Serbs visit cemetery in South Mitrovica on All Souls’ Day: Those we love never die

Dozens of Serbs from the northern part of Mitrovica, as well as those who have no longer lived in Kosovo since 1999, visited the Orthodox cemetery in South Mitrovica this morning on All Souls’ Day, where they paid respects at the graves and lit candles for family members and friends buried there. Although the cemetery has been partially cleared and maintained, a large number of gravestones remain desecrated.

Serbs were buried at this cemetery until the end of the war in 1999, after which more than 90 percent of the gravestones were destroyed or desecrated.

Archpriest Radoslav Jankovic said that the Church had designated All Souls’ Days as occasions when the faithful pray to the Lord for the repose of the souls of their departed relatives, who lived before them, preserved the Orthodox faith, performed good deeds and reposed in the Lord.

“Those whom we love never die, and we never forget them, because before God all are alive. That is why today we remember our departed relatives, come to their graves to light candles and hold a memorial service, and pray to the Lord God to remember them in His heavenly kingdom. We also pray that those of us who remain may follow the path of our holy ancestors, hold fast to the true faith and perform good deeds, so that a man of God may stand upright and so that both God and people may always know us by the good we do,” Jankovic said.

He added that this was what the Orthodox faith taught and how people should conduct themselves and live in order to be worthy heirs to their ancestors, who had striven throughout their lives to please God.

“That is why we lovingly remember their lives and strive to follow their good deeds in our own lives. That is why we say: May God forgive their souls and grant them the Kingdom of Heaven, for there is no person who lives without sin; only God is without sin. The prayer of the righteous and the prayer of the Church have great power, and we are gathered here as Orthodox Christians, as faithful within the Church of God, together with all the saints and with the Lord. This is the community that saves—our holy Orthodox faith, our Orthodox Church. That is why cemeteries are holy places, because when we come to a cemetery, it is as though we are entering a temple of God,” Jankovic stressed.

Jankovic said that graves were gateways leading toward Paradise, because the faithful hoped that the Lord would open the gates of Paradise to their departed relatives and grant them the Kingdom of Heaven.

“That is why they, from Paradise, also pray to God for us. Whenever something beautiful happens in our lives, know that it comes through the prayers of our holy ancestors. Our lives are protected by the prayers of our holy ancestors. Whenever something good happens to us, know that we are never alone. They pray to God for us, just as we remember them in our prayers. That is why we say: May God forgive their souls and grant them the Kingdom of Heaven, and may God grant all their descendants, all those who remain, life, health, prosperity, joy, peace, freedom and every blessing from our gracious God,” the priest said.

Transportation from North Mitrovica to the cemetery was once again organized this morning, with several dozen residents making use of it.

One woman from Mitrovica who visited the graves of her departed relatives this morning said that the cemetery looked much the same from year to year, although it was now at least recognizable as an Orthodox cemetery.

“What can I say? It is heartbreaking. I really do not have an appropriate word for it that would not be an ugly one, and this is not a place where ugly words should be spoken. Everything you see around you is terrible; everything is broken. I was trying to do something here and was not paying attention at all. I stepped onto an abandoned grave—someone is buried beneath it, and only some remnants remain. Whether it will be restored, whether anyone is taking care of it at all, whether anyone even thinks about this part of the cemetery, I do not know,” she said.

An elderly resident, who visits the cemetery on every All Souls’ Day, said that fewer people were coming than in previous years.

“Every year, whenever it is All Souls’ Day, we come here, but the situation is the same as before, except that there are far fewer people. You can see how few of us from Mitrovica are here—very few indeed,” he said.

The fact that people are now satisfied simply when there has been no new desecration or destruction of gravestones speaks volumes about what the situation was like in the past.

“I am satisfied. Nothing has been broken; everything is as it was. It has been tidied up and the grass has been cut. I am satisfied—that is all I can say,” another resident of North Mitrovica said.