God's providence has arranged that on the feast of All Saints, we will prayerfully commemorate the eightieth anniversary of the suffering of the remnants of the royal army in the homeland, priests and over 20.000 faithful people, who were killed by Tito's communists in Slovenia, after the end of World War II, during May and June 1945, announced today the Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral Joanikije.
"They were killed in a brutal manner without trial or verdict, deprived of the right to a grave and a worthy memorial. Among those killed were many who suffered through no fault of their own, simply because they were anti-communists. Of course, there were also sinners, but none of them renounced their faith or their Church," Joanikije emphasized after, as stated in a statement by the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral (MCP), he served the liturgy in the Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Ljubljana.
The MCP announced that today the "eightieth anniversary of the suffering of the great national exodus on the road from Podgorica (Vezirov Most) to Zidani Most in Slovenia" was marked with prayer.
A statement published on the MCP website states that Joanikije emphasized that "today we remember those who were killed by a fraternal hand, and then pushed into oblivion for over 50 years by the evil will and violence of the communist authorities."
"However, God has not forgotten them, nor them, nor their suffering. Today, on the feast of All Saints, over their scattered bones across the Slovenian hills and ravines, we will pray fervently with the saints, "O Christ, grant repose to the souls of your servants." By performing this commemoration, we do not call for new fraternal conflicts and revenge, God forbid, but we call for peace for the souls of the slain and forgiveness of sins for both them and those who killed them. We are convinced that they have already reconciled before God, the righteous judge, and have forgiven each other. If it is so in heaven, then let it be so among us here on earth," said Joanikije.
He denied that they were particularly grateful to "our Slovenian brothers for their hospitality and everything they did to preserve the memory of the suffering of our compatriots killed by the communists."
"The Slovenian brothers, and among them I would especially like to highlight my dear friend Dr. Mitja Ferenc, have done a great deed, they have found around 600 mass graves of murdered Orthodox Christians in the ravines of mountainous and forested Slovenia. For this, we owe Slovenia and our dear Slovenians eternal and fraternal gratitude," said Joanikije.
The MCP statement states that the liturgy was attended by the President of the Parliament of Montenegro Andrija Mandić, the Deputy Prime Minister of Montenegro Budimir Aleksić and Minister Slaven Radunović, as well as several members of the Parliament of Montenegro.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said that the liturgy was broadcast by RTV Slovenia.
"After the Eucharistic assembly, the commemoration of the eightieth anniversary of the suffering of the great national exodus in Slovenia continued in the park of remembrance in Kamniška Bistrica - the Memorial Chapel dedicated to the Hieromartyr Joanikije and the priest-martyrs and martyrs who suffered with him. The memorial service for the innocent victims, whose graves and tombs are still unknown to this day, was served by the most reverend and most reverend hierarchs, in the prayerful presence of the faithful people. The assembly in memory of the suffering of the multitude of innocents, killed by fraternal hands in the spring of 1945, was also attended by descendants of the victims from various parts of Montenegro. The visit to the memorial area in Kamniška Bistrica is organized every year by the Association 'We will discover the truth - Dušan Niklanović' from Budva, which has been dealing with the fate of around 20.000 men, women and children who found themselves in Slovenian forests for years, with the intention of "join the English. In the town of Kamniška Bistrica, in just one of several graves, about 3.500 participants in the escape from Montenegro were buried," the MCP statement reads.
It is stated that "the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the suffering of the clergy and people in Kamniška Bistrica, which began last night, June 14, with the presentation of two books about the path of suffering from the Vezir Bridge to the Zidani Most, and continued today, June 15, with the Holy Liturgy and memorial service, is organized by the Metropolitanate of Zagreb-Ljubljana and the Church Municipality of Ljubljana."
"We would like to remind you that the first memorial service for the innocent victims in Kamniška Bistrica was held in 2006 by the late Metropolitan Amfilohije, with the then Bishop of Budimlje-Niksic, and the current Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral Joanikije, the clergy and the faithful. The association 'We Will Discover the Truth', at the site of one of the largest mass graves from that time, erected a memorial chapel dedicated to the Holy Hieromartyr Joanikije of Montenegro and the Littoral and the hieromartyrs and martyrs who suffered with him, which was consecrated on June 13, 2015, and the liturgy and memorial service were served in it by the late Metropolitan Amfilohije and the then Metropolitan of Zagreb-Ljubljana, the current Serbian Patriarch Porfirije. Over six thousand names of the victims collected up to that time were read out," the MCP statement states.
The President of the Parliament of Montenegro, Andrija Mandić, laid a wreath in Kamniška Bistrica today, dedicated to the victims of the Zidani Most (Walled Bridge), the Parliament of Montenegro announced today.
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