Serbian Patriarch Irinej in Hannover
On Thursday, December 5th, His Holiness Irinej, the administrator of the Diocese of Middle Europe, visited the church of Saint Sava in Hannover.
His Holiness was welcomed by the head of the church protopresbyter-stavrophor Milan Pejic along with archimandrite Gerasim Frangulakis (Greek Orthodox Church) and lots of parishioners.
The beginning of the construction works and the land for the church in Hannover was consecrated by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, and the foundations were consecrated by Bishop Konstantine. A small consecration in 1995 was performed by Serbian Patriarch Irinej, then Bishop of Nis, and Patriarch Pavle performed the great consecration in 2000.
The church-school congregation in Hannover had existed before the Diocese was founded. Soon after the end of the World War Two in vicinity of Hannover a great number of Serbs, former prisoners and members of the Army of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia settled. Today, Orthodox Serbs in Hannover, thanks to father Milan Pejic, have a beautiful church of Saint Sava as well as the Church center. Both building were built in the Serbian-Byzantine architectural style designed by the project of architect Dr Predrag Ristic.
The choir “ Saint Simeon the Myrrh-Bearing” has been singing responses in this church for twenty years.
After the visit to the Serbian community, Serbian Patriarch visited attractions of Hannover: City house, University, Parliament and the oldest Hannover’s Cathedral of the Precious Cross from 1933. Hannover is the capital of the federal state Lower Saxonia.
Source: Diocese of Middle Europe
