Church seeks to block showing of film about Romanian priest in Sibiu

The Archdiocese of Sibiu, in central Romania, has sent an open letter requesting that the film "Arsenie. The Afterlife" directed by Alexandru Solomon not be screened in Sibiu county, arguing that it is ridiculing Romania’s spiritual values.

In the letter, the Archdiocese says that Romania’s “hard-won freedom of expression, earned with the blood of the heroes of the 1989 Revolution, is constantly used to denigrate the Romanian people, its enduring spiritual values, and, in particular, the Orthodox Church.”

The Archdiocese also argues that the film is part of a “neo-Marxist endeavor” and that it is falsely categorized as a documentary. “This so-called documentary film caricaturizes and profanes the memory of Father Arsenie Boca, who, even during his lifetime, was revered by our people as the Saint of Transylvania. Father Arsenie was a monastic with a divine calling who, in a spiritual sense, nurtured generations of believers,” the letter says, cited by G4Media.

The letter requests the leadership of CNM Astra and the Astra Film Festival to prohibit the screening of the film in the county, even though the director had received approval from the Archdiocese to film at Sâmbăta de Sus Monastery. “Father Arsenie's life is grossly and insultingly trivialized: a character representing Father Arsenie is seen smoking in monastic attire, demonstrating throughout the film through gestures, attitudes, and explicit words a deep-seated hatred and antipathy toward the great spiritual figure. [...] The mockery of the Church and the values of our people through this film means that its public projection, at a festival organized by institutions of the Romanian state, brings serious damage to the image of our Church," the letter concludes.

Astra Film Festival responded to the request from the Archdiocese of Sibiu to withdraw the film "Arsenie: The Afterlife," from the festival in Sibiu County. "In 30 years, Astra Film Festival has never censored any film,” the organizers of the festival said. “This is a non-negotiable principle. We strongly believe in an open society where free discussion about anything is possible. The request to remove a film from the festival, to prevent its distribution, amounts to censorship, is unconstitutional [...], and ultimately infringes on the right and freedom of the audience to watch a film," the statement continues, cited by