Organized by the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral, the Orthodox Parish of Tivat and the Temple of Saint Sava, the 25th anniversary of the celebration of the Holy Martyrs of Prevlaka was marked in Tivat on Saturday.
On this occasion, a procession was held through the streets of the city and a gathering of Orthodox choirs from Boka "In the Light of Christ's Resurrection - Boka to Saint Sava and the Prevlaka Martyrs".
This was preceded by the holy hierarchal liturgy held in the morning at Prevlaka, served by Bishop Paisius of Diocletia and the clergy. After the liturgy, in the presence of numerous believers, the slava cake was cut, and the cutting ceremony was performed by Bishop Paisius, the clergy and the President of the Municipality of Tivat, Željko Komnenović.
The relics of the Prevlaka martyrs were then transported by boat to the city's waterfront, Pine, in the afternoon, where they were welcomed by numerous believers gathered in a procession that had previously set off from the Temple of Saint Sava towards the city waterfront. The procession that returned to the Church of Saint Sava was led by the German Metropolitan, Bishop Grigorije. On that occasion, he, along with the bishops and clergy, also consecrated new crosses for the main Tivat temple.
An evening service was then held in the church, at which Bishop Grigorije also spoke. He pointed out to the faithful that "martyrdom is the greatest form of pure love."
"The Church does not celebrate the death of martyrs. It does not celebrate suffering. It celebrates the truth. It celebrates Christ in man, because a martyr is not a tragic figure, he is a liturgical figure. Such were the holy martyrs, the monks of Prevlac, the disciples of Saint Sava," he said.
In the large hall of the Tivat Cultural Center, a concert by the Orthodox church choirs of the Bay of Kotor followed. At the beginning of the concert, publicist Nebojša Rašo from Herceg Novi spoke about the Prevlaka martyrs - monks of the local monastery of St. Archangel Michael who were martyred in the 15th century.
The concert was attended by the Children's Choir "Cvrkutići" from Herceg Novi and the Children's Choir "Sveti Prevlacki mučenici" from Tivat, conducted by Lidija Ivanović and Ivana Komnenović. The program was completed by the ethno singer Vera Stolić and soloist Milica Radović. The audience also had the opportunity to hear the choirs "Sveti Sava" Herceg Novi, "Sveti Vasilije Ostroski" Kumbor, "Sveti Jevstatije Prevlacki" Budva and "Sveti Prevlacki mučenici" from Tivat, conducted by Sanja Radović from Herceg Novi, Marijela Milanović from Kumbor, Ana Suslova from Budva and Ivana Komnenović from Tivat.
The ceremony was attended, in addition to other believers and worshippers, by Bishop Paisius of Diocletia, Vicar of the Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral Joanikije, Serbian Ambassador to Montenegro Nebojša Rodić, Chief Imam for Boka and Budva Meho ef. Martinović, President of the Municipality of Tivat Željko Komnenović, and President of the Tivat Municipal Assembly Miljan Marković.
Bonus video:
