Vidovan Celebration in New York

On June 28, 2021, the Feast of Vidovdan, St. Vitus Day, and the commemoration of the Holy Prophet Amos, His Grace Bishop Irinej of Eastern America celebrated the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy for the faithful Serbian community of New York City, concelebrated by Presbyter Milan Dragovic, parish priest, and Protodeacon Milos Zdralic at St. Eleftherios Greek Orthodox Church in Manhattan.

As the Bishop noted in his homily, truly, “Vidovdan is a timeless day which stirs the very soul of every Orthodox Serb by its summons to live by the Ethos of the Battle of Kosovo.”

“As this is a day”, he emphatically stated, “of sorrow and joy; the Golgotha and resurrection of our Serbian people; a day of sacrifice and pride; a day of physical defeat and moral victory. Vidovdan is the source of our ability to transfigure tragedy into triumph.”

Following the Divine Liturgy, the traditional memorial service for those who have fallen from the time of the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 to our own time. We commemorate those who gave their lives for the honorable Cross and golden Liberty, in defense of our Orthodox Faith and our Serbian Homeland, in order to gain life eternal.

“As the Holy Prince Lazarus, we must always measure our temporal kingdom with the measure of Christ, and thereby inherit the eternal kingdom of Heaven. This is our Vidovdan Ethos,” concluded the Bishop.

Source: Eastern American Diocese