Serbian Patriarchal prayer for the victims of the March persecution and peace in Kosovo and Metohija

Church of Serbia – 20/3/21

After the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, His Holiness Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church Mr. Porfirije conducted a memorial service for his holy predecessors, archbishops and Serbian patriarchs, as well as for the victims of the 2004 unrest in Kosovo and Metohija, in the Monastery of the Peć Patriarchate, on March 17, 2021.

– Today, in this holy Stauropegial Laura of Serbian patriarchs, the resting place of my holy predecessors – Serbian archbishops and patriarchs, who are not only witnesses to the existence of, but who were also patrons and creators of the highest European culture through which we ennobled the land of Kosovo and Metohija, we prayed for the souls of our brothers and sisters who suffered death in the March persecution seventeen years ago. We also remembered the suffering of forty years ago, when, also in March, the sleeping quarters of this monastery were burned down. What we see these days is that they are robbing and desecrating our temples. What can be our only answer? We will reconsecrate with prayer what has been desecrated, we will rebuild what has been burned and destroyed. And we will pray to God to give strength to those who remained in Kosovo and Metohija to persevere and build their lives in peace. We will also pray for the destroyers to stop destroying, the arsonists to stop burning, the robbers to stop robbing, because in those very churches we are praying for them, their neighbors and their children. Therefore, let us pray today for peace among all people who live in Kosovo and Metohija, regardless of their religion and nation, Patriarch Porfirije said.

After the memorial service which was conducted in the prayerful presence of High Venerable Abbess Haritina and the sisterhood of the Monastery of the Peć Patriarchate, His Holiness Patriarch departed for the Dečani Monastery.

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