Latvian society was stirred by the news of bringing a deer carcass into the church. The TV3 program Bez Tabu went to the church in Skaistkalne, captured on video, to find out the details of the event.
A video published online by the magazine Medības shows six men bringing a deer carcass into a church. The church is full of people, with Catholic Archbishop Zbignevs Stankevičs and the rector of the church in Skaistkalne, Andris Medinš, in the foreground. Saint Hubert is considered the patron saint of hunters in church tradition.
In an interview with Bez Tabu, Medinš explained that the idea of bringing the deer carcass into the church in honor of Saint Hubert's feast was his. According to information available to the program, hunters shot three deer two days prior to select the best specimen for the ceremony in the church.
“We have been holding this celebration for the third time now. The church was overcrowded, with about 1,000 people gathered. Next year we will hold the event right in the church square. Thank you to everyone who goes crazy and loses their head over this. I usually don’t read the comments, but one person asked, ‘Do you mourn for the animal you eat before every cutlet?’ Everything in nature is arranged — it is arranged by God. It is sad that we are a limited, stupid people. The deer was not a victim — it was an act of gratitude,” said priest Medinš.
According to Medinš, he feels sorry for Latvian hunters who have to celebrate Saint Hubert's Day in Lithuanian churches. Skaistkalne has become the first place in Latvia where this holiday has been celebrated so widely, unlike in Lithuania, Austria, Germany, and other countries where such a tradition has long been part of church life. He stated that bringing the deer carcass into the church is not excessive.
“A much greater limitation is... the people of savages... If we told the world that we have problems because of this — they would just laugh at us. This is an ancient tradition that comes from the Middle Ages. In Soviet times, it was said that the wolf is the sanitary of the forest, but hunters do even greater work. This is not a story about meat or its procurement,” said the event organizer.
Girts Rozners, a professor in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Latvia, noted that he understands both sides in this situation — the hunters celebrating their day and the outraged citizens.
Bez Tabu also surveyed random passersby, whose opinions on the incident were divided: some were indifferent to what they saw, others supported the event, but there were also those who expressed outrage.
The program was unable to contact local hunters from the Skaistkalne area for their comments.
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