The Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) Porfirij and the seven bishops who accompanied him were forbidden to enter Kosovo today, announced the director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija in the Government of Serbia, Petar Petković.
They headed to the Patriarchate of Pec, where the session of the Holy Synod of Bishops was supposed to be held tomorrow.
The Office of the Chancellor claims that the ban on the entry of Serbian church dignitaries was personally ordered by the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Aljbin Kurti.
"Patriarch Porfirije was supposed to cross the Merdare administrative crossing at 13.30:13 p.m. today, in order to head to the centuries-old seat of Serbian archbishops and patriarchs, but at the moment when he was close to the crossing, an injunction arrived from Pristina stating that the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church should not can enter the territory of Kosovo and Metohija. To make Kurti's meanness even greater, the ban came XNUMX minutes before the announced visit, which especially indicates Aljbin Kurti's intention to expose the Serbian patriarch to additional harassment and extortion, to spend more than seven hours on the road." , the office for kiM pointed out in a statement.
They added that "as always until now, the liaison officer of Belgrade, in accordance with all valid agreements and procedures, sent an announcement about the plans of the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church to attend the first day of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the Patriarchate of Peć, as the centuries-old tradition dictates, and be support and support for the faithful Serbian people who eagerly awaited him".
"However, unilaterally and contrary to all agreements, Kurti denied him that opportunity," the statement reads
They emphasized that Patriarch Porfirije "always, on every occasion and in every place, with his messages, gentle words and actions, called for peace and coexistence of Serbs and Albanians in the area of Kosovo and Metohija, not dividing, but by the power of his indisputable authority uniting people, spreading always and in every place the Christian message of love and faith and never, in any place, did he sin, neither in word nor in deed, about those eternal principles".
"Unfortunately, these are values and messages that nobody in Pristina understands today, because the politics of Aljbin Kurti, which we have been witnessing for three years now, is a politics of discord, hatred, bigotry and intolerance," the office for Kosovo and Metohija stated in a statement.
SPC: Unreasonable and unacceptable decision
The Serbian Orthodox Church announced today that it is "unreasonable and unacceptable" the decision of the authorities in Pristina to forbid SPC Partarch Porfiri and the bishops from going to the Pećka Patriarchate monastery, adding that it shows an accurate picture of the position of the Serbian Church and the Serbian people in Kosovo.
The announcement of the SPC states that Porfirije and seven bishops were supposed to arrive in the afternoon at the headquarters of the SPC, the Peć Patriarchate monastery, for the start of the annual session of the Holy Synod of Bishops, but that they were stopped at the Merdare administrative crossing by officers of the "provisional authorities in Pristina" and announced that they were forbidden to enter.
The Patriarch of the SPC appealed to all those who have an influence on the situation in Kosovo to do what they can to stop the "flagrant violation of the human rights of the Serbian people", including the right to freedom of movement of the Serbian Patriarch, bishops and clergy.
"Patriarch Porfirije will not leave his people in Kosovo and Metohija and will do everything possible to meet with them and to pray together with them to God as soon as possible," the announcement reads.
The session of the Holy Council of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church will begin tomorrow in the Church of Saint Sava in Vračar, in Belgrade.
Porphyry: All the doors of this world are open to me, except the door of my home, the Patriarchate of Peć
Serbian Patriarch Porfirije announced today that "all the doors of this world are open" for him, and that only the doors of his home, the Patriarchate of Peć, are closed, because "they don't let him enter".
"As the Patriarch of Serbia, as a citizen and as a believer, I know and say that God himself will open those doors sooner or later. Those who closed the doors of the house of prayer are doing evil first to themselves, and then to all people," the SPC patriarch said in a statement. .
He added that Prishtina has closed the door to every good, blessing and happiness.
"When they deny the Serbian Patriarch freedom of movement like this, what is happening to the Serbs living in the ghettos? I tell them to endure, because whoever endures to the end will be saved. If they closed the doors of the Patriarchate of Peć for the Serbian Patriarch, it is certain that they cannot close our love and our good intentions. It is certain that for us, especially in Kosovo and Metohija, heaven is open and it will open all the doors that evil has closed," concluded Porfirje.
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