The two-day national festivities traditionally organized in Podgorica in honor of St. Simeon the Myrrh-Bearer, the patron of the Metropolis of Montenegro and the Littoral, ended today, March 1, with a liturgical gathering and the St. Simeon procession from the Cathedral Church of the Resurrection of Christ to Nemanja's Town on the banks of the Ribnica River.

The Holy Hierarchal Liturgy in the Cathedral Church was presided over by His Eminence Metropolitan of Berlin and Germany of the Russian Church Abroad, Mr. Marko, with the concelebration of His Eminence: Archbishop of Cetinje, Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral Joanikije, Archbishop and Metropolitan of Žička Justin, Archbishop and Metropolitan of Milesevo Atanasij, Archbishop of Mostar-Trebinje and Metropolitan of Zahumlje-Herzegovina and Ston-Littoral Dimitrij, His Eminence Bishops: Jovan of Pakrac-Slavonia, of Buenos Aires and South-Central America, Administrator of the Metropolis of Zagreb-Ljubljana, Cyril, Methodius of Budimlje-Nikšić and Paisij of Diocletia, numerous clergy and monastics, in the prayerful presence of the faithful.

The assembly was attended by Mr. Nebojša Rodić, Ambassador of Serbia to Montenegro, Mr. Saša Mujović, Mayor of Podgorica, representatives of cultural and public life.

Metropolitan Marko: God calls us to evangelical love

After the reading of the Gospel, His Eminence Metropolitan of Berlin and Germany of the Russian Church Abroad, Mr. Marko, spoke, congratulating the holiday, saying that we celebrate Saint Simeon the Myrrh-Feller and are once again amazed at how he followed in the footsteps of his son Saint Sava and was glorified before his own son:

"A great ruler of all Serbian lands, a great son, a great father. The love between them was the reason that Stefan Nemanja organized the state, did everything that was necessary for the further prosperity of this country."

Recalling the life of Saint Simeon the Myrrh-Bearer, the Metropolitan of the Russian Church Abroad emphasized that he not only received monastic tonsure, but also underwent a great asceticism, renounced everything worldly and surrendered himself to God.

Explaining what is necessary for such love that Saint Simeon had for God and people, he said that, first and foremost for us Christians, it is love for God according to the Gospel and recalled the meeting of Saint Mary Magdalene and the resurrected Lord.

“She, deprived of great love for the Savior, seeks Him. And she sees the Lord, she sees God. She sought a man, she saw God. This miracle, no doubt, is repeated every day among us. When we truly love God, then we will also love our neighbors and there would be no war on this earth, if we, we say we – we and you – if we behaved like this. If we did everything we did out of love for God, there would be no hatred between people,” His Eminence Metropolitan of Berlin and Germany of the Russian Church Abroad, Mr. Marko, spoke and concluded:

“Holy son, holy father, they showed this evangelical love here on earth. They are both glorified as great saints, and we walk this path with small, humble actions. God calls us and we respond. We receive this evangelical love that we saw yesterday here, in this church, when the children sang spiritual songs. All of this is built on love for God, on that love that Mary Magdalene showed in the gospel, by which father and son, son and father, are connected. And that is a great task for us too, to be in love, all of us, as God says, have love among yourselves. Amen”

Metropolitan Joannikije: Saint Simeon is our eternal leader in Christ

At the end of the Holy Hierarchical Liturgy, His Eminence Metropolitan Joannikije congratulated everyone on the feast of Saint Simeon the Myrrh-bearing, which we celebrated on Wednesday, on the day of his memory, both in the Studenica Monastery and in Nemanja’s town, and especially in the Hilandar Monastery, but we celebrate him these days in the entire Serbian nation:

“It is also a great honor for us that today we have the opportunity to celebrate Saint Simeon the Myrrh-bearing in the place of his birth, in his, as he himself said, ancestral home, which he restored. We had great rulers before Stefan Nemanja, let us only remember Saint John Vladimir, and there were many more, but until Stefan Nemanja we took two steps forward, one step back. However, from the moment he chose Orthodoxy, thanks to his faith and sacrifice, his strong character, he united the Serbian lands and created a strong state, which prospered for 200 years after him.