RESPONSE TO DIOCESE DEFENSE OF MAIL TAMPERING
- Special Correspodent
- Jan 14
- 5 min read
Their Claim vs. Canon Law Reality
THEIR FALSE CLAIM:
"Clergy housing is a benefit provided during active assignment (Diocese Rulebook, Article 23) - not personal property."
THE ACTUAL CANON LAW (Diocese Regulations, Article 23 & 25):
ARTICLE 23: EMOLUMENTS OF A PARISH PRIEST
The Diocese Regulations explicitly list what priests are entitled to, including:
"a decently furnished apartment with costs of heating, lighting, water and utility services or appropriate monetary compensation for a rented apartment with the aforementioned costs."
This is NOT a discretionary "benefit." This is a canonical requirement - priests MUST be provided housing as part of their emoluments (compensation).
ARTICLE 25: SICK LEAVE PROTECTIONS
Here's what they don't want you to read:
"For the first six months of sick leave, a parish priest will receive ALL EMOLUMENTS from the parish or church community, i.e. church-school community."
ALL EMOLUMENTS. Not "some." Not "except housing." ALL.
Article 23 defines emoluments - including the apartment. Article 25 guarantees ALL emoluments during sick leave.
Fr. Dragoslav is on approved FMLA leave. He is entitled to ALL emoluments, including his residence, for a MINIMUM of six months.
THEIR DECEPTION EXPOSED
What They Said:
"Clergy housing is a benefit provided during active assignment"
What Canon Law Actually Says:
Housing is a required emolument that continues during ALL of sick leave (minimum 6 months).
The Truth:
They're deliberately misrepresenting their own Diocese Regulations to justify interfering with Fr. Dragoslav's mail and isolating him from his community.
THE MAIL TAMPERING IS STILL A FEDERAL CRIME
Their Ridiculous Defense:
"Property owners have every right to manage their own mail delivery. When corporations redirect their mail, no one calls it a federal crime."
The Legal Reality:
18 U.S.C. § 1701 - Obstruction of Mails:
"Whoever knowingly and willfully obstructs or retards the passage of the mail, or any carrier or conveyance carrying the mail, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than six months, or both."
18 U.S.C. § 1702 - Obstruction of Correspondence:
"Whoever takes any letter, postal card, or package out of any post office or any authorized depository for mail matter, or from any letter or mail carrier, or which has been in any post office or authorized depository, or in the custody of any letter or mail carrier, before it has been delivered to the person to whom it was directed, with design to obstruct the correspondence, or to pry into the business or secrets of another, or opens, secretes, embezzles, or destroys the same, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both."
Key Facts:
Fr. Dragoslav LIVES at that address - on approved leave, as is his canonical right
The mail was addressed TO HIM PERSONALLY at his residence
A trustee (Z.L.) visited the post office and falsely claimed Fr. Dragoslav no longer resides there
Mail was returned marked "NOT KNOWN" despite him actively living there
This is deliberate interference with his correspondence while he's on protected leave
Corporate mail redirection involves a company's business mail being sent to its business address.
This is personal mail addressed to a resident at his home being blocked by someone who doesn't live there and has no authority over his personal correspondence.
That's not "mail management." That's obstruction of correspondence - a federal crime.
ABOUT THOSE "ANONYMOUS" ACCUSATIONS
Their Claim:
"Anonymous accusations against an individual trustee... without documentation, is irresponsible."
Our Response:
We have photos of the returned mail. That's documentation.
We have sources confirming Z.L.'s visit to the post office. That's evidence.
We have Fr. Dragoslav living at the address while mail is returned. That's proof of interference.
If Z.L. didn't do this, she/he can easily prove it. The post office keeps records of who requests mail blocks.
Subpoena those records. Let's see what they show.
THE "WORD OF CAUTION" - PROJECTION AT ITS FINEST
They Say We're:
"Running a campaign" of destruction
"Attacking community members by name"
"Fabricating stories"
"Targeting innocent children"
"Personal vendettas dressed up as righteous causes"
What We've Actually Done:
✅ Documented $5.4 million in financial destruction with their own financial reports✅ Filed canonical appeals with majority of the parish families through proper church channels✅ Gathered peacefully outside our own cathedral for Sunday worship✅ Exposed systematic persecution of competent priests (Johnstown Gulag pattern)✅ Requested financial transparency - repeatedly refused✅ Protected our beloved priest Fr. Dragoslav from administrative abuse✅ Stood with majority of the parish families who refuse to participate in corruption
What They've Actually Done:
❌ Drained 92% of the endowment ❌ Destroyed security cameras and filed false theft reports❌ Removed the antimins (holy altar cloth) from the cathedral❌ Issued trespass notices against grandmothers and mothers❌ Blocked a priest's mail while he's on protected leave❌ Violated canon law regarding priest benefits/Fr. Dragoslv did NOT receive a paycheck❌ Refused all accountability despite documented financial catastrophe❌ Systematically persecuted competent priests for eight years
Who's actually "seeking to destroy"?
ADDRESSING THE "INNOCENT CHILDREN" CLAIM
We condemn any targeting of children, Fr. Dragan's or anyone else's, including the children of Fr. Dragoslav. We will NEVER forget or forgive you, December 5, 2025.
If such actions occurred, identify who did I,t and we'll condemn them too.
But don't use unspecified allegations about "photographs of minors" to deflect from:
Federal mail tampering
$5.4 million financial destruction
Canonical violations of priest benefits
Systematic lack of accountability
That's called "whataboutism" and it's a classic tactic when you can't defend your actual conduct.
THE BOTTOM LINE
On Canon Law:
They deliberately misrepresented Articles 23 & 25 to justify denying Fr. Dragoslav his canonical rights. Article 25 is crystal clear: ALL emoluments during sick leave, including housing.
On Mail Tampering:
Blocking a resident's personal mail by falsely claiming he doesn't live there is obstruction of correspondence under federal law. Their "corporate mail management" analogy is absurd.
On "Reconciliation":
You can't reconcile with people who:
Destroy $5.4 million in church funds
Violate canon law
Commit federal crimes
Refuse all accountability
Then accuse YOU of being divisive
On "The Church Doors Remain Open":
The doors were always open.
We're the ones standing outside because we won't participate in a system that:
Bankrupted the diocese
Persecutes good priests
Violates canon law
Commits crimes
Lies about its own regulations
OUR POSITION REMAINS UNCHANGED
We stand with Fr. Dragoslav, our beloved priest.
We demand:
Immediate restoration of Fr. Dragoslav's mail delivery
Full compliance with Diocese Regulations Articles 23 & 25
Investigation of mail tampering by federal authorities
Complete financial transparency and accountability
End to the Johnstown Gulag pattern of priest persecution
We will not return to a cathedral controlled by an administration that:
Destroys millions in church assets
Violates canon law
Obstructs federal mail
Then claims we're the problem
TO THE PARISHIONERS THEY'RE ADDRESSING
They tell you to "take a hard look at what you've attached yourselves to."
We agree. Look carefully.
Look at documented financial records showing $5.4 million destroyed.
Look at Diocese Regulations Articles 23 & 25 - then look at how they violated them.
Look at federal mail obstruction laws - then look at returned mail marked "NOT KNOWN."
Look at the majority of the parish families standing in the cold every Sunday because they love their church too much to watch it be destroyed.
Look at Fr. Dragoslav - a good priest being systematically persecuted for being good.
Then ask yourself: Who's really seeking destruction?
The people demanding accountability with documentation?
Or the administration that destroyed $1.9 million in endowment funds, violated canon law, and is now committing federal crimes to isolate a priest on protected leave?
FINAL WORD
We don't need to fabricate stories.
Their own financial records tell the story.Their own Diocese Regulations prove their violations.Federal law defines their crimes.
We're just making sure everyone reads what they don't want you to see.
Diocese Regulations for Parishes - Eastern American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox ChurchPublished 10.12.2025 by the Holy Episcopal Synod of the SOC
Article 25: "For the first six months of sick leave, a parish priest will receive ALL EMOLUMENTS from the parish or church community, i.e. church-school community."
ALL means ALL.
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