Information Service of
the Serbian Orthodox Church
September 24, 2002

COMMUNIQUE OF THE HOLY ASSEMBLY OF BISHOPS
OF THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH
FROM ITS EXTRAORDINARY SESSION
HELD IN PATRIARCHATE ON SEPTEMBER 23 AND 24, 2002

The Holy Assembly of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, presided over by His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle, held its extraordinary session in the Patriarchate on September 23 and 24, 2002.

The Assembly dwelled mostly on the following issues:

1. recently arisen problems in the autonomous Archdiocese of Ochrid, i.e. in the Orthodox Church in the Republic of Macedonia;
2. church education;
3. catechism (religious classes) in primary and secondary schools in the Republic of Serbia; and
4. position of the Church and people in Kosovo and Metochia, Raska and other regions.

As far the first issue is concerned, the Assembly once again confirms the canonical status of the broadest autonomy for the Orthodox Church in the Republic of Macedonia, that is for the renewed Archdiocese of Ochrid, under the conditions stipulated in the Draft of Nis Agreement, reached between the two relevant Committees. The Assembly repeats it was shocked by the decision of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Macedonian Orthodox Church to remove His Eminence Jovan – Metropolitan of Veles and Povardarje from his Diocese without any proceedings and against canonical rules, thus causing his molesting and his exile both from the Diocese and from the Monastery of Saint George in Negotin (at the Vardar River), just because he had accepted liturgical and canonical unity with the Serbian Orthodox Church and the entire Orthodox ecumene. The Assembly estimates this act to be a real violation not only of church-canonical but also of elementary human rights, and therefore it pronounced, with the agreement of other local Churches, the mentioned decision null and void. The Assembly recognised Metropolitan Jovan to be the canonical Bishop of the Diocese of Veles and Povardarje and invited the Holy Synod of Bishop of the Macedonian Orthodox Church to cancel its anticanonical decision as soon as possible, and enable Metropolitan Jovan to take over his Diocese. In addition, the Assembly appointed His Eminence Jovan, Metropolitan of Veles and Povardarje to be the Exarch of the Archbishop of Pec and Serbian Patriarch, pointing out that this decision would be effective till the establishment of the complete canonical order in this Church. Expressing its readiness to continue fraternal dialogue with the Orthodox hierarchs in the Republic of Macedonia, striving to overcome the existing schism, the Assembly states that - unless Macedonian hierarchs show good will and readiness to cooperate with the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Orthodox Church as whole - it will undertake further steps, on its next regular session, to establish canonical order in the Orthodox Church in the Republic of Macedonia.

As for the issue of church education, the Assembly enacted a Decree on seminaries/theological schools, new curriculum for seminaries and the Rulebook on professor’s exams taking.

Referring to the third issue, the Assembly expresses its satisfaction with the return of religious classes into primary and secondary schools in the Republic of Serbia. Having been informed on the existing pressures and cases of discrimination of catechists, religious teachers and the pupils attending catechism, the Assembly expects the educational authorities and school administration members to help in overcoming prejudices against religion and against religious studies in school curricula, which are surely inherited from the past, totalitarian regime.

In addition, the Assembly expresses its sincere joy at the obvious spiritual fruits of introduction of catechism in schools in the Republic of Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as in the Diocese of Osijek and Baranja in the Republic of Croatia.

Finally, the Holy Assembly of Bishops expresses its true concern for the continuous depravation and violation of basic human rights – rights to free life and return of the Serbian people and other non-Albanian ethnic communities in Kosovo and Metochia, expecting from the international community, which supervises this southern Serbian region to make its utmost efforts so that right and justice could finally predominate in this part of our state.