Information Service of SAINT SAVA DAY RECEPTION FOR GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES Today at the Patriarchate in Belgrade the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church hosted a St. Sava Day reception for the presidents of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Serbia and Montenegro, prime ministers and parliamentary presidents, and cabinet level ministers.
At the reception, in addition to His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle and the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops, hierarchs whose dioceses are located throughout the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia were also present.
His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle in greeting those guests present, thanked them for responding to the invitation of the Church of Saint Sava [i.e., Serbian Orthodox Church, so-named as its founder is Saint Sava] and emphasized that we are all parts of one organism, which must be responsible for the common good, good estate and peace of all inhabitants of our Fatherland. At the same time, the role of the entire organism is to be concerned with the good of each of its parts, i.e., the individuals that comprise the whole of society. His Holiness, in like manner, stressed that peace should reign among our people and the spirit of unity must prevail, especially during these troubled times, regarding problems of an internal nature, in Kosovo and elsewhere, so also with circumstances that prevail throughout the world.
On behalf of the high ranking dignitaries, Dr. Zoran Djindjic, Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia, thanked His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle, particularly noting that cooperation between the Serbian Orthodox Church and our State is developing excellently. He emphasized that the Government considers it a particular success that in its first year of operation it succeeded to introduce Religious Education into the schools of Serbia, as well as to support the building of the Memorial Church of Saint Sava on Vrachar. In like manner, he stressed that he personally, as well as all members of the Government, will further develop open avenues of cooperation between the Serbian Orthodox Church and the State, and that in Serbia there will never again be a government which can disrupt such relations. 
During the reception, Dr. Vojislav Milovanovic, Minister of Religions for the Republic of Serbia, submitted the first annual report on the work of the Government to His Holiness Patriarch Pavle and the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops. His Holiness thanked the Government and offered his wishes for success in their continued endeavors for the good of all who have placed their desired trust in them. [OEA Translation, Washington, DC] |
