Ministry of defence Republic of Serbia
 
28.06.2010.

Minister's oration on St. Vitus day



At the ceremonious academy, at the church entrance of the Temple in Nis, on occasion of St. Vitus day, gave an oration:

"Your Holiness, ladies and gentlemen, officers:

It is with great honor and pleasure that I can address you on this day pregnant with symbolism for the Serbian people, on behalf of the Ministry of Defense and the Serbian armed forces.

The Battle of Kosovo is certainly one of the most important events in the history of the Serbian people, it is a symbol which determined our history in so many ways, not by obliging us to preserve our identity, to patiently await the Battle in Kumanovo, but because this particular event harnesses and directs the energy of the Serbian nation.
One might say that this was just a military affair, but this was by no mean an ordinary battle, as our army was commanded by a saint, a martyr, and this battle regardless of its outcome had deeply rooted us in our faith. The keepers of St. Vitus day are both the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serbian army, which is why this safe of history needs two keys to be unlocked, one key being the army the other the church.
When that is not the case we can witness a malformation and a bending of the collective energy of our people.

The other great symbol bequeathed by St. Sava is that of a bridge between the eats and the West, an east in the West and the west in the East which also needs two keys to be unlocked.

The army has always shared a rather tumultuous history with the Serbian people, and many battles were waged. We take great pride in many battles. St. Vitus Day is an inexhaustible inspiration not to falter and not to give up in the battling the OBLIVION,. When one nation, with such a rich history as ours, allows its collective memory to fade, then we face a much more sinister defeat than any real defeat in the battlefield.

Both the citizens of Serbia as well as their army are well aware of this, especially today as we are trying to catch up with the world, and attain our strategic goal and priority, that is, rapid integration with EU where we have always belonged.

We want to share the same EU values other democratic nations share and found their democracies on.

Peace, stability, tolerance between nations, respecting human rights, territorial integrity, freedom, cultural and national values and religion are the principles we are building modern Serbia on.

These are the same principles for reforming our defense system.

We tried and we will keep trying to prove the trust deposited in us by our citizens. The public opinion polls confirm that we are on our way to achieve this.
SAF have taken the leading positions as regards the respect and status it has in our society, along with our church.


After seventy years, we have started a hard work of preparing strategic documents and introducing church service in the army again.

In line with our tradition our army observes all religious holidays, and soon we will introduce professional military priests

Your Holiness,

I would like to take this opportunity to stress the importance of cooperation between Serbian armed forces and the Serbian Orthodox Church, especially in the field of education.

In cooperation with the Department for Education of the Blgrade-Karlovac diocese run by the vicar of Patriarch Irinej bishop Atanasije Rakita, I would like to inform You that we have regular catechism classes in the Military Grammar School, while also hosting lectures at MA on various religious subjects relevant for the spiritual growth of our cadets.

Your Holiness, ladies and gentlemen,
Today is a good day to send a message of peace, understanding, tolerance, good neighbourly relations, solidarity and reconciliation.

We are building a strong European future with the European family of nations and contribute to the internal growth of our country, progress of our citizens, stability and security in the region and the whole Europe.

By creating a region of peace, progress, and cooperation we can serve our forefathers best, who had laid their lives for peace and liberty.

That is our responsibility for the future; it is our decision as was the decision of our St. Vitus forefathers.

LONG LIVE SERBIA
 
MOD
Ministry of defence Republic of Serbia, Bircaninova 5 street, Belgrade
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