Bishop Ilarion Brings Icon to Raskovic Family in Dren

Bishop Ilarion of Novo Brdo, auxiliary bishop to Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, visited the village of Dren in the Zubin Potok municipality on August 15 and presented Nenad Raskovic’s family with an icon of the Lord Jesus Christ. Children in the village received financial assistance. Monks from the Visoki Decani monastery joined the visit, which, according to the Eparchy of Raska and Prizren, took place with the blessing of Metropolitan Teodosije of Raska and Prizren.

Bishop Ilarion arrived in Dren shortly after the patron saint’s day, the slava, at Banjska monastery, where he had spoken earlier that same day, in a homily before worshippers, of those whose homes are being torn down and who are being beaten. Raskovic had ended up in the hospital four days earlier, on August 11, with serious injuries, saying that three Kosovo police officers had taken him into the woods, tied him to a tree and beaten him with a hose.

What Was Said in Banjska

The slava of Banjska monastery, the Translation of the Relics of the Holy Protomartyr and Archdeacon Stephen, was marked on August 15. The Holy Hierarchical Liturgy was led by Bishop Pajsije of Diokleja, concelebrated by Bishop Ilarion, together with dozens of hieromonks and in the presence of worshippers.

In his homily, Bishop Ilarion linked the site of the gathering to what has been happening in the surrounding villages in recent weeks.

We are gathered here at the place where God’s glory was revealed, but also at the place of our suffering. Let us not forget all those who suffered innocently.

Speaking a little later about the position of Serbs in the north, he was more direct:

These days especially, we must pray for our brothers and sisters whose homes are being torn down, who are being beaten, humiliated and intimidated.

The message he conveyed on behalf of Patriarch Porfirije was not a call to leave.

We must stay and build peace with all people of good will. That is the only message of our love.

The bishop then explained how he understands that obligation, saying that Christians are “servants of the Gospel, of good news, meant to be those who build rather than those who tear down,” and that faith also demands its hardest part:

We must say “brother” even to those who hate us. I know that is not always easy, but that is our faith.

Four Families, One Road

Four families with children live in the village of Dren. The Eparchy of Raska and Prizren described the visit as an expression of solidarity with the small community.

Four families with children live in the village of Dren. On behalf of His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, Bishop Ilarion presented the family with an icon of the Lord Jesus Christ, while the children received financial assistance as a sign of the Church’s support, encouragement and brotherly love.

The villagers raised two concrete requests with their guests that they have been making for a long time: a better road to the village and support for a community center where they could gather. Those requests do not depend on the outcome of any investigation, but on the municipality and on whoever funds infrastructure in the north.

How the Visit Came About

Raskovic was admitted to the Kosovska Mitrovica Clinical Hospital Center on August 11, and because of the severity of his injuries, which included broken ribs, he was transferred by ambulance to the Emergency Center of the Clinical Center of Serbia in Belgrade. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic visited him in the hospital. The Kosovo Police Inspectorate has opened a preliminary investigation into the conduct of the officers Raskovic accuses of the attack.

We reported on the case when Raskovic was transferred to Belgrade. Bishop Ilarion’s visit marks the first time since that incident that a senior figure from the Serbian Orthodox Church has come to the village itself, and not to Zubin Potok but to the small hamlet where the few people who have not left still remain.

The icon and the money for the children are, by their nature, a gesture. The road to Dren and the community center are something that can be measured, and that is what the villagers were asking for while the visit was under way.