His Holiness the Serbian Patriarch Mr.. Porfirje arrived this evening, November 2, 2024, in Zajecar, where he was solemnly welcomed in front of the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary by His Eminence Metropolitan of Timoc, Mr. Timoc. Hilarion, Archbishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church, clergy, monastics and pious people.
At the gates of the cathedral His Holiness Patriarch was greeted by children in traditional costumes with bread and salt. After passing through a ceremonial barricade built by members of the Serbian army and police, Patriarch Porfirje entered the church celebrating its 190th anniversary, where a solemn act of praise was performed.
After the solemn service welcoming His Holiness Patriarch, the brother archbishops, the Director of the Office for Cooperation with Churches and Religious Communities, the Mayor of Zajecar and representatives of local institutions, the faithful of the Timoc diocese and guests, Metropolitan Hilarion, with great joy on the occasion of welcoming His Holiness Patriarch, sent also words of consolation in great pain on the occasion of yesterday's tragic event in Novi Sad:
- We who are in the Church know that death has been defeated by the Resurrection of Christ and that death is not the end of this life, if we are in the Church, if we are with the Risen Christ and if through the Church we manage to see each other horizontally, and before that we see ourselves in relation to the Lord in a spiritual vertical.
- Your Holiness, it is a great joy and gratitude that you are here with us today. I greet you as the eleventh Bishop of the Timocha Diocese, and also as the first Metropolitan of Timocha, with your blessing and the decision of the Holy Synod of Bishops. What is certainly very important for us is the continuity that the new title of Archbishop of Romulus carries, because we know that in this ancient sanctuary our ancestors even testified to the Resurrection of Christ with their lives," said Metropolitan Hilarion and reminded:
- We greet you, Your Holiness, before the people of the Diocese of Timocca, with gratitude that you have visited Timocca for the third time as Serbian Patriarch - after your visit to Kladovo, Donji Milanovac and two years ago to Negotin - that today you, the head of our holy Church, have come for the first time to the residence of the Bishop of Timocca, and that you have testified with your blessing that as the Church of Christ we live and turn to one another, despite the trials we face. We welcome you to the city of Zajecar and to the Diocese of Timochka, which celebrates the Presentation of the Lord when Timochka was founded exactly 190 years ago, in 1834. We welcome you to the town of Zajecar at this meeting, which is not only a meeting of God and man, but also a meeting of the Holy Mother of God with all of us, a meeting with Our Lady, who is the protector of this town and whom we especially celebrate after Her miraculous apparition eight decades ago.
- As a token of our sincere appreciation and prayerful cry for your fatherly and pastoral prayers, we present to you, Your Holiness, a modest gift, but a gift of the heart, the icon of the Presentation of the Lord, as an expression of our fraternal and Christian love, as an expression of our gratitude for your great efforts that you are investing in the field of the mission of the Church, which unites both East. and the West, thus uniting our glorious history with a present that is not always pleasant, but certainly with the hope of eternal joy in the Christian future. Your Holiness, with this gift, we ask you as a responsible bishop to bless this spiritual gathering and to teach us - the words of His Eminence Metropolitan Msgr. Hilarion, in honor of whom His Holiness Patriarch Mr. Porphyry:
- Indeed, having in mind the tragic event that took place in Novi Sad, our sorrow and pain, as an expression of our love for God and for our neighbor, as an expression of our faith, we must turn it to prayers for the repose of all those who suffered in the Let us pray to God that the Lord will give strength to the loved ones of the victims to endure this ordeal. Let us believe in the Risen Lord and in the truth that man, as an icon of God, is not a creature created for extinction, but a creature created for eternity, created for the Kingdom of God. May the Lord grant His Kingdom to those who tragically died yesterday in Novi Sad, and comfort to their loved ones.
- Today we are gathered here in Zajecar, with the love and blessing of your Bishop, to celebrate the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Diocese of Timocha, followed by the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary 80 years ago. We have gathered in the temple of God, because we Serbs have the Orthodox Church as our home, as our home, as a gathering place, not a gathering of any kind and for any occasion, and we have the Orthodox Church to gather. in it to serve the world Liturgy and through the Holy Liturgy we have a foretaste of the Kingdom of God, to enter the Holy Liturgy to encounter the living God, to become one with Him - His co-body and blood relative, but also one with each other. For this purpose there is a holy temple, for this purpose there is a holy Liturgy, which is served in the temple. The Liturgy is nothing less than the manifestation of the Church as the body of Christ, as the community of the faithful with God and our unity among ourselves. Everything else that comes from the Sacred Liturgy and all the The rest, what we have as an impression of the Church, acquires its meaning only if it is sealed by the holy service, the prayer of the Church, the Holy Liturgy," said Patriarch Porfiry.
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Patriarch Porfirije came to visit Timocca on the occasion of great anniversaries: the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Theotokos diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the 190th anniversary of the Cathedral in Zajecar, and the 80th anniversary of the miraculous apparition of the Mother of God. Mother of God in this town.
Timocca covers the eastern part of Serbia, the area through which the Timoc River flows, and consists of the archdiocesan parishes of Boljevac, Bor-Porec, Zajecar, Kljac, Knjaževac, Negotin and Sokobanj. The diocesan seat is located in Zaječar, where, through the efforts of Prince Miloš Obrenović, the Diocese of Timočka was founded in 1834 and a magnificent cathedral dedicated to the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary was built. The Timochka diocese is adorned with the monasteries of Bukovo, Vratna, Sveta Trinity, Grlište, Koroglaš, Krepićevac, Lapusnja, Lozica, Manastirica and Suvodol. The Diocese of Timocha is headed by His Eminence Metropolitan. Hilarion.
Every year on October 6 in Zajechar a sacred liturgy is celebrated to commemorate the miraculous appearance of the image of the Holy Mother of God of Pech, who protected the town in 1944 during the military conflicts during the liberation of Zajechar. The image of Our Lady of Pečka appeared from 6 to 8 October 1944 in the basement of the family home in Zajecar, during the biggest battles for the liberation of the city between the Russian army and the German occupation troops. Hiding from the constant shelling, a large number of civilians spent the days of the war in the basement of this house, praying to the Blessed Virgin to save the city and its inhabitants from destruction. And indeed, by the apparition of Her Immaculate Image the Holy Mother of God helped and comforted the inhabitants of Zaechar, strengthening them in faith and prayer, and the town was saved from further bombardment and soon liberated.
In honor of the visit of Serbian Patriarch Mr. Porfirije, the Historical Archive of Timocha Krajina from Zajecar and the Timocha Diocese organized in the Gallery of the Historical Archive in Zajecar an exhibition of Archpriest Igor Ivković and Mr. Porfirije entitled "Birth of the Temple - 190 years of the Cathedral Church in Zajecar". Nikola Milutinovic. Also in the Gallery of the Historical Archive in Zaječar today, in cooperation with the Diocese of Timoč and the Orthodox Theological Faculty from Belgrade, a scientific meeting was held to commemorate the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Diocese of Timoč, 1834-2024 .
The event was organized by the Archdiocese of Zaječar.
His Holiness the Serbian Patriarch Mr.
. Porphyrios will celebrate the Holy Liturgy on Sunday, November 3, 2024 at the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Zajecar, beginning at 9:00 am.
At the gates of the cathedral His Holiness Patriarch was greeted by children in traditional costumes with bread and salt. After passing through a ceremonial barricade built by members of the Serbian army and police, Patriarch Porfirje entered the church celebrating its 190th anniversary, where a solemn act of praise was performed.
After the solemn service welcoming His Holiness Patriarch, the brother archbishops, the Director of the Office for Cooperation with Churches and Religious Communities, the Mayor of Zajecar and representatives of local institutions, the faithful of the Timoc diocese and guests, Metropolitan Hilarion, with great joy on the occasion of welcoming His Holiness Patriarch, sent also words of consolation in great pain on the occasion of yesterday's tragic event in Novi Sad:
- We who are in the Church know that death has been defeated by the Resurrection of Christ and that death is not the end of this life, if we are in the Church, if we are with the Risen Christ and if through the Church we manage to see each other horizontally, and before that we see ourselves in relation to the Lord in a spiritual vertical.
- Your Holiness, it is a great joy and gratitude that you are here with us today. I greet you as the eleventh Bishop of the Timocha Diocese, and also as the first Metropolitan of Timocha, with your blessing and the decision of the Holy Synod of Bishops. What is certainly very important for us is the continuity that the new title of Archbishop of Romulus carries, because we know that in this ancient sanctuary our ancestors even testified to the Resurrection of Christ with their lives," said Metropolitan Hilarion and reminded:
- We greet you, Your Holiness, before the people of the Diocese of Timocca, with gratitude that you have visited Timocca for the third time as Serbian Patriarch - after your visit to Kladovo, Donji Milanovac and two years ago to Negotin - that today you, the head of our holy Church, have come for the first time to the residence of the Bishop of Timocca, and that you have testified with your blessing that as the Church of Christ we live and turn to one another, despite the trials we face. We welcome you to the city of Zajecar and to the Diocese of Timochka, which celebrates the Presentation of the Lord when Timochka was founded exactly 190 years ago, in 1834. We welcome you to the town of Zajecar at this meeting, which is not only a meeting of God and man, but also a meeting of the Holy Mother of God with all of us, a meeting with Our Lady, who is the protector of this town and whom we especially celebrate after Her miraculous apparition eight decades ago.
- As a token of our sincere appreciation and prayerful cry for your fatherly and pastoral prayers, we present to you, Your Holiness, a modest gift, but a gift of the heart, the icon of the Presentation of the Lord, as an expression of our fraternal and Christian love, as an expression of our gratitude for your great efforts that you are investing in the field of the mission of the Church, which unites both East. and the West, thus uniting our glorious history with a present that is not always pleasant, but certainly with the hope of eternal joy in the Christian future. Your Holiness, with this gift, we ask you as a responsible bishop to bless this spiritual gathering and to teach us - the words of His Eminence Metropolitan Msgr. Hilarion, in honor of whom His Holiness Patriarch Mr. Porphyry:
- Indeed, having in mind the tragic event that took place in Novi Sad, our sorrow and pain, as an expression of our love for God and for our neighbor, as an expression of our faith, we must turn it to prayers for the repose of all those who suffered in the Let us pray to God that the Lord will give strength to the loved ones of the victims to endure this ordeal. Let us believe in the Risen Lord and in the truth that man, as an icon of God, is not a creature created for extinction, but a creature created for eternity, created for the Kingdom of God. May the Lord grant His Kingdom to those who tragically died yesterday in Novi Sad, and comfort to their loved ones.
- Today we are gathered here in Zajecar, with the love and blessing of your Bishop, to celebrate the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Diocese of Timocha, followed by the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary 80 years ago. We have gathered in the temple of God, because we Serbs have the Orthodox Church as our home, as our home, as a gathering place, not a gathering of any kind and for any occasion, and we have the Orthodox Church to gather. in it to serve the world Liturgy and through the Holy Liturgy we have a foretaste of the Kingdom of God, to enter the Holy Liturgy to encounter the living God, to become one with Him - His co-body and blood relative, but also one with each other. For this purpose there is a holy temple, for this purpose there is a holy Liturgy, which is served in the temple. The Liturgy is nothing less than the manifestation of the Church as the body of Christ, as the community of the faithful with God and our unity among ourselves. Everything else that comes from the Sacred Liturgy and all the The rest, what we have as an impression of the Church, acquires its meaning only if it is sealed by the holy service, the prayer of the Church, the Holy Liturgy," said Patriarch Porfiry.
***
Patriarch Porfirije came to visit Timocca on the occasion of great anniversaries: the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Theotokos diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the 190th anniversary of the Cathedral in Zajecar, and the 80th anniversary of the miraculous apparition of the Mother of God. Mother of God in this town.
Timocca covers the eastern part of Serbia, the area through which the Timoc River flows, and consists of the archdiocesan parishes of Boljevac, Bor-Porec, Zajecar, Kljac, Knjaževac, Negotin and Sokobanj. The diocesan seat is located in Zaječar, where, through the efforts of Prince Miloš Obrenović, the Diocese of Timočka was founded in 1834 and a magnificent cathedral dedicated to the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary was built. The Timochka diocese is adorned with the monasteries of Bukovo, Vratna, Sveta Trinity, Grlište, Koroglaš, Krepićevac, Lapusnja, Lozica, Manastirica and Suvodol. The Diocese of Timocha is headed by His Eminence Metropolitan. Hilarion.
Every year on October 6 in Zajechar a sacred liturgy is celebrated to commemorate the miraculous appearance of the image of the Holy Mother of God of Pech, who protected the town in 1944 during the military conflicts during the liberation of Zajechar. The image of Our Lady of Pečka appeared from 6 to 8 October 1944 in the basement of the family home in Zajecar, during the biggest battles for the liberation of the city between the Russian army and the German occupation troops. Hiding from the constant shelling, a large number of civilians spent the days of the war in the basement of this house, praying to the Blessed Virgin to save the city and its inhabitants from destruction. And indeed, by the apparition of Her Immaculate Image the Holy Mother of God helped and comforted the inhabitants of Zaechar, strengthening them in faith and prayer, and the town was saved from further bombardment and soon liberated.
In honor of the visit of Serbian Patriarch Mr. Porfirije, the Historical Archive of Timocha Krajina from Zajecar and the Timocha Diocese organized in the Gallery of the Historical Archive in Zajecar an exhibition of Archpriest Igor Ivković and Mr. Porfirije entitled "Birth of the Temple - 190 years of the Cathedral Church in Zajecar". Nikola Milutinovic. Also in the Gallery of the Historical Archive in Zaječar today, in cooperation with the Diocese of Timoč and the Orthodox Theological Faculty from Belgrade, a scientific meeting was held to commemorate the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Diocese of Timoč, 1834-2024 .
The event was organized by the Archdiocese of Zaječar.
His Holiness the Serbian Patriarch Mr.
. Porphyrios will celebrate the Holy Liturgy on Sunday, November 3, 2024 at the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Zajecar, beginning at 9:00 am.
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