"Today we are one in the Holy Spirit, we are gathered here, all our compatriots wherever they are and each of our contemporaries who glorify the Name of God, but we are closest today with our brothers and sisters who are here, in the area of ​​Srednje Podrinje and Birče, martyred thirty-two years ago", said the Serbian Patriarch Mr. Porfirije after the memorial service for the innocent victims at the city and military cemetery in Bratunac.

There are few peoples in the world who throughout their history have survived such sufferings and genocides as the Serbian people survived, and especially the great cross and the feat of martyrdom were carried by our compatriots in Birch and Srednji Podrinje more than three decades ago. The villain's hand most often touched them, not by chance, precisely on major church holidays, so Christmas, St. George's Day, and especially St. Peter's Day, remained in the national memory covered with pain, sadness and the stain of unprecedented crime, hatred and sin. Remembering the brothers and sisters who suffered only because they were Orthodox Serbs, thousands and thousands of souls arrived today in Bratunac from all over the world to cry together with their Patriarch and patriarchal bishops to the only Conqueror of death: "O Risen Christ, O King of Kings , wipe our tears, receive the Serbian victims where they live forever and sing forever!" and, in the words of His Holiness the Patriarch, told everyone that the pain of the mothers of Bratunac does not need any votes and confirmation from anyone and that the truth about the suffering of innocent victims must not be that truth must not be ignored nor manipulated.

The traditional prayer meeting in Bratunac began with the Holy Liturgy, presided over by His Holiness the Serbian Patriarch Mr. Porphyry with the concelebration of the Most Reverend and Reverend Bishops: Chrysostom of Dabro-Bosnia, Petar of Prespa-Pelagonia, Fotius of Zvornik-Tuzlan, Dimitrij of Zahum-Herzegovina and Ston-Limitor, Hesihi of Valjevo, Jerotej of Šabaka, Justin of Paris and Western Europe, Hilarion of Novi Brda, Dositej of Lipljan; as well as the elected vicar bishop Nikon of Jenopol and numerous clergy and monks from all dioceses of the Serbian Orthodox Church.

Along with several thousand believers from all Serbian regions, the president of the Republic of Srpska, Mr. Milorad Dodik, prime ministers of the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Srpska, Mr. Miloš Vucevic and Mr. Radovan Višković, President of the National Assembly Mr. Nenad Stevandić, ministers in the governments of Srpska and Serbia, Serbian representatives in joint bodies at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina, representatives of municipalities, cities and national organizations and institutions.

After the reading of the Holy Gospel, the Patriarch of Serbia, Mr. Porfirius, reminding that the beautiful areas of Bratunac were part of the former Metropolis of Zvornica-Srebrenica, which extended all the way to Užice, showing in this way, like many other metropolies, dioceses and the Church in general, that in the Church and in its nature there are no boundaries that can divide the essence and that the Church is one and unique:

"That's why we, brothers and sisters, have gathered at the Holy Liturgy, which is the manifestation of the Church as unity, the unity of the faithful people with God, but also unity among themselves. And it is precisely that seal and that trait, or better words, that expression of its essence that our nation as the Church has been carrying and living with that essence and beats with those beats since it has known itself. Our nation, ever since it knows about itself, since it has been aware of itself and since it counts its history that we know today, in St. Sava, it decided once and for all for what is called the Church and the Orthodox faith. From Saint Sava to our days, the Orthodox faith shaped and built who we are, it shaped us as we know ourselves, but also as we are known by other nations and the whole world. From Saint Sava until today, our people have carried the seal of Christ or what the Lord Himself calls us to in today's Gospel - His cross. In Saint Sava, we freely and willingly obeyed the word of Christ, took His cross and followed Him."

"We started from Saint Sava, and throughout the centuries we have been declaring and confirming that the cross of Christ is our sign, our name and surname, and that we are one not in unity that is realized on the multitude of even good ideas and ideologies from this world, but that we have indissoluble unity precisely and only by gathering at the Holy Liturgy and that we realize, realize, manifest and confirm unity only through Christ and the Orthodox faith. That's why we are one, brothers and sisters, not only when we live within specific and unified borders, but wherever we are. Wherever we are Orthodox, wherever Christ is our determination, we affirm our one and only belonging to the Orthodox Serbian people of Svetosava, and Christ is the bond and the link that unites us into one", said Patriarch Porfirije and emphasized:

"What does it mean, brothers and sisters, to take up your cross and follow Christ? This means nothing else than doing exactly what we mentioned, what Saint Sava did and the path he left for us to follow. It means taking the Gospel of Christ as the rule of your life, as the program of your life. This means opting for the system of values ​​that the Lord Christ leaves us, opting for the system of values ​​that is written in His Gospel. We know that taking the cross of Christ and following Him means opting for His values, for His Gospel; means sometimes being a hindrance to those who would like to impose themselves as a rule; means being an obstacle to achieving the goals of those who would like us to bow down to them and adopt their value systems; means adopting a value system in which man does not mean what we have learned, in which man does not mean what we know man to be; means, therefore, to be a hindrance to all those who do not accept the will of God as the law of life, who do not want Christ as the rule of life, but want to take various ideas and ideologies that often dehumanize man - therefore, they also dehumanize us - as the rule of life and impose on everyone and everyone by grace or by force."

You can read the entire speech of Patriarch Porphyry delivered at the Holy Liturgy HERE.

After the Holy Liturgy, a magnificent procession led by the Most Holy Patriarch went from the Church of the Virgin through the streets of Bratunac. There was no end in sight to the column of pious people. In the prayerful silence, which was interrupted in a shocking rhythm by the heavy sound of the church bell and the moving chant of the clergy, the assembly of the faithful arrived at the city cemetery where a memorial service was held for the martyrs from Blječevo, Gnion, Osmača, Potočar, Karn, Vijogora, Osredak, Chumavičje, Zalazje, Ratkovića, Brežana, Zagona, Krnjiča, Sas, Magašić, Ježeštica, Podravanja, Fakovića, Boljevića, Bjelovaci, Sikirića, Kravica, Metaljka, Rupovo brda, Bracan, Vandžića, Donje and Gornja Kamenica, Glođanski brdo, Kozjak, Maskalića potok, Široki puta , Trešnjica and other Bratunac and Sreberen towns and settlements.

"We are firmly convinced that our suffering brothers and sisters are praying for us today; that they rejoice in our prayers, our assembly in prayer; the flame of each served candle; they are happy that every year more and more Orthodox Serbs gather here, because it is a pledge and a confirmation that their innocent victim will never be forgotten. They are happy that our memory of them is expressed in a Christian way and confirmed by Orthodoxy in practice - the way Saint Sava and all the saints of our generation taught us, and that is by praying to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ," said Patriarch Porfirije and emphasized :

"Know well, brothers and sisters, our innocently martyred parents, children, brothers and sisters, compatriots, are true martyrs, and the first Martyr who was innocent, without any sin, suffered a terrible martyr's death on the cross is Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Himself . Therefore, our brothers and sisters from Srednje Podrinje and Birča became like Him, the Son of God, through their suffering; their sacrifice and suffering is a repeated sacrifice and crucifixion of Christ on the Golgotha ​​of this region where we stand today. This is how they gained closeness to Christ and the courage to pray to Him and the Holy Mother of God for us, so that we, like them, will be victorious in our battles, in our wars."

The spiritual leader of all Orthodox Serbs said that today we will not wage wars with weapons manufactured by this world:

"We want to fight with prayer, Orthodox faith, Christian upbringing, knowledge and education; virtue, goodness, mercy, solidarity, nobility, compassion, and in general a culture based on our spiritual heritage, but also economic progress and well-being. These should be our main weapons, and the overarching goal of our struggle is peace. That our nation and all nations live in peace and mutual understanding and respect. We are fighting for progress, for national harmony, for unity, but not unity in anything, but exclusively in good and doing good. These are our struggles today.

When we fight in the battles for peace and the future of our children, doing good to everyone and everyone is our main method, because when we do good then we are at peace with ourselves and with the whole world, then we build the future of both our children and every other child whose whatever it was and whatever it was called. Only then, the sacrifice made by our brothers and sisters, in this region thirty-two years ago, was not in vain, even though it was too painful", pointed out Patriarch Porphyry and asked clearly and loudly:

"But the pain, what shall we do with the pain we feel today before this altar of our martyrs? Isn't the pain of every person, Christian, Muslim, agnostic, or something else, a burden that equally tears every human soul? From this we know that our neighbors feel the same pain and that our common denominator is sadness. Thus, all innocent victims are worthy of prayer and each one has a name and a surname. And the name and surname do not mark the limit of pain! That's why we never think of underestimating or belittling the sacrifices of other peoples. On the contrary, God is our witness that, as Orthodox Christians, we bow before every innocent victim, because it is equally valuable and holy and worthy of prayer, whether it is Bosniak, Croatian or Serbian. However, we brothers and sisters, for the truthfulness of the Serbian victims, for the holy martyrs of Christ, for our spiritual victory, we do not need anyone's written confirmation, least of all the perpetrators and their associates.

All mothers who lost their children are martyrs. I will repeat and repeat again and again that no one has an exclusive and exceptional right to pain! Pain does not hurt more or less depending on the name! The pain destroyed both Safet's and Živan's mother", said the Serbian Patriarch Mr. Porphyry.

Source. SPC