Bankruptcy proceedings initiated against Czech Church
Two clerics of the Prague Eparchy have filed a petition for bankruptcy of the church structure due to unpaid wages. There may be dozens of such priests.
The Prague Eparchy of the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands has entered insolvency proceedings (a legal mechanism applied to a debtor unable to meet its financial obligations) after two clerics – Fr. Kirill Sarkisyan from the parish in Malá Chuchle and a spiritual caretaker from Mělník – submitted a bankruptcy petition over unpaid salaries, reports the UOJ in the Czech Republic.
Both clerics stated that since July they had not received several scheduled payments, amounting in total to tens of thousands of Czech crowns. Available information suggests that in reality the problem concerns dozens of clergy who have not received their salaries since the summer.
Fr. Kirill Sarkisyan told the media he was tired of waiting for the issue to be resolved, as the Prague Eparchy had taken no action and had not made contact. The priest expressed concern that the Church might lose its registration with the Ministry of Culture.
Attorney Helena Nutilová, representing the petitioners, explained that within the framework of insolvency proceedings, the Prague Eparchy will be treated as an ordinary legal entity. If funds for reorganization are not found, the court may open bankruptcy liquidation proceedings, and the eparchy’s property may be sold off.
The situation was preceded by a request from Archbishop Michael of Prague and the Czech Lands to the Eparchial Council to approve a loan of 20 million crowns to cover debts owed to the state and to employees. The proposal involved a two-month loan from a private individual at 2% per month. The Council rejected the request, citing a lack of information about the eparchy’s financial situation.
Archbishop Michael scheduled a meeting of the Eparchial Council for December 2 to discuss the financial crisis, but it was canceled. Council members reported that the date had been set without prior consultation, without documentation, and under extremely tight deadlines.
A special commission, established with Archbishop Michael’s blessing, had twice – in 2022 and 2025 – warned of the risk of economic collapse. In June of this year the commission concluded that a moratorium and reorganization filing were necessary. Some clergy and members of the Eparchial Council hope that the insolvency administrator will allow access to the eparchy’s accounting records, as the auditing commission was dissolved about ten years ago.
Earlier it had been reported that the Prague Eparchy faced the loss of its special rights due to debts owed to the state.
