The head of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), His Holiness Patriarch Pavle, has died

15 November 2009 | 11:52 -> 17:14 | Source: B92
BELGRADE -- The head of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), His Holiness Patriarch Pavle, has died in Belgrade at the age of 95, it has been announced.

The patriarch passed away at 10:45 CET on Sunday, at Belgrade's military clinic VMA, where he had been receiving medical treatment since November 2007. The clinic announced that he died in his sleep.

The bells of the Cathedral Church of St. Michael the Archangel are tolling today 15 minutes before each full hour to mark the passing. The government declared Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to be days of mourning in Serbia.

Metropolitan Amfilohije confirmed the news this Sunday by saying that the patriarch received his communion this morning, after which "his holy, Christ-loving heart stopped beating".

The body of the patriarch was taken to the Patriarchy building just before 15:00 CET, where the Holy Synod members served a memorial service.

The casket was then carried to Belgrade's Cathedral Church of St. Michael the Archangel by priests and President Boris Tadić.

The service was also attended by Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremić and Russian Ambassador Aleksandr Konuzin.

They were joined by PM Mirko Cvetković and his cabinet ministers, while Serbian Army CoGS Lt. Gen. Miloje Miletić and Parliament Speaker Slavica Đukić-Dejanović arrived earlier, as did the chief rabbi of the Jewish community in Serbia, Isak Asijel.

The highest officials of the Roman Catholic Church in Serbia, Archbishop Stanislav Hočevar and the Apostolic Nuncio Orlando Antonini were also seen at the Patriarchy this afternoon.

A large number of citizens gathered in the yard of the Cathedral Church, with traffic blocked in the part of Kneza Sime Markovića Street where the church is located.

The late patriarch will lie in state, with prayer services set to continue throughout the night.

The details of the funeral ceremony are expected to be disclosed during the evening.

The spiritual leader of the Serbian Orthodox Christians was born as Gojko Stojčević in 1914 in what is today Slavonia, Croatia.

He became a monastic in 1948.

Nine years later, the Holy Assembly of Bishops elected Archimandrite Pavle as Bishop of Raška-Prizren.

He subsequently spent 33 years in Kosovo. Reuters news agency reminds today that this came as the province already had an ethnic Albanian majority. Pavle openly spoke of the hardships faced by the province's minority Serbs, and on one occasion in the 1970s was attacked and beaten.

In December 1990, Pavle was chosen as the 44th patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), replacing the ailing Patriarch German.

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Serbia's President Boris Tadic kisses the hand of Patriarch Pavle as he lies in repose at the Congregational church, in Belgrade, Sunday, Nov. 15, 2009. Patriarch Pavle, who led Serbia's Christian Orthodox Church through its post-Communist revival and called for peace and conciliation during the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s, died Sunday. He was 95.

Three days of mourning in Serbia

15 November 2009 | 15:25 | Source: Beta, Tanjug
BELGRADE -- The Serbian government has proclaimed three days of mourning in honor of the late Serbian Orthodox Church head His Holiness Patriarch Pavle.

The days of mourning will be observed from November 16-18.

Serbian President Boris Tadić said that the loss of the Patriarch is great, adding that his death is a loss for the Serbian people that cannot be replaced.

“There are people who with their existence alone can hold people together. Patriarch Pavle was such a person,” Tadić said.

“His passing is a personal loss for me,” he added.

Tadić said that he has always consulted Patriarch Pavle during these trying and difficult times that Serbia has gone through, and that he always gave his opinion.

Tadić said that Patriarch Pavle was held in high esteem throughout the Christian world.
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A great man has died. RIP.

__________________
Robert Gelbard, America’s special envoy to Bosnia, says the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) is an Islamic terrorist organization:“I know a terrorist when I see one and these men are terrorists.” BBC, 26/8/1998

Religious leaders react to patriarch's passing

16 November 2009 | 12:06 | Source: FoNet, Beta, Tanjug

BELGRADE, NOVI PAZAR, SARAJEVO -- In the wake of the news that His Holiness Patriarch Pavle had died, numerous leaders of religious communities in the country and region sent their condolences.

Representatives of both Islamic communities sent telegrams of condolences to the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serb Orthodox believers.

“His mission and the peace messages he was sending in the most difficult times were bringing back hope in a better future and the need in joint life and tolerance between different peoples and cultures,” said Islamic Community of Serbia head Mufti Adem Zilkić.

“I am convinced that the Serbian Orthodox Church, even after suffering this irreplaceable loss, will find strength to continue the mission of late Patriarch Pavle,” he added.

On behalf of the Serbian Meshihat, and in his name, Mufti Muhamed Jusufspahić sent his condolences to the Serbian Orthodox Church dignitaries and all the Orthodox believers.

“The faithful departed patriarch marked the time he lived in and became a symbol of the Orthodox Church and the Orthodox believer. His departure to the better world represents a great loss,” Jusufspahić wrote.

Honorary Reis-ul-Ulema of the Islamic community in Serbia Hamdija Jusufspahić sent a personal telegram of condolences to the Church and its believers.

“My friend, the faithful departed patriarch, left for the better world and left behind a fine memory and proof that great people never die. I pray to the Holy Creator for the soul of His Holiness to rest in peace,” he said.

President of the Meshihat of the Islamic Community in Serbia, Mufti Muamer Zukorlić sent his deep condolences to the Serbian Orthodox Church and all the Orthodox Christians in this region.

“This is an irreplaceable loss for the Serbian Orthodox Church, because he was a man who proved the consistency of his own spirituality and harmony between actions, words and believes, which is rare in the modern world,” he said.

“I believe that the Serbian Orthodox Church will find ways to elect a new leader who will lead it according to its goals and interests, and according to the interests of all the citizens since it is the most influential religious institution in the country,” Zukorlić added.

Head of the Islamic Community in Bosnia Mufti Mustafa Cerić also reacted to the news of Patriarch Pavle's passing, by sending his condolences to the SPC Metropolitan Dabro-Bosnian Nikolaj.

“Patriarch Pavle was respected among the Orthodox believers and advocated inter-faith dialogue, so we hope that Serbian Orthodox Church will continue that tradition to the benefit of all the people of good will who share the same history and a joint hope for a better future in this region,” the message said.

Cerić added that the Islamic Community in Bosnia-Herzegovina remained open for friendly cooperation and constructive inter-faith dialogue with the Serbian Orthodox Church and its future patriarch, "both in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia", reported a local website in Sarajevo.

In Belgrade, Serbia's Jewish Community leader Rabbi Isak Asijel said in his message that the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church was the embodiment of Biblical goodness, gentleness and compassionate love that emanated from his person and would encompass everyone in his presence.

"Archpriests, priests, monks and nuns, and the Serbian Orthodox Church worshippers, it was with pain in our souls that we received the news about the death of His Holiness our dear Patriarch Pavle," Rabbi Asijel wrote.

The message adds that the late patriarch's traits were rare, and that it is "a true blessing that even in the worst years for our common fatherland we had Patriarch Pavle as the spiritual torch-bearer for all of us equally, regardless of faith and nationality".

"On behalf of the Jewish Community of Serbia I express our deepest condolences with all of you. Your pain is our pain, your loss is our loss. The Lord is his heritage, and may his soul be tied in the Bundle of Life," said Rabbi Asijel.

On behalf of the Roman Catholic Church in Serbia, Archbishop of Belgrade Stanislav Hočevar sent his condolences to the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serb nation, expressing "pride that we lived with him".

"At the time of His Holiness Patriarch Pavle's crossing into eternity, we feel with him, with all of the SPC, with the entire Serb nation, a special closeness, love and unity," the archbishop wrote.

"While on the one hand we are expressing our deepest condolences, we are also expressing our pride at having lived with him, above all myself personally, and on behalf of the Archdiocese of Belgrade, all of the Catholic Church in Serbia, because we could communicate with him. I am particularly grateful to God that he [the patriarch] so often expressed to me his statements, thoughts, wishes and joys," said Archbishop Hočevar.

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Patriarch Pavle, as seen by an English reporter:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009...pavle-obituary

__________________
Robert Gelbard, America’s special envoy to Bosnia, says the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) is an Islamic terrorist organization:“I know a terrorist when I see one and these men are terrorists.” BBC, 26/8/1998