Patriarchal Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of Saint Sava
His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and His Holiness Patriarch Irinej of Serbia officiated the solemn Divine Liturgy in the Memorial Cathedral of Saint Sava of Serbia at Vracar in Belgrade on 16 November 2014. Patriarch Kirill was awarded with the highest distinction of the Serbian Church – Order of Saint Sava, 1st degree.
Concelebrating were Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro and the Littoral, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk and Metropolitan Michael of Geneva and Western Europe, Their Graces Bishops: Lavrentije of Sabac, Vasilije of Srem, Nikanor of Banat, Irinej of Backa, Hrizostom of Zvornik-Tuzla, Lukijan of Osek-Polje, Pahomije of Vranje, Atanasije of Bihac-Petrovac, Joanikije of Budimlje-Niksic, Grigorije of Zahumlje-Herzegovina, Joakim of Polog-Kumanovo, Marko of Bregalnica, Teodosije of Raska-Prizren, David of Krusevac, David of Stobi, Jovan of Slavonia, Bishop Sergius of Solnechnogorsk, Antonije of Moravica, Arsenije of Toplica and Jeronim of Jegar; archpriests Nikolai Balashov and Igor Jakimchuk; abbots of the Serbian monasteries and clerics of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Attending the divine service were Mr. TomislavNikolic, President of the Republic of Serbia; Mr. Ivica Dacic, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia; Mr. Nenad Popovic, first deputy chairman of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia; members of the Government of Serbia; ambassadors of Russia, Belarus and Cyprus; Major General Mladjan Nisevic, a representative of the General Staff of the Ministry of Defense of Serbia; Rev. Sladjan Vlajic, chief chaplain of the Serbian Ministry of Defense; and representatives of the Roman Catholic Church: Mgr. Orlando Antonini, Apostolic Nuncio in Belgrade, and Archbishop Stanislav Hocevar of Belgrade, as well as other representatives of the diplomatic corps and public and political life of the Serbian capital.
The Belgrade Male Choir, the Choir Mokranjac of the Cathedral of St. Sabbas, Choir Srbadia from Bijeljina, Republika Srpska, and Choir Obilic, Belgrade, sang responses at the Lityurgy.
After the Liturgy His Holiness Patriarch Irinej greeted His Holiness Patriarch Kirill and all those attending the service. He spoke of the special historical bonds between the peoples of Serbia and Russia. ‘We would not have survived in hard times without comprehensive help from the Tsarist Russia and the Russian Church,’ he said. After the Revolution Serbia became the second homeland for many emigrants from Russia, including the renowned hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church and workers of science and culture. One can find many Russian graves in all corners of Serbia which also witness to our indissoluble unity.
His Holiness Patriarch Irinej expressed his gratitude to Russia and the Russian Church ‘for their generous love towards the Serbian Church and her people during the recent civil war in former Yugoslavia, and especially for the support in healing the deep wound in the province of Kosovo and Metohija’.
According to him, conflict in Ukraine is painful for the people in Serbia. ‘Our people pray for the end of fratricide in the fraternal Ukraine and for the healing of all wounds on the body of the Holy Kievan Rus’, the Serbian Patriarch said.
His Holiness Irinej presented His Holiness Patriarch Kirill with the highest decoration of the Serbian Orthodox Church – the Order of St. Sava, 1st degree, and an icon of the Mother of God, a panagia and a cross.
The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church warmly thanked His Holiness and addressed all those present in the cathedral.
An icon of the Mother of God called ‘Comfort and Consolation’ and a particle of the relics of St. Alexander Nevsky have been such a great gift of Patriarch Kirill to the Serbian Orthodox Church.
After the Liturgy the Patriarchs and the Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić visited the Church of St. Lazarus of Serbia located in the crypt of the Cathedral of St. Sava.
