Serbian Orthodox Church

Information Service of
the Serbian Orthodox Church
June 18, 2004

CHIROTONIA OF NEWLY ELECTED BISHOP TEODOSIJE

On Saturday, June 19, 2004 His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle will be concelebrating with a large number of hierarchs and priests the chirotonia of the eminent Archimandrite Teodosije (Sibalic), Abbot of Visoki Decani Monastery, as the auxiliary Bishop of His Grace Bishop Artemije of Raska-Prizren and Kosovo-Metohija with the title of Bishop of Lipljan.

The newly elected Bishop Teodosije will be consecrated on Sunday, June 20, 2004, in the church of the Ascension of Our Lord in Visoki Decani Monastery.

MONZA CHOIR CONCERT TO BE HELD IN NATIONAL MUSEUM
Welcomed by Serbian Choir Assembly

As part of the “Amici del Futuro” (Friends of the Future) program whose purpose is to develop cultural cooperation between young Serbs and Italians, the San Biagio Choir from Monza is visiting the Serbian Choir Assembly and the Information Service of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The guests from Monza will be staying in Belgrade from June 18-21, 2004. The hosts wish to return the great love and hospitality shown to the Serbs who visited Monza during the “Friends of the Future” event.

The San Biagio Choir will be holding an all-evening concert together with the Madrigal Choir of the Faculty of Music Arts under the direction of Aleksandar S. Vujic. The event will be held in the Atrium of the National Museum in Belgrade beginning at 7:00 p.m. and will include works by Old Italian masters.

Secretary-general Sava J. Miric will be welcoming the guests on behalf of the Serbian Choir Assembly while Executive Board President Dragomir Acovic will be opening the concert on behalf of the National Museum.

San Biagio Choir

The San Biagio Choir from Monza performs spiritual and secular choral music and has achieved a high expressive technique, finding at the same time the most faithful connection with the criteria of performance practices in every period. Through intensive training, the choir over the years has created a very broad repertoire which, starting from the dawn of choral music (medieval liturgical monodia, Ambrosian and Gregorian chants) attains the most significant contributions of spiritual and secular polyphony from the time of the Renaissance to today. From this, of course, follows the variation in its activities, at first connected solely for liturgical services conducted at the San Biagio parish church in Monza to those typically concert-related with participation from 1996 to today in more than 50 concerts in various locations. Especially noteworthy among them is cooperation with the Department of Culture of the City of Monza in connection with the events “Music in the monasteries” (in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002) and “Monza during the Great Jubilee” (2000). With the hope of expanding its musical experience, the choir has realized important cooperation with other choir and instrumental groups.

The choir is currently comprised of 30 members under the direction of Faust Fedeli.

PATRIARCH RECEIVES PROFESSOR VESELIN KESIC

His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle received Dr. Veselin Kesic and his wife, Lidija, in the Patriarchal residence today. Dr. Kesic taught New Testament and the History of the Serbian Orthodox Church for many years at the St. Vladimir Academy in New York before retiring. Notably, this was his first visit to Serbia after exile in 1944 when he departed through Italy and Great Britain for New York. In the U.S. he was immediately welcomed by the Holy Bishop Nikolai of Ohrid and Zica, whom he assisted until passing. Dr. Kesic then enrolled as a student of the St. Vladimir Academy and later become a professor together with Frs. Georgije Florovski, Jovan Majendorf and Aleksandar Smeman.

Dr. and Mrs. Kesic also visited the Theological Faculty of the Serbian Orthodox Church. In 1991 Dr. Kesic presented the Faculty with a large number of theological books and periodicals, which continue to be of great assistance to all its students.

SCENES FROM THE LIFE OF JESUS CHRIST

An exhibition of works by children from the Kockica Preschool in Borca will be opened on Monday, June 21, at 12:30 p.m. in the Serbian Orthodox Church Museum, Kralja Petra Street number 5.

Large murals painted by groups of children working together depict the life, suffering and resurrection of Christ. And truly, as the singer of the psalms says: “O Lord, whose glory is chanted by the mouth of babes and infants” (Psalms 8:1-2). With the pure heart of a child, the little ones narrate the Gospel in their own terms. In additional to exceptional scenes from Christ’s life, the legends contain the children’s thoughts, some of which will make us laugh out loud but also deeply move us by their purity, innocence, sincerity and immediacy.

Working with the children from the Kockica Preschool was their teacher, Slavica Tomic.

SERMONS OF BISHOP SIMEON ZLOKOVIC

The Diocese of Dalmatia has published the book “Besede Episkopa Simeona Zlokovica” (Sermons of Bishop Simeon Zlokovic). Bishop Simeon was the Bishop of the Diocese of Upper Karlovac from 1951 to 1990, when he reposed in the Lord. He joined the Diocese at the most difficult of times, just after World War II, which had left its mark on the life of the Church as no other until then since the founding of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The young Bishop found his Diocese in complete ruins. Out of 206 Orthodox priests before the war, only 14 survived the war with their parishioners. There were about 20 churches where Divine Liturgy could be served; out of a pre-war population of half a million Orthodox faithful, barely half had survived. In the post-war period and for a long time afterward, the attitude of the authorities toward the Church was extremely negative. None of this frightened Bishop Simeon who began the restoration of his Diocese with much faith, love and elan; he spent the next 39 years working on the most difficult and most wonderful task of serving God and his people, until the end of his life on earth in 1990.

This book of sermons by the blessed Bishop Simeon of Gornji Karlovac is a precious pearl. For the first time all his paschal sermons, sermons for special occasions and feasts have been collected in one volume. Brilliantly written, they are clear and understandable to all yet profound in their thought, messages and teachings. Bishop Simeon confirmed his faith and words through his life and works, as best attested by his own words: “Christian truths, the mysteries of heaven and earth as seen in the Gospel, are not the same as the mysteries and truths of this material world. They are differently experienced and (should be) differently expressed. There is no prophet, no matter how wise and profound, who will inspire if faith in serenity and love in experience are not behind his words. Then again, the serene word about God, though it be spoken plainly, will win over all people of faith.”

[Serbian Translation Services]