[ad_1]
The Serbian Defense Ministry announced that “members of the Serbian army, together with their people, are sending His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Irinej”, who died on Friday from the coronavirus to the Kavidurma military hospital in Belgrade.
Members of the Serbian Army Guard carried the coffin with the patriarch’s body and formed honorary lines in front of the Cathedral and the Temple of Saint Sava, where Irinej will be buried on Sunday.
“In this way, the traditional unity of the Army and the Serbian Orthodox Church is symbolically confirmed as centuries-old and permanent pillars of the state of Serbia,” the Ministry announced.
The Ministry of Defense also transmitted the texts of the telegram of condolences from the President of the Republic, Aleksandar Vučić, and from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, Nebojsa Stefanović.
The Defense Ministry statement further reads: “In addition to numerous merits for the state of Serbia and the Serbian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Irinej supported and was a strong advocate of the initiative to introduce religious service into the Serbian army in 2011.”
“At the signing ceremony of the Agreement on the Introduction of Religious Service in the Serbian Army, Patriarch Irinej evaluated this act as historically significant for both the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serbian Army,” it is stated.
The Defense Ministry also writes that the patriarch later assessed that “the introduction of military priests allowed for an even greater presence of traditional culture and spirituality in our military and that military priests will bring a higher quality to life and military service, as well as the spirit of patriotism and spirituality “.
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Rade Prelić
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Sava Radovanović
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Rade Prelić
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Nikola Andjic
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Nikola Andjic
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Tara Radovanović
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Tara Radovanović
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Nikola Andjic
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Nikola Andjic
Irenaeus
Source: Tanjug / Rade Prelić
According to the Defense Ministry, Irinej then “especially emphasized the symbolism that the Agreement was signed on Vidovdan, a national holiday of the Serbian people and church.”
The Ministry affirmed that the Patriarch “was on numerous occasions and with pleasure with the members of the Serbian Army, especially on the occasion of important festivals and the consecration of places of worship in the commands, units and institutions of the Serbian Army.”
[ad_2]
