Serbian Patriarch Pavle (95) died in his sleep on November 15, at 10.45:15 a.m., at the Military Medical Academy in Belgrade, where he had been receiving treatment for the past two years. Radio-television of Serbia broadcast a recording of Metropolitan Amfilohi, who, during the solemn laying of the foundation stone of the new church, crying from the lectern, announced that the patriarch had passed away. He also said that the priest gave communion to the patriarch that morning and that Paul's "holy Christ-loving heart stopped beating." Upon hearing the news of the death of Patriarch Pavle, the Cathedral Church in Belgrade and other temples of the Serbian Orthodox Church began ringing their bells XNUMX minutes before the full hour as a sign of mourning.
The body of the patriarch was transferred to the building of the Patriarchate on the same day, and then to the Cathedral. The priests of the Serbian Orthodox Church, led by Metropolitan Amfilohi and Bishop Athanasius of Hvostan, served the funeral for the deceased patriarch in the Cathedral Church, which was attended by the President of Serbia Boris Tadić and many other high officials, as well as the Ambassador of Russia Aleksandar Konuzin. On the occasion of the death of Patriarch Pavle, the Government of Serbia declared November 15, 16 and 17 as days of mourning in Serbia at its session on November 18.
PATRIARCH IN HARD TIMES: With students at Terazije in 1991.
A large number of citizens began to come to the Cathedral on Sunday and pay their respects to the deceased patriarch. Parts of Kralja Petra and Knez Sime Marković streets, where the Cathedral and the Patriarchate are located, are closed to traffic. And in the following days, a column of thousands of citizens stretched along Kralja Petra street all the way to Knez Mihailova.
Believers and worshipers of all generations lined up, many with children. The chatter of modernly dressed young men and women, the conversations of older fellow citizens about the patriarch, glories, and work would fall silent near the Cathedral where they spoke mostly in whispers. The prayers that were read in the temple during the night echoed around the church, the candles lit in the gate for the repose of the patriarch's soul smelled. Inside the church, the citizens passed by the body of Patriarch Pavle in silence and kissed the cross and the icon in his hands. Many came from other cities. At the side entrance of the Cathedral, a young man and a girl asked the priest if they had to wait in line to enter. "You should, like everyone else." Are you from Belgrade?'
On Monday, November 16, after the session of the Holy Synod of Bishops, Bishop Irinej of Bačka announced that Patriarch Pavle will be buried on Thursday, November 19 at 13:7.30 p.m. at the Rakovica monastery cemetery. He also stated that on Thursday at 11:XNUMX a.m. in the Cathedral Church, the holy bishop's liturgy for the departed will be celebrated, after which the procession with the remains of the patriarch will move from the Cathedral Church to the Church of St. Sava, where the funeral service will be held at XNUMX:XNUMX a.m. The Mayor of Belgrade, Dragan Đilas, declared the day of the funeral of Patriarch Pavle as a day of mourning in the territory of the city of Belgrade, and the Government recommended to all employers in the country to provide employees with paid leave on that day.
With Slobodan Milosevic
The Committee for the Organization of the Funeral of Patriarch Pavle was formed at the session, which includes, in addition to members of the Synod and other bishops, the President of Serbia Boris Tadić and representatives of relevant ministries, foreign affairs, religion and the police. The Synod appointed the current deputy patriarch, Metropolitan Amfilohi, as an administrator (guardian of the throne) who will perform the function of head of the Serbian Orthodox Church until the election of a new patriarch.
The daily "Blic" announced on Tuesday that Patriarch Pavle left a will in which he wrote that he wanted to be buried in the Rakovica monastery, and for the funeral to be held in the church of Saint Sava. Although the content of the will has not been published, "Blitz" reports that the Patriarchate says that the will, which was opened on Sunday evening, exudes modesty, which distinguished the patriarch. The interlocutor of the newspaper states that the will also talks about material things, which the patriarch almost didn't even have. Patriarch Pavle dedicated his legacy to the Serbian Orthodox Church and his immediate family. To the children of his brother Dušan, Gojko Stojčević and his sister Nada, the patriarch left a personal watch and an alarm clock, "Blic" reports the words of an interlocutor from the Patriarchate. The Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church appealed that, according to the patriarch's wish, wreaths should not be brought to the funeral, but contributions should be made for the completion of the construction of the Saint Sava temple.
With Vuk Drašković and the opposition
The grave of the first patriarch of the restored Serbian Patriarchate, Dimitrije, who was buried there in 1930, is located in the cemetery of the monastery of St. Michael the Archangel in Rakovica, where Patriarch Pavle will rest. The abbess of the Evgenija monastery said that the patriarch gladly and often visited this monastery, that he often sat with the sisters after the service, taking an interest in and taking care of everything, and that just before going to the hospital, he served the liturgy in this monastery. In the days before the funeral, the gardens and lawns of the monastery courtyard were arranged and cleaned by members of the monastery's sisterhood, as well as by individual citizens who came to light candles and pay their respects to the patriarch.
On the occasion of the death of Patriarch Pavle, condolences were expressed by the president and prime minister of Serbia, numerous representatives of political parties in the country, representatives of religious communities in Serbia, as well as numerous heads of governments and states of the region and the world. The news about the death of Patriarch Pavle was reported by all major world media, such as the Associated Press, BBC, Reuters, France Press, as well as media in the region. The Catholic daily "Kroa" called him a "man of dialogue" and reminded of the connections he maintained with Roman Catholics in Croatia and Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina, stating that he "lived ascetically, spared all luxuries, to the amazement and a bit of shame of his surroundings."
With students in 1996/97.
Serbian Patriarch Pavle was born as Gojko Stojčević on September 11, 1914 in the village of Kućanci in Slavonia. In autobiographical writings No judgement, open, paternal he wrote that he lost his parents at an early age. His father worked in America, got tuberculosis there and "came home to die." Since his mother died soon after, he was raised by his aunt. Realizing that Gojko was a "very weak" child, his aunt spared him the farm work, so it was decided that he should continue his education. As he was inclined to "subjects where you don't have to memorize, such as mathematics and physics", under the influence of his relatives, he entered the seminary.
During the Second World War, he was mobilized in the medical unit, and after the capitulation he walked to Sarajevo, then to his birthplace. He moved as a refugee to Srem, then to Belgrade, where he enrolled at the Faculty of Theology. In destroyed Belgrade, he worked on buildings to have something to live on, but he fell ill because he could not stand the physical effort. He stayed in many monasteries, and he arrived in Vujan already seriously ill. He realized that his plans for marriage and the parish were unattainable. "In the summer of 1945, I finally made the decision that, suffering from lung disease, although it was not 'open tuberculosis' in my case, I could not be a priest and devote my life to that lofty vocation... Aware, then, that this vocation was not for me and that, from childhood without parents, I cannot have my own family, I became a monk on the eve of the Annunciation in 1946," he said in his autobiographical writings. That's when he took the monastic name of Paul.
With Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic
Pavle was a teacher and educator at the theological school in Prizren from 1950 to 1951. He became a hieromonk in 1954, in the same year he was awarded the rank of archangel, and in 1957 he was promoted to the rank of archimandrite. He completed his post-graduate studies at the Faculty of Theology in Athens in 1957, when he was elected bishop of Raška-Prizren. He will remain in that position for 33 years, until he is elected as patriarch.
At that time, the general public did not know him, but in the following years he showed all the qualities of a "good shepherd" by visiting the most remote churches and monasteries of his diocese, talking to people, building new ones and repairing destroyed temples. In the persistent struggle for the national rights of the Kosovo Serbs, he wrote and went to the door of everyone he thought could help prevent the conflict, but no one responded to his warnings. Despite everything, he repeated that Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo can live in peace.
With Vojislav Koštunica and Boris Tadić after the pogrom of Serbs in Kosovo on March 17, 2004.
Pavle was elected as the 44th patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church on December 2, 1990. That election was made during the lifetime of the previous patriarch Germano, without his consent, which is not a usual procedure for church occasions. The archbishops decided to take such a step after the assessment of the doctors of the Military Medical Academy in Belgrade that German is no longer able to perform complex church duties.
At that time, three bishops were to be elected by secret ballot, each of whom had to win the trust of more than half of those present. Pavlo's name was on the list of candidates only in the ninth round of elections. After that, according to the "apostolic method of election", the envelopes with the names of the three candidates were placed on the gospel, the oldest dignitary present shuffled them and then pulled out the envelope with Paul's name.
A lot of praise was said about the new patriarch at the time. Bishop Stefan from Žič addressed the Assembly with the words: "For the first time in the history of the Serbian Orthodox Church, we applied the apostolic method in the election of the patriarch." That, as you can see, proved to be very useful. I cried for joy, because the holiest, best, most prayerful among us came to the throne of Saint Sava."
After the election as patriarch, Paul said to those present: "I submit to your election and I hope that the Lord will help his Church so that there is no one in me who will humiliate it." My strength is weak, you all know that. I have no hope in them. I hope for your help, I say and repeat, for God's help with which he has kept me up to now. May it be for the glory of God and for the benefit of his church and our suffering people in these difficult times."
However, the most difficult years of recent Serbian history were yet to come, and in those years, Pavlo managed to be equally appreciated by the opposition and the government, both believers and non-believers. This was certainly influenced by his modesty, unusual among dignitaries, both secular and ecclesiastical. It was said that he prepared his own food, mended and washed his clothes, mended his shoes, went on foot, rode public transport with ordinary citizens. He distributed pensions to the poor and often admonished priests to live modestly and thus set an example to the people: "How many of us, people of the Church, and how many times have we entered shelters, homes, hospitals, to show our care for them every day? How many priests influence weddings, celebrations, various consecrations, and even funerals and commemorations themselves to be more modest, at a time of greatest misery for the greatest number of inhabitants of this country..."
While opinions about the patriarch's modesty were unanimous, some of his actions at a time when politics began to determine lives in this region were not accepted with approval. The first parliamentary elections in Serbia were held only six days after Pavle became patriarch. The Assembly of the Serbian Orthodox Church then called on citizens to vote for those who are "truly faithful to God and family", and not for those "who promise a lot". A large part of the opposition public recognized that call as support for those who were already in power, although it is not known whether the patriarch himself stood behind these words. During the March 1991 demonstrations in XNUMX, students responded by blowing whistles to Pavlo's call to disperse from the plateau near the Terazije fountain. The next day, the patriarch apologized to the students, explaining that he wanted to avoid a possible conflict due to the announced arrival of Milošević's supporters from Ušće. Later, in an interview, the patriarch said: "I did my duty, according to my conscience, as I knew and could." I understand what youth is, and I didn't mind when a number of students, not understanding what it was about, reacted in a turbulent way, characteristic of youth."
During the wars that followed in the following years, both the Serbian Orthodox Church and the patriarch himself suffered numerous criticisms for their positions, although before the start of the conflict, Patriarch Pavle and church dignitaries of other religious communities from all republics called for reason and peace at frequent meetings, appealed against the abuse of religion in national-political purposes. In March 1991, the patriarch demanded from "Orthodox, Catholics and all people of good will" to show restraint and reasonableness and to "do everything in their power for the benefit of everyone" to bring peace again, explaining that the church calls on believers to they don't respond to crimes with crimes. However, a considerable number of dignitaries in the Serbian Orthodox Church believed that war can be justified if it is waged as a defensive one, and the patriarch himself occasionally spoke in a similar way: "Evil always attacks and good must defend itself." Cain is always looking to kill Abel and Abel has to defend himself. Therefore, defense against the violence of the wicked, defense of one's life against a criminal, the life and peace of one's neighbors are the boundaries that mark a just war."
TRANSFER OF THE BODY OF PATRIARCH PAUL TO THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH: Boris Tadić with church dignitaries
Opponents of the war criticized the patriarch the most for such attitudes, although he often, like in 1992, said that "a nation-state does not go as far as the sword can go, but the sword must only go as far as the border of a nation-state, i.e. fatherland. If the state is allowed to extend as far as the sword can reach, then the state ceases to be of the people... In that case, it gains territorially but loses morally. To conquer or to be conquered is equally disastrous for a nation-state."
Apart from the objections that came from the opponents of the war, who said that he never clearly dissociated himself from the leadership of the Bosnian Serbs, the hard wing in the Serbian Orthodox Church blamed the patriarch for signing the pre-Dayton agreement, accusing him of supporting Milošević at a time when his relations with the Predrina Serbs worsened. Of the many meetings he had, the meetings with Milosevic were criticized the most. Commenting on the indignation that he receives from persons whom many thought did not even deserve to approach the Patriarchate, he once said: "The Church does not reject even those who think they are non-believers, especially when they too are looking for ways to come to the Patriarchate, no matter what their intentions are." . After all, I am a priest, and the sacred secret of the priesthood does not make the choice of who you will receive and listen to if some trouble leads him to you. And sinners are generally very unhappy people, especially when they are full of themselves. After all, it all belongs to the ungrateful jobs I was talking about..."
During the opposition demonstrations against Milosevic in 1996/97. In 1997, the patriarch sent a message to the students in which he blesses and welcomes the dignified way in which they express their protest. He was at the head of the Svetosava procession in XNUMX, in front of which the police cordon in Kolarčeva Street was withdrawn after a several-week blockade.
1994. yearsA CENTURY MARKED BY MODESTY: Patriarch Pavle in the GSB...
When the bombing of the FRY began in 1999, Patriarch Pavle, Catholic Archbishop Perko, Belgrade Mufti Jusufspahić and Isak Aseil, Rabbi of Yugoslavia, condemned the NATO attacks in a joint appeal for peace. The patriarch asked for the bombing to stop and for peaceful solutions to be found, but he also warned against inappropriate behavior regarding the holding of concerts on Republic Square: "Defiance is not an expression of power, but powerlessness." He does not give strength, but dissipates it."
Patriarch Pavle's announcement of the Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church in June 1999, in which, along with deep concern about the events in Kosovo and Metohija and the request for the protection of the Serbian people and holy places, requested that "the current president of the state and his government, in the interest of the people and for his salvation, resign", he clarified with the following words: "The meaning of that announcement is to reach a government of national salvation in which all well-meaning people will participate, regardless of which they belong to a party or to none. Faced with the tragic situation in which all our people and country found themselves, convinced that the final judgment and justice is in the name of God, and not in the instrumentalized Hague Court, we believe that the current president of the country and his government, in the interest of the people and for its salvation, should to resign so that new people, acceptable to the domestic and international public, as a government of national salvation, take responsibility for their people and their future." treason and siding with NATO aggressors, and in mid-June 1999 the patriarch made a decision to go to the Patriarchate of Pec and stay there until the situation stabilizes. He called on the Serbs not to leave their hearths and declared that he was amazed by the scale of the crimes that had been committed.
...and a burial place in the monastery in Rakovica
The ecclesiastical and secular public reacted violently to the patriarch's visit to the reception organized by Milosevic that year on the occasion of November 29, the birthday of a state that had long since ceased to exist. The media reported the harsh letter that Bishop Artemije of Raska-Prizren sent to the Patriarch on that occasion. At the end of the year, the patriarch gives his blessing to the representatives of the Resistance movement, but also asks them to refrain from violent methods, "inappropriate words and actions". After the fall of Milošević, on October 6, 2000, the patriarch said in a sermon on the plateau in front of the church of Saint Sava in Vračar: "Let us pray to God, the only giver of peace and love, to multiply peace, love and fraternal harmony in us, especially these days when our the country should experience a nationwide transformation, the lifting of sanctions and a connection with the world, which we all wanted and expected for so long. We also prayed that he would give us the gift of repentance, forgiveness and reconciliation, and eradicate from our minds and hearts every thought of hatred, revenge and conflicts."
In the following years, the patriarch had frequent contacts with the new authorities. Many believe that his authority was decisive for the decision to introduce religious education in schools in 2001. With his words and presence in Kosovo, he tried to help everyone overcome the wounds from previous years, calling for reconciliation. In October 2001, he served the bishop's liturgy in the Patriarchate of Pec and on that occasion said that the Serbs have reasons to repent and ask for forgiveness, but that the Albanians also have reasons to repent. He believed that coexistence in the Balkans was still possible. In an interview with an Italian newspaper, he stated that he has confidence in the future, because he believes "in God and in people of good will": "I believe that the descendants of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes will live in peace, being ashamed of us and our time and our actions." "
Patriarch Pavle presided over the Holy Synod of Bishops for the last time in May 2007. From November 13, 2007, he was undergoing treatment at the Military Medical Academy in Belgrade. The autumn council of 2007 was postponed, and Metropolitan Amfilochia, as the oldest member of the Holy Synod, was appointed to replace the patriarch in the church government. Certain bishops, referring to historical precedents, believed that Patriarch Pavle should retire because he is no longer able to lead the church due to his health condition.
During the Parliament in May 2008, several parliamentary delegations visited the Patriarch. Then the possibility of the patriarch retiring was mentioned again, but that did not happen. On October 12, 2008, Patriarch Pavle submitted a request to the Holy Council of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church to "due to health reasons and infirmity" allow him to retire from active service, but his request was not accepted at the Serbian Orthodox Church Council on November 11, 2008. It was not even voted on, most of the archbishops were against the patriarch retiring and begged him to stay on the throne of Saint Sava. Although some bishops, such as Bishop Grigori from Zahum-Herzegovina, publicly expressed their disagreement with this decision, Pavle remained the patriarch.
No matter how much it is claimed that the patriarch is only "first among equals", everyone is aware that the death of Patriarch Pavle ends the period in which many observed the Serbian Orthodox Church mostly through his life and activities. Before his successor, whoever it may be, it will be a difficult task to preserve the modesty and moderation of Patriarch Paul as human and church values that his admirers admired the most. It is worth hoping that at least the years in which the future patriarch will be at the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church will be easier than those in which Patriarch Pavle led the church.
Bishop Irinej of Bačka said on Tuesday afternoon, at the time of writing this text, that it is expected that about half a million people from Serbia, the region and the diaspora will attend the funeral of Patriarch Pavle, and that among them will be numerous state officials and delegations of Orthodox and other churches and religious communities. For now, it has been confirmed that Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew will attend the funeral among the highest officials. Irinej announced that Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, together with Metropolitan Amfilohije, will serve the funeral for the deceased patriarch in front of the Saint Sava Church in Belgrade.
