Djedov sabor gathering in Osojane; Metropolitan Teodosije: We must preserve our faith and the sacred land of Kosovo and Metohija

The Djedov sabor gathering in Osojane began with the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, bringing together once again a large number of local residents, displaced people originally from the area, and visitors from other regions. The Divine Liturgy was celebrated by Metropolitan Teodosije, in the presence of Bishop Ilarion, Abbot Sava Janjic, and clergy of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Following the Liturgy, a memorial service was held for those from the area who had lost their lives.

Deputy Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Dusica Nikolic and Assistant Director Milena Parlic also attended the event.

The Djedov sabor is dedicated to the late Metropolitan Amfilohije and is being held for the sixth time this year. The event is supported by the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, the Ministry of Culture, the Raska-Prizren Diocese, and the Provisional Authority of the Municipality of Istok. 

The memorial service was celebrated by Metropolitan Teodosije together with Bishop Ilarion and the clergy.

"Thank God that we are able to remember the day when we celebrated the Liturgy with Metropolitan Amfilohije on the steps of the destroyed school. It is a lesson for all of us that through the Liturgy, the school, the village, the community, the orchard, and our people are renewed. That is the foundation of our very being. And it is because of that blessing that we are gathered here today. We gather in faith and pray for all those who suffered innocently, for our Father Stefan, our brother, the hieromonk whom we remember with love and joy in our hearts, and for all those who perished in this region, with the firm belief that the risen Lord can grant us another meeting with them, for which we hope," Bishop Ilarion of Novo Brdo said in his sermon during the memorial service, Radio Television Gracanica reported. 

He emphasized the important role played by Metropolitan Amfilohije in the return of Serbs to the area.

"The village of Osojane will forever be remembered as a place renewed through the Divine Liturgy celebrated by Metropolitan Amfilohije. May we, brothers and sisters, all meet again in eternal life at the heavenly and eternal Liturgy. May we, together with all those who suffered innocently and whom, God willing, we shall meet again, together with Metropolitan Amfilohije and all our loved ones who have departed throughout the ages, glorify the risen Lord Jesus Christ, together with His eternal Father and the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father. And may eternal memory and eternal rest be granted to all our departed," Bishop Ilarion said.

Metropolitan Teodosije stressed the importance of believers continuing to gather for the Divine Liturgy.

"We bear witness that everything that suffers in Christ and rises again in Christ becomes far more beautiful, radiant, and better than it was before. We are witnesses to this. Here we are, 25 years later, and this gathering of ours, the Divine Liturgy, and everything taking place today in Osojane are far more beautiful and better than before. The same is true of our restored and resurrected holy sites—everything becomes more radiant, better, and more beautiful in the risen Christ. That is why our hope in God comes first: to preserve our faith, to preserve our very being and existence, and to preserve this sacred land of Kosovo and Metohija entrusted to us as our inheritance, to cultivate it so that it may bear fruit and allow us to live from the work of our own hands, rather than alienate it, brothers and sisters. This land was not entrusted to us so that we might sell it. If someone now thinks of selling their land, their ancestral inheritance, to those who do not always wish us well, thereby jeopardizing their relatives, neighbors, and their survival, that is no different from what was once meant by converting to Islam under Ottoman rule. It cannot be viewed differently. The consequences of what is happening demonstrate this. Those who persevere patiently, with hope and faith in God, receive God's great blessing. The Lord protects them and preserves them from many things," Metropolitan Teodosije said in his sermon.

Assistant Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Milena Parlic expressed her joy at seeing so many people gathered, both from the local area and from Montenegro and the Republic of Srpska.

"We are celebrating the resurrection of this gentle valley of Osojane and Metohija. That resurrection can be seen in the children who are here today beneath the vaults of this church, in the houses being built, in the fields you cultivate, and in the prayers and Liturgies that bring us together. We thank our late Metropolitan Amfilohije, who is with us even today and who, just as he cared for his people and his land of Metohija during his lifetime, continues today, dear brothers and sisters, to gather us here in our Metohija and in sacred Kosovo and Metohija," Parlic said.

Parlic also expressed gratitude to the families of Serbian victims and the Association of Missing Persons.

"There has been so much tragedy, so much suffering, so much Golgotha, and yet also so much joy. That is what we are witnessing today. We are also bearing witness, as does the Divine Liturgy itself, that all this suffering, all these Golgothas, and all earthly things—everything civilizations have fought for and everything our ancestors shed their blood for, some form of justice, rights, and truth—are ultimately insignificant. We ourselves are living proof that everything earthly passes away. But what does exist is the Lord, the Divine Liturgy, and this gathering of ours throughout the centuries, our Church, which has brought us together and preserved us throughout the ages. May the Lord God and our Metropolitan Amfilohije give strength to our Metropolitan Teodosije, Bishop Ilarion, the brotherhoods and sisterhoods of the Raska-Prizren Diocese, and the faithful people, so that we may persevere in these difficult times and through these trials, endure and continue to gather solely in God's love and joy. I would also like to greet you on behalf of the Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, the Government of Serbia, and all my colleagues from the Office who may not physically be here with us today but who, believe me, are here in spirit and thought, together with their people and together in their Church," Parlic said. 

The gathering was also addressed by Metropolitan Amfilohije's brother, Rade Radovic, a priest from Kolasin.

"I would like to convey to you the greetings, blessings, and prayers of Metropolitan Joanikije, who sends you his heartfelt greetings and prays before the Lord that you may persevere and continue to live with dignity at this sacred hearth. Yesterday, in Moraca, in Bare Radovica, Metropolitan Amfilohije's native village, where a church dedicated to St. Panteleimon and St. Clement, whom we celebrate today, has been built, we celebrated the patron saint's feast. The hosts who welcomed us and brought the traditional festive bread and wheat from this land of Metohija, from this sacred place, were our people from Osojane. Once again, I wish to thank them from the bottom of my heart on behalf of all the people of Moraca, Rovca, and everyone living in that area. They welcomed us wonderfully. Metropolitan Joanikije thanked them, and I would like to take this opportunity here, before all of you, to thank them once again. Djed's soul is surely rejoicing today, because 25 years after the suffering of this place, after the moment when people began returning here and enduring their own Golgotha and suffering, we have lived to see the day when they are not only hosts here, but can also come to Djed's Moraca and there welcome guests and celebrate the patron saint's feast in his home," Rade Radovic said.