Whether yesterday's visit of Milo Đukanović to the Ecumenical Patriarchate was really the first official visit of the Montenegrin head of state after 123 years, how it was realized and whether it could open the topic of the status of the Montenegrin Orthodox Church, are just some of the questions that Television Vijesti submitted to the Cabinet of the President of the State.
How is the first one, if the former president of Montenegro, Filip Vujanović, on two occasions, in 2010 and 2012, spoke with Bartolomej at Fanar, as evidenced by the official announcements from the website of the then president Cren Gora as well as the Serbian Para-Orthodox Church?
The President's Office responded as follows:
"We use the opportunity to inform you that we had in mind an official visit, which was contracted through the Diplomatic-Consular Representation of Montenegro. The statement agreed with the Ecumenical Patriarchate contained everything that the two sides considered relevant for informing the public about the meeting."
There was no answer to the question of whether Đukanović and Bartolomej discussed the status of religious communities in Montenegro yesterday.
Although it was announced from the Presidency that the Patriarch and the President exchanged opinions on all relevant issues of common interest, with the readiness to further maintain contacts, the priest of the Metropolis of Montenegro and the Littoral (MCP) Gojko Perović, in a written reply to TV Vijesti, assessed that this meeting it has absolutely no point of contact with any internal church topic.
"Neither when it comes to the Church in Macedonia, nor when it comes to the position of the SPC in Montenegro. This is all the more so since the President of Montenegro has repeatedly shown himself to be ill-intentioned towards the Church and the clergy. What could be seen on the videos and read yesterday in his announcements, he clearly states that the President of Montenegro was able to hear from the Patriarch of Constantinople that the personality and work of the blessed Metropolitan Amfilohi, and let's say the progress and success of the Cetinje Seminary, are the topics through which the entire Orthodox Church views Montenegro. And these are precisely the addresses in Montenegro that Đukanović's government tried in every way to excommunicate him from the state and society," said Perović.
He underlines that yesterday's visit was of a protocol nature, as is usually the case when statesmen come to Fanar.
"This fact is not changed by the detail related to private, family matters of Đukanović himself, which, as we hear, were carried out with the blessing of the clergy of the Patriarchate," said Perović.
Đukić: Careful in presenting evaluations regarding the match
Both philosophy professor and civil activist Srefan Đukić says that one should be careful in presenting assessments regarding this meeting, which in some political circles, close to the CPC, is already given importance that it can hardly have.
"The situation with the giving of Tomos to the Ohrid Archdiocese, the unclear situation regarding the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, and some other events, give the right to such thoughts, but we should not run, some should not be excessively happy and others should not immediately fear because the meeting itself it must mean nothing at this moment, we will see how things will unfold, I sincerely hope that President Đukanović has given up interfering in the affairs of churches," Đukić said.
Was it important to find out whether Djukanović's family traveled to Istanbul in a private plane or on the government plane that, as we know, the head of state traveled on?
Bonus video:
