Information Service of
the Serbian Orthodox Church
April 11, 2002

SERBIAN PATRIARCH PAVLE MADE PROTEST TO
BUSH, PETRIC AND SILVERSTER

His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle made a protest in the name of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church to Mr George Bush – President of the United States of America, Mr John Silvester – SFOR Commander in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Mr Wolfgang Petric -UN High Commissioner for Bosnia and Herzegovina, due to recent incidents at Celebic, Borja, and Hoceva (small places in the Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Diocese of Dabro-Bosnia).

These eminent officials were informed of enormously unpleasant situations which the faithful of the Serbian Orthodox Church experienced on February 28 and March 1, 2002, when the soldiers of the SFOR peacekeeping forces violently burst into these villages claiming to search for Radovan Karadzic. They used explosive and other objects to smash doors and barge into houses, outpatients’, and schools even.

The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church is shocked and appalled by the behaviour of the SFOR soldiers to innocent civilians, especially by their violent entering the Church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God at Celebici, with weapons, where they scattered sacral objects in the Altar and smashed the glass within the Chalice serving for giving the Holy Communion to priests and people. Evidently, such behaviour of theirs leads to the conclusion that their goal was not to arrest Radovan Karadzic, but to intimidate the innocent people, the faithful of the Serbian Orthodox Church.

Most naturally, this event disturbed the Serbian Orthodox people. The Church in which our faithful pray to God, receive the Holy Communion, are christened and married has been desecrated. Religious feelings of our faithful, their human dignity and safety have been violated.