Paschal joy in Lipljan

KiM Info Newsletter 26-04-06

KIM Info Service, Lipljan, April 24, 2006

With the blessing of the diocesan hierarch, the hegumen (abbot) of Visoki Decani Monastery and Auxiliary Bishop of Lipljan Teodosije served Holy Hierarchal Liturgy today, on Resurrection Monday, in the church of the Holy Martyrs Florus and Laurus in Lipljan.

"I feel great joy to be here today among the honorable and noble people of famous Lipljan, once the ancient diocese of St. Sava, whose name I bear as vicar bishop," said Bishop Teodosije in his address to the people, who greeted him in great number to share the joy of Christ's Resurrection with him.

After reading the Paschal Epistle of Bishop Artemije of Raska and Prizren in the church overflowing with the faithful, Bishop Teodosije in his own homily encouraged those present to stay in their centuries-old homes in Kosovo and Metohija, and to faithfully guard the covenant of the Holy Prince Lazar.

"We must not look behind us and count how long we have lasted and what we have suffered through. We must always look forward at our goal. If we started well but did not persist and endure to the end and reach our goal, we will not have the wreath of life given to us by the Lord," said Bishop Teodosije. He also pointed out the significance "of Christ's Resurrection, which shows us that our true homeland is the Kingdom of Heaven, which is not of this world and which we win in our hearts through the Holy Mysteries and holy virtues". The Bishop also called on the faithful to remain faithful to the Church and to gather in their churches which "like spiritual lighthouses show us the way toward a future Kingdom and maintain us in a community of the faithful people of God - the Church of Christ".

The Bishop of Lipljan presented gifts and monetary assistance valued at some 6,000 euros to more than 300 children from Lipljan and the surrounding villages who gathered in the church for Holy Liturgy as a gift from Orthodox faithful in the United States of America through the Decani Monastery Relief Fund (DMRF) and other donations. Bishop Teodosije also said that "children represent the future of Kosovo and Metohija and that all of us in Kosovo today have a great responsibility so that they can grow up in peace and joy, like their peers elsewhere in the world". The Bishop called on parents to bring their children to church services regularly "for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven" (Mat 19:14).

After Holy Hierarchal Liturgy in Lipljan Bishop Teodosije visited the monasteries of Gracanica and Gorioc near Istok to wish the sisterhoods of these monasteries a happy paschal holiday. The next day, on Resurrection Tuesday, the Bishop of Lipljan will be serving Holy Hierarchal Liturgy in the monastery of the Pec Patriarchate with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Pavle.