A Centenary Anniversary of the End of the First World War Marked
Church of Serbia – 2/10/18
Patriarch Irinej and Patriarch Bartholomew attended in Thessalonica the ceremony marking the centenary of the breakthrough of the Thessaloniki Front and the end of the First World War.
His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Irinej, accompanied by His Eminence Porfirije, Metropolitan of Zagreb-Ljubljana, made a three-day visit to Thessalonica. The occasion of this visit was the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the breakthrough of the Thessalonica Front and the end of the First World War. This jubilee was crowned by the holy Patriarchal Liturgy that was officiated together by His Holiness Bartholomew, Patriarch of Constantinople and Serbian Patriarch Irinej on the military cemetery Zejtinlik in Thessalonica.
Serbian Patriarch Irinej arrived in Thessalonica on Friday, September 28, 2018; at the Thessalonica airport, he was welcomed by the host and organizer of the celebration of this important jubilee, His Eminence Varnava, Metropolitan of Neapolis.
On the first day of his visit to Thessaloniki Patriarch of Serbia met with the students our Church sent to Thessalonica for post-graduate studies in theology.
On the following day, on September 29, 2018, Patriarch Irinej, together with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, visited the nature reservation in the town of Kalohori, where Patriarch Bartholomew led a prayer for the preservation of the environment.
The two Patriarchs also visited the factory Haitogl, which has been traditionally engaged in the production of the sweet halvas. During the 1990-s, the owners of this factory met with every request from the Metropolitan of Varnava to send aid for Serbian suffering people.
The two Primates visited the historic church of St. Athanasius in Evozmos and solemnly opened the newly built nursing home, a people’s kitchen and a kindergarten of the Metropolis of Neapolis.
In the afternoon, a fraternal meeting of the Serbian Patriarch Irinej and Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew was held, during which, in the spirit of mutual understanding and fraternal love, they discussed topics of mutual and pan-Orthodox character.
In the evening hours in the Cultural Center of Monastery Lazariston, located in the immediate vicinity of Zejtinlik, an exhibition of rare photographs from the Thessalonica Front and the First World War by Konstantin Nigdelis was opened. The cultural-artistic program followed when Patriarch Bartholomew, Metropolitan Varnava of Neapolis and representatives of local authorities delivered addresses, followed by the premiere performance of the composition of the famous Thessalonica composer Emanuel Lazaridis, written on the occasion of the centenary of the breakthrough of the Thessaloniki Front and the end of the Great War.
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