Serbian Orthodox Church

Information Service of
the Serbian Orthodox Church
April 16, 2005

WE TESTIFIED ABOUT THE SUFFERING
OF THE CHURCH AND THE PEOPLE

The delegation of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, which just returned from an extended visit to the United States of America, held a press conference today (Saturday, April 16, 2005) in the Belgrade Patriarchate.

His Grace Bishop Grigorije of Zahumlje and Herzegovina, the head of the delegation, which also included His Grace Bishop Teodosije of Lipljan, Hieromonk Irinej Dobrijevic, Prof. Bogoljub Sijakovic, Andy Verich, and Monk Jezekilj Stakic, provided detailed information about the visit.

At a meeting with UN secretary general Kofi Annan on March 28, the Serbian Orthodox Church delegation proposed the active cooperation of the Church in all processes that can help Kosovo and Metohija to once again become a multiethnic and multireligious region. The secretary general gave his strong support to the Serbian Orthodox Church's intentions in this respect, recalling the constructive role of the church in supporting the development of democracy in Serbia. This willingness of the Church was also emphasized at all other meetings with officials and church leaders. For years the Church called for dialogue and forgiveness during the serious trials of wars in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo but its voice was not heard loudly enough. Bishops Grigorije and Teodosije on numerous occasions expressed the clear position that the Church should lead in every dialogue where the goal is the survival of the Church and people in crisis regions.

The Serbian Orthodox Church delegation also expressed willingness to cooperate in the area of better understanding and tolerance among religious communities. In this it received the clear support of leading Orthodox hierarchs in the USA: Archbishop Demetrios of the Greek Orthodox Church and Archbishop Herman of the Orthodox Church of America, as well as Serbian Orthodox Bishop Mitrofan of Eastern America, and Bishop Longin of the Metropolitanate of New Gracanica in American and Canada, who contributed significantly to the organization of the visit. The Serbian Orthodox Church's intention of furthering dialogue between religious communities in Kosovo and Metohija was also supported by Rabbi Arthur Schneier, the respected leader of the Appeal of Conscience Foundation, and representatives of the World Conference of Religions for Peace in New York. Rabbi Schneier used the opportunity to thank the Serbian Orthodox Church and Patriarch Pavle for their consistent friendly relations toward the Jewish community in Belgrade and Serbia, and their condemnation of anti-Semitic incidents. It was decided to organize an inter-confessional conference in the Pec Patriarchate as soon as possible, which is expected to encourage dialogue and reconciliation toward the goal of peaceful common life of citizens of different faiths, while at the same time testifying to the position of the Church and people in Kosovo and Metohija.

The visit of the Serbian Orthodox Church delegation comes at a critical time for resolving problems in the southern Serbian province. Among the international community there is increasing talk of the necessity of defining the status of the Province, and the verification of (un-)fulfilled standards has already begun. The delegation's mission, nevertheless, was not of an everyday political character, as the delegation stressed repeatedly in all official meetings. "The purpose of our visit was to secure the protection of elementary human rights for the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, to enable the return of displaced persons and the establishment of a sustainable life for them, and to ensure the ownership of church property and the restoration of destroyed holy sites. In short, our purpose was the establishment of standards of democracy and civilization for all, not to talk about the future status of the Serbian province," emphasized Bishop Grigorije.

During the course of its stay in Washington, D.C., the Serbian Orthodox Church delegation held many important meetings with officials of the U.S. State Department, the National Security Council, the White House and both houses of Congress. A meeting with U.S. president George Bush was also scheduled but cancelled at the last minute due to president Bush's departure to Rome to attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II. Nevertheless, the delegation met with president Bush's team dealing with Balkan issues and expected to play a key role in further developments in Kosovo and Metohija. In all these meetings the members of the Serbian Orthodox Church delegation presented the position that conditions must urgently be created in Kosovo and Metohija for the security of all citizens, especially for returnees, who should be provided with favorable economic conditions so that their return is sustainable over the long term. The delegation repeatedly emphasized that regardless of status Kosovo and Metohija must be a society based on equality of all citizens, and not an ethnically pure state where not one Serb or member of other minority communities will remain.

Explaining the importance of humanitarian and economic conditions for return, Hieromonk Irinej Dobrijevic, consultant to the Holy Synod of Bishops and until recently head of the Serbian Orthodox Church's office in Washington, also emphasized the need to tie in returns with the restoration of destroyed holy sites, providing immediate employment for returnees. This proposal met with very strong support from U.S. officials, who viewed the opportunity to realize this program in light of the recently signed Memorandum for restoration of Orthodox churches in Kosovo and Metohija, which explicitly states that the restoration will be done exclusively by firms that have already built Orthodox churches, and that the Serbian Orthodox Church will have a leading role in the whole process. The importance of the Memorandum is also decisive for the holding of a UNESCO donors conference in May, when it is expected that additional funds will be collected for the restoration of 150 Orthodox churches and monasteries destroyed or damaged after the armed conflict in 1999.

One of the most important meetings of the delegation in Washington was with Nicholas Burns. Judging by Mr. Burns' reaction, the US administration assessed the initiative coming from the Serbian Orthodox Church very positively, since the Church enjoys great moral and spiritual respect among the people and is able to actively contribute to the establishment of multiethnic dialogue and cooperation. Positive assessments of the delegation's positions could also be observed after the speeches of the members of the delegation before the US Commission for International Religious Rights and the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.

Speaking before the audience in the Woodrow Wilson Center, Bishop Grigorije explained that "a biased view exists that our Church is closed in and conservative, that it is against everything that comes from the West. Of course, this is simply not true; it is a part of the propaganda promoted by some, including the same people who attacked the Church as pro-Western and anti-Communist during the Titoist regime. It is our intent to dispel this current false image, and to extend the hand of cooperation and understanding not only to the international community but also to our neighbors: Albanians, Croats, Bosniaks, and all others who live among us and near us."

Bishop Teodosije, the abbot of Visoki Decani Monastery, with his direct experience of events in Kosovo and Metohija, placed special emphasis on the need to dedicate special attention not just to the faithful, whose freedoms and rights must be adequately protected as part of the decentralization process in the Province but also to long-term protection of Orthodox holy sites, some of which are more than 600 years old. In this context, he emphasized the need regardless of final status to regulate the rights of the monastery in the form of a special international agreement, and thus preserve these valuable monuments, which are a part of the Serbian and European cultural legacy, as the guarantee of the European future of the whole region of southeastern Europe. He also emphasized the dangerous intent of a certain Mr. Krasniqi, an Albanian businessman living in the US, to acquire a well of mineral water and a marble mine located on nationalized monastery property.

Bishop Teodosije cited concrete examples to demonstrate that the Serbian Orthodox Church has previously had a very constructive role in Kosovo and Metohija. The Church was the first to condemn violence, call for reconciliation, establish cooperation with international and local institutions, and during the war it helped members of all ethnic and religious communities. The example of Visoki Decani Monastery which offered sanctuary to Kosovo Albanians during the war has been recorded by foreign media and is known to the Washington community. "This capital is an important potential for the Church, which in the future can play a key role in the process of normalization of life and multiethnic reconciliation," emphasized Bishop Teodosije.

The delegation presented the issue of restitution of church property, most of which was illegally confiscated by the Communist authorities, as an issue of special significance connected to the survival of the Church throughout the territory of the former Yugoslavia. US support for the restitution of church land, as well as protection of private property owned by Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, is one of the key requests of the delegation, which met with the sincere understanding of US officials. The delegation repeatedly cited the need for the establishment of law and order, which still not exist in Kosovo, especially for Serbs and non-Albanian communities, as the main precondition for resolving all aforementioned issues. In order to establish the rule of law, it is essential, the delegation said, to first find the perpetrators of post-war crimes who remain unpunished. The atmosphere of unpunishability directly stimulates new violence and encourages the process that has turned Kosovo and Metohija into an almost completely pure Albanian territory under the international protectorate.

During the last few days in Washington the delegation met with many members of Congress and senators, the majority of whom have become members of the Serbian congressional caucus: senators Vojinovich and Brownbeck, and representatives Barton, Franks, Tancredo, Bean, Kucinich and others. The members of the caucus expressed their sincere readiness to work on the promotion of the positions presented by the Serbian Orthodox Church delegation, and to more actively seek respect for human and religious rights, the protection of churches and monasteries, and the resolution of burning property issues. The delegation also gained the support of the Serbian diaspora and faithful in this respect, especially following their visit to Chicago, where there is a large concentration of Americans of Serbian origin.

According to Bishop Grigorije's statement, the delegation's visit is expected to bring significant results and greater support of the international community for the active role of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and Metohija as well as in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which US administration officials repeatedly stressed, saying that they see the Serbian Orthodox Church as an important partner in regional integration and encouraging the members of the delegation by promising them they will not be alone but supported by the international community.

[Serbian Translation Services]