Serbian Orthodox Church

Patriarch Porfirije received Austrian Chancellor Nehammer (Englsih, Greek)

On 17 March 2022 His Holiness Serbian Patriarch kyr Porfirije received Mr. Karl Nehammer, Federal Chancellor of the Republic of Austria, at the Patriarchal Palace in Belgrade.

In a friendly and cordial conversation, His Holiness the Patriarch spoke with pleasure about the very good conditions in which the Serbian Orthodox Church functions in Austria and expressed gratitude to Chancellor Nehammer for that. Through the fact that hundreds of thousands of Orthodox Serbs live and work in Austria, the Patriarch emphasized the importance of preserving and improving the good relations between the Serbian and Austrian people, which will be given an important impetus by the meetings of Mr. Nehammer with the Serbian officials.

Anniversary of the March Pogrom in Kosovo and Metohia

• Pogrom on Kosovo and Metohia
• Распето Косово Crucified Kosovo - list of news
•  #NoKosovoUnesco

Here you can also download the chapters of the book March Pogrom in Kosovo and Metohija, published in 2004 by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of the Republic of Serbia and the Museum in Pristina (with relocated headquarters):

• Fate of cultural heritage in Kosovo and Metohia= (pdf, 864KB)
• Religious objects and cultural properties destroyed in the March Pogrom (pdf, 3,48MB)
• Religious objects and cultural properties in Kosovo and Metohia in period between 1999 and 2004 (pdf, 3,41MB)
• Cultural Properties at Risk in Kosovo and Metohia (pdf, 4,63MB)
• Bibliography (pdf, 536KB)

It is 17 years since 4,012 Serbs were expelled from Kosovo and Metohia in destructive attacks by Albanian extremists, and most of them have not returned to their homes to this day.

In the wave of violence in Kosovo and Metohija, 19 people were killed then, eight of them Serbs, while 11 Albanians were killed in a clash with members of the international security forces. At least 170 Serbs were injured, as well as dozens of members of the international force who clashed with local Albanians protecting Serbs and their property. About 800 Serb houses were demolished and 35 religious buildings set on fire, including 18 cultural monuments, including the Church of Our Lady of Ljevis in Prizren.

This church, one of the most representative monuments of medieval Serbia, the episcopal center of the Serbian Church in the Middle Ages, received a monumental shape during the reign of King Milutin (1282-1321). The church was somewhat renovated, the first Liturgy was served in it six years later, but the traces of devastation and fire have not been removed. In 2006, the building was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The extremists especially attacked the Serbian Orthodox shrines. 35 churches and monasteries were destroyed, and in these unprecedented acts of vandalism, some of which were broadcast live on local Kosovo television (such as in Podujevo), numerous icons and immovable cultural goods that survived the Ottoman occupation and world wars were destroyed forever. On March 17, 2004, the Serbian people and their Church were particularly affected by the fact that all this happened not during the chaos of war, but in the presence of thousands of members of the international peacekeeping force KFOR, Kosovo Police and the UNMIK, none of whom publicly claimed responsibility for a number of omissions.

The March events in Kosovo and Metohija were condemned by the UN Security Council, as well as the European Union, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe passed a resolution on April 29, 2004.

Patriarch Porfirije: The role of the Church is imbued with the mission of "Prosvjeta"

His Holiness Porfirije, the Serbian Patriarch, attended the annual assembly of the Serbian Cultural Society "Prosvjeta" in Zagreb, on 5 March 2022.

Speaking about the special significance of that institution for the identity of the Serbian people in Croatia and beyond, Patriarch Porfirije pointed out: - The Church not only supports "Prosvjeta," but its role is also imbued with the mission of the "Prosvjeta." Identity is essentially related to the inner strength and health of the individual and the community. When our identity is unstable, we are inconsistent in every field of our life and existence. Nurturing identity has two dimensions: self-awareness and the other is the ability to integrate us into a specific living space. May the blessing of God be on "Prosvjeta" and all dear people who strive for its action.

Patriarch with children from the region at Saint Sava Cathedral church

On March 4th, 2022, at Saint Sava Cathedral, His Holiness Porfirije, the Serbian Patriarch, was socializing with children from the region visiting the Serbian capital.

"I am delighted that you came here to the Saint Sava Cathedral, which was built and was being built to be the temple of all Orthodox Serbs wherever they are.  A temple that would be a place where we will all come and gather above all, with good intentions and good wishes, with a prayer for all people for the whole world,  for peace everywhere in the world ",  Patriarch Porfirije said among other things while blessing the children during the reception.

Forty-day memorial service for Bishop Lavrentije

- Persistence in serving the Lord can be seen in the entire life of Bishop Lavrentije of Sabac of blessed repose. Eighty-seven years of his life were laid on the altar of the Lord, Metropolitan Joanikije said.

With the blessing of His Grace, Bishop Fotije of Zvornik-Tuzla and administrator of the Diocese of Sabac,  His Eminence Metropolitan Joanikije of Montenegro and the Littoral officiated the Holy Hierarchical Liturgy  in the Holy Monastery of St. Nicholas of Ohrid in Soko Grad onon March 3, 2022, on the feast of Saint Leo, Bishop of Rome.

Monastery of Venerable Prohor of Pčinja awarded with the Sretenje Order of the First Degree

 Monastery of Venerable Prohor of Pčinja was awarded the Sretenje Order of the first degree for special merits in preserving and nurturing Orthodoxy and traditions of the Serbian people and on the occasion of 950 years at the ceremony in the Palace of Serbia, in Belgrade, on the occasion of the Statehood Day of the Republic of Serbia and the feast of Meeting of the Lord, February 15, 2022.

In the presence of His Holiness Porfirije, the Serbian Patriarch, on behalf of the monastery, His Grace Bishop Pahomije of Vranje received the order from the President of the Republic of Serbia, Mr. Aleksandar Vučić The abbot of the Monastery of Venerable Prohor of Pčinja Archimandrite Metodije (Marković) also accompanied His Grace.