The parishioners of Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church first found the locks changed on Wednesday; and then, on Thursday, found movers carting away their things.

'We saved some things like church relics, but they took away the rest, including the pews and the holy table from our altar which only the priest could touch,' said Mr Seraphim Lim, 34, the church committee's president.

A Japanese expatriate who lives on the third floor said her things were taken too.

Things got worse yesterday, when the man they claimed was their landlord and to whom they paid rent, denied that he was.

The congregation of about 50 Greeks, Russians and Singaporeans has been renting the first floor of the three-storey shophouse from one 'Cheng Fong Company' for $2,000 a month since 2001.

The rent is paid to company director Han Ong Guan.

But Mr Han told The Straits Times that the building was sold 'years ago', and then sold again a few months ago.

He claimed he 'does not know' who the most recent buyer was, but said he collected the rent on the owner's behalf. He also said he had nothing to do with the eviction.

At the root of Holy Resurrection's problems seems to be a typographical error on its lease.

The church showed ST the tenancy agreement, which says it has the unit for 36 months from February 2006. But the stated dates that follow put the expiry date as Jan 31 this year.

And in October last year, Mr Kelvin Lee, the honorary secretary of the church committee, said he got a letter telling them to move by March 1. But he claimed the landlord said it was okay to stay.

Lawyers that ST contacted, including Mr Rakesh Vasu, felt the error on the lease was 'very clear' since the contract explicitly states that the lease runs for 36 months. So evicting the parishioners would have been in breach of the agreement.

For now, the church's services are suspended while it looks for an alternative venue. The parishioners will not miss Easter tomorrow, though, because the Greek orthodox Christians go by a different calendar and celebrate it late next month.