If the minister's proposal goes ahead, the court injunction required to make it a reality may also lead to the full closure of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Tallinn, along with a convent in eastern Estonia, since these are fully under the Moscow patriarch's rule and not a part of the MPEÕK as such.

The MPEÕK's Bishop Daniel of Tartu told "Aktuaalne kaamera" (AK) that he considers the minister's proposal to be a type of collective punishment. "It's a type of decision where you get deemed a terrorist. But I am 100 percent sure that every real member of the congregation would feel very disturbed by that," he said.

"And to say that it will not affect them; it certainly affects people's spiritual balance and their understanding. I cannot share that optimism," the bishop went on.

As to the link between the MPEÕK and its putative parent organization in Moscow, he said: "Each of our congregation's names fully includes the name of the church. Each congregation's name starts with MPEÕK and is followed by the respective location, be it in Tartu, Tallinn, Viljandi, or Haapsalu."

This means that congregations are not wholly independent from one another, inside Estonia, regardless of the relationship with the Patriarchate in Moscow.

"These congregations are, yes, legally speaking, independent legal entities, but they still form one whole, which is the church. So to break up the church now but state that the congregations remain is essentially breaking up the canonical structure of the church, which should not occur via a decision by state authorities,"

The leader of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church (EELK), Archbishop Urmas Viilma, also called Minister Läänemets' statement "harsh."

Viilma noted that the congregations and their members operating in Estonia are certainly not terrorists. He finds the minister's suggestion for congregations to continue independently incomprehensible.

"Looking at Orthodox tradition and canon law, a church or diocese being up in the air, not connected to any patriarch, would be quite unprecedented," Viilma said.

Minister Läänemets has proposed the Riigikogu to declare the Moscow Patriarchate, ie. the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia itself, a terrorism-supporting organization, as a precursor to obtaining a court order which would halt all of its activities in Estonia.

This would diminish Russian influence in Estonia, Läänemets said, citing the Internal Security Service (ISS) Yearbook issued Friday which noted that the Russian Orthodox Church is used for that purpose.

"Clearly, what is important to Moscow is problematic for Estonia," the minister said.

Läänemets said that the ban would target the umbrella organization, adding that as congregations are separate legal entities, they would be able to continue their operations independently and no church closures would be required.

There are two major places of worship which are actually directly under Moscow Patriarch Kirill, namely the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, and the Pühtitsa Convent in Kuremäe, Ida-Viru County.

The state would need to find separate solutions for these congregations, in cooperation with them, Läänemets said.

"Though there is a high probability, I fear, that we might also have to close these institutions, if necessary," he added.

Bishop Daniel said that the process to end the direct subordination of the Nevsky Cathedral to Moscow itself is already underway.

The Pühtitsa Convent maintained a more nun-like official line in saying that it could not comment on the matter since it, the convent, is apolitical.

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