Q:
A:
Religion minister extends condolences over Serbian Patriarch’s demise
Belgrade,
18 November 2009
Minister of Religion Bogoljub Sijakovic expressed his condolences over the passing of His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle to the Holy Synod and all archbishops, the clergy and the monks, all believers and the entire Serbian people.
"Serbian Patriarch Pavle, a unique and exceptional person, a symbol of the Serbian people's epoch of suffering, has gone to heaven leaving us with the task of answering future challenges.
Modest and humble, just and merciful, wise and innocent, those are his most distinct character traits, equally expressed in his words as well as in his acts. He was as we all should be, wary of hatred, of causing injustice, of all inhumanities, because it depends on us whether we behave like humans or not.
This confessor of our Orthodox faith gained the Heavenly Kingdom in giving himself to others. He gained glory yet he rejected it, precedence among men for him was precedence in serving God and the people. As our teacher in faith he was a student of the only true teacher, Christ our Lord.
We have not lost Patriarch Pavle, but rather gained yet another representative before the Lord, one who is the converging lens of all Serbs, sown here by God and scattered unwillingly everywhere, one who is a symbol of the Serbian people’s epoch of pride and suffering.
He was born when Serbs were pushed into the destructive First World War. He survived the Second World War by taking refuge in Belgrade. Then came the decades of ordeals in Kosovo-Metohija, where he was Bishop for a long time, followed by a civil war that killed many and ruptured the state.
He was a sickly orphan at the beginning of the century through whom God demonstrated His might and glory, as He gave the small Serbian people a great historical role and a peacemaker in tumultuous times at the end of the century.
Therefore, we did not only lose our Patriarch Pavle but rather gained another paragon and a challenging task for the future. We will fulfil our debt towards Patriarch Pavle if we boldly and responsibly give humane answers to the challenges before us and bolster our future with his ideals. If we become not only his successors, but also his followers.
This guardian now expects that our Church decisively and lightly demonstrates unity and pureness of faith, readiness for sacrifices and devotion to the people, that our people bespeak virtue, conserve the value of communal life and develop its devotion to the state, and that the state guarantees peace, freedom and justice to all.
Glory and praise to Serbian Patriarch Pavle and may the Lord place him where the righteous reside!“, reads Minister Sijakovic’s letter of condolence.
Modest and humble, just and merciful, wise and innocent, those are his most distinct character traits, equally expressed in his words as well as in his acts. He was as we all should be, wary of hatred, of causing injustice, of all inhumanities, because it depends on us whether we behave like humans or not.
This confessor of our Orthodox faith gained the Heavenly Kingdom in giving himself to others. He gained glory yet he rejected it, precedence among men for him was precedence in serving God and the people. As our teacher in faith he was a student of the only true teacher, Christ our Lord.
We have not lost Patriarch Pavle, but rather gained yet another representative before the Lord, one who is the converging lens of all Serbs, sown here by God and scattered unwillingly everywhere, one who is a symbol of the Serbian people’s epoch of pride and suffering.
He was born when Serbs were pushed into the destructive First World War. He survived the Second World War by taking refuge in Belgrade. Then came the decades of ordeals in Kosovo-Metohija, where he was Bishop for a long time, followed by a civil war that killed many and ruptured the state.
He was a sickly orphan at the beginning of the century through whom God demonstrated His might and glory, as He gave the small Serbian people a great historical role and a peacemaker in tumultuous times at the end of the century.
Therefore, we did not only lose our Patriarch Pavle but rather gained another paragon and a challenging task for the future. We will fulfil our debt towards Patriarch Pavle if we boldly and responsibly give humane answers to the challenges before us and bolster our future with his ideals. If we become not only his successors, but also his followers.
This guardian now expects that our Church decisively and lightly demonstrates unity and pureness of faith, readiness for sacrifices and devotion to the people, that our people bespeak virtue, conserve the value of communal life and develop its devotion to the state, and that the state guarantees peace, freedom and justice to all.
Glory and praise to Serbian Patriarch Pavle and may the Lord place him where the righteous reside!“, reads Minister Sijakovic’s letter of condolence.
-
Belgrade/Bratislava, 4 July 2025Exhibition “Serbian Medieval Monasteries in Danger” opened
-
Belgrade/Bratislava, 3 July 2025Great contribution of cultural cooperation to overall relations with Slovakia
-
Belgrade, 6 May 2025Improving cultural cooperation between Serbia, Egypt
-
Belgrade/Moscow, 24 April 2025Strengthening cooperation with Russia in field of cinematography
-
Belgrade, 10 April 2025Serbia to bid for valuable Uroš Predić painting for National Museum
-
Belgrade/Budapest, 4 February 2025Commitment to improving cultural cooperation with countries in region, Hungary
-
Belgrade/Budapest, 16 December 2024Serbia, Hungary agree on projects to strengthen cultural cooperation
-
Belgrade, 12 December 2024Valuable documentary material of Serbian scientist Mileva Marić Einstein acquired
-
Belgrade/Vatican, 8 December 2024Selaković attends ceremony of inducting new cardinals into office in Vatican
