Working visit to Saint Sava Cathedral in the Vracar district

His Eminence Metropolitan Hrizostom of Dabar-Bosnia and Mr. Nikola Selakovic, Minister of Foreign Affairs paid an official visit to the Saint Sava Cathedral in the Vracar district, in Belgrade on 25 December 2020. 

The high guests were welcomed by His Grace Bishop Stefan of Remesiana, head of the Saint Sava Cathedral, with hard-working enthusiasts on the construction of the Memorial Cathedral of the Serbian people.

Bishop Fotije served a memorial service for Patriarch Irinej

His Grace Bishop Fotije of Zvornik-Tuzla served a memorial service for Serbian Patriarch Irinej of blessed repose in the crypt of the Saint Sava Cathedral in the Vracar district, Belgrade on 24 December 2020, on the feast day of Saint Daniel the Stylite.

With the blessing of His Grace Bishop Jovan of Sumadia and the Administrator of the Archbishopric of Belgrade-Karlovac, and His Grace Bishop Stefan of Remesiana, head of the Saint Sava Cathedral, His Grace Bishop Fotije of Zvornik-Tuzla served the memorial service for Patriarch Irinej of blessed repose on his tomb in the crypt of the Memorial Cathedral in the Vracar District. 

Press release of the Holy Synod of Bishops

Press release of the Holy Synod of Bishops

The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, at its session on December 24, 2020, made a decision that the Conciliar Holy Liturgy for the dead and a forty-day memorial service for Serbian Patriarch Irinej of blessed repose to be served on December 29, 2020 in the Cathedral church of Saint Sava in Vracar. The Holy Liturgy will begin at 9 a.m., and the memorial service will be served after the Holy Liturgy, around 11 a.m.

From the Office of the Holy Synod of Bishops

Christmas Greeting of the Information Service of the Serbian Orthodox Church

The Information Service of the Serbian Orthodox Church congratulates the feast of the Birth of the Divine God-Child to believers and clergy of the Christian Churches which celebrate Christmas according to Gregorian calendar and greets them with the traditional greeting:

CHRIST IS BORN! - HE IS BORN INDEED!

30th anniversary of enthronement of His Grace Bishop Irinej of Backa, PhD

The thirtieth anniversary of the enthronement of His Grace Bishop Irinej of Backa, PhD, was marked on 23 December 2020.  At the regular session of the Holy Assembly of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church in 1989, hieromonk Irinej was elected as Vicar Bishop of the Serbian Patriarch, with a title of Bishop of Moravica,  and following the consecration at the Patriarchate of Pec, on 20 May 2020, he was elected Bishop of Backa and was enthroned in Novi Sad, in December of the same year.

His Grace Bishop of Novi Sad and Backa, Irinej, PhD was born on 11 February 1947 by parents Mihailo and Zorka Bulovic in Stanisici, in Backa, receiving baptismal name Mirko. He finished the primary school in his birthplace and the grammar school in Sombor in 1965. He graduated in 1969 at the Faculty of Theology of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Belgrade.

Reaction relating to the media coverage of Bishop Joanikije’s statement

Some media presented the statement of the Bishop Joanikije of Budimlje-Niksic quite incorrectly and maliciously, so that the public could conclude based on their information that he had said that the Serbian Orthodox Church had made changes to the law, which is not true.

Bishop Joanikije clearly stated that the Church, in other circumstances, would demand that this discriminatory law be completely abolished. However, the Orthodox Church requested  the previous government as well for only those changes that would make it impossible to discriminate it, and consequently, it did not request anything else from these authorities either.