to Art. 14 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation (Fundamentals of the Constitutional System), religious associations are separated from the state.
Go and do not sin!
“ВЧК ОГПУ”