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FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA
Patriarch backs Kostunica
Serbian Orthodox call for reconciliation after government change
Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Pavle led Yugoslavs from across his country in a public prayer service for peace and reconciliation at St. Sava’s Cathedral in Belgrade after the ouster of Slobodan Milosevic in favor of the opposition candidate who won recent elections.
During the unrest that ended in Milosevic’s resignation, it become clear how close the Serbian Orthodox Church was to the Yugoslav president-elect Dr. Vojislav Kostunica, a practicing church member. After his taking of office became assured, Kostunica visited the Patriarch to ask for spiritual guidance. The Synod and the Patriarch issued an appeal for peace, calm, and no revenge.
Most of the Orthodox bishops were in their dioceses, while some were in the opposition headquarters. Bishop Artemije of Raska and Prizren—a long-time opponent of deposed president Milosevic—issued a statement of support to Kostunica, “elected President of the FRY [Federal Republic of Yugoslavia] by the will of the people,” and to the demonstrators in Belgrade. “It is with regret that we are unable to be physically with you today,” Bishop Artemije wrote from Gracanica in Kosovo, “but we assure you that we are with you in our prayers and our thoughts.”
The one voice of support for Milosevic among the Serbian Orthodox hierarchy came earlier from Bishop Filaret of Mileseva, but his statement was condemned by the Church, which backed Kostunica.
“It is difficult to make a statement about all last night’s events in Yugoslavia. We hope it will all end peacefully and that our people will move toward prosperity and a better life,” declared Dr. Radovan Bigovic, dean of the Orthodox Theological Faculty in Belgrade and a prominent theologian. “We are praying for the whole situation. I think there is a lot of positive energy, and, thanks be to God, it will all end well,” he told Keston News Service. “We need peace, and not only the Serbs but also other peoples living in Yugoslavia. These are times of unrest, and that is why the Patriarch invited all believers to participate in this open air prayer service in Belgrade.”
Bigovic welcomed the fact that the new president is a believer. “Dr. Kostunica came and asked to speak with the Patriarch, which I see as perfectly normal. We are sorry this was not the case during the rule of former president Milosevic. Things could have been different.”
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