Forty-day memorial service for Patriarch Pavle of Serbia of blessed repose

In a presence of several thousand faithful, today on December 24, 2009 at the St. Sava memorial cathedral on Vrachar the Divine liturgy for the dead was served and forty-day commemoration for Patriarch Pavle of Serbia of blessed repose.

His Eminence Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro and the littoral, locum tenens of the throne of the Serbian patriarchs, served the Divine Liturgy with the concelebration of Archbishop Jovan of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje and Their Graces Bishops:Lavrentije of Sabac, Irinej of Nish, Vasilije of Zvornik and Tuzla, Vasilije of Srem, Jefrem of Banjaluka, Lukijan of Budim, Georgije of Canada, Nikanor of Banat, Lukijan of Osek, Polje and Baranja, Pahomije of Vranje, Jovan of Shumadija, Fotije of Dalmatia, Joanikije of Budimlje and Niksic, Milutin of Valjevo,retired Atanasije of Zahumlje and Herzegovina, Marko of Bitolj, vicar Bishops Atanasije of Hvosno, Antonije of Moravica and David of Stobi. The Liturgy was attended by Metropolitan Jovan of Zagreb and Ljubljana, Metropolitan Nikolaj of Dabrobosna and Bishops: Hrizostom of Zicha, Artemije of Raska and Prizren and Ignjatije of Branicevo.

The Metropolitan served with the concelebration of priests and deacons of the Archbishopric of Belgrade and Karlovac.

At the end of the Divine Liturgy, Metropolitan Amfilohije served the 40-day commemoration for Patriarch and our father Pavle of blessed repose.

The Holy Hierarchal Liturgy and the commemoration were attended by Minister of Faith Mr. Bogoljub Sijakovic, State secretary Mr. Dragan Churovic, Prime Minister of the Republic of Srpska Mr. Milorad Dodik, President of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Mr. Nikola Spiric, advisor to the President of the Republic of Serbia Mr. Mladen Djordjevic, as well as representatives of the Serbian Army.

The Information and publishing institution of the Serbian Orthodox Church in cooperation with the Ministry of Faith of the Republic of Serbia, in a remembrance of Patriarch Pavle of Serbia and as well as of days of his magnificent funeral, has published a photo album entitled From Death into Life.

This morning at the St. Sava Cathedral citizens have received one copy of the album, and in next days the book of prayerful remembrance will be delivered to all Orthodox and other Churches and religious communities, larger libraries in Serbia and Republic of Srpska, foreign statesmen and diplomats, as well as to Serbs in the diaspora.

From the St. Sava Cathedral on Vrachar, Hierarchs went to the monastery of Rakovica where Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro and the Littoral served the memorial service at the grave of Patriarch Pavle of blessed repose.