Jasenovac, Pakrac – 10 September 2016

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew: New Martyrs of Jasenovac are heroes and saints of the entire Orthodoxy

Be under the shade of Serbian martyrs, that tree of blessed Serbs, Ecumenical Patriarch said and called upon Orthodox Serbs to follow the path of their forefathers, heroes and saints. Only in this way, he said, you are about to receive the wreath of glory that is borne by numerous victims of Jasenovac of the Nazi totalitarism from the Second World War many times. Patriarch Bartholomew called upon the faithful never to forget their martyrs, who cannot be a cause for revenge but for peace.

Metropolitan Porfirije of Zagreb-Ljubljana said that the visit of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew would have a far-reaching significance. – It seems to me that it can also affect the better understanding between the Serbs and the Croats, the Orthodox and the Catholics, and that in some sense can contribute even to the improvement of the relations between Serbia and Croatia, Metropolitan Porfirije believes. He also reminds that Patriarch Bartholomew is known worldwide as a great peacemaker as well as man of love, man who connects and builds bridges between peoples, religions and countries.