Addressing the faithful during the feast day of the Banjska Monastery, Bishop Grigorije delivered a message of endurance, compassion, and the sanctity of life, urging believers to resist hatred even in the face of hostility from neighbours.
“Brothers and sisters, however painful it may be, and no matter how emotionally charged we feel when we step into this sacred land – because our neighbours are not good to us – we must remember that they are our neighbours,” he said.
“We must sometimes be their sunshade, sometimes their umbrella, but never, ever a threat to life. Without this, there is no salvation for us. This is the Gospel. This is why we have endured here so far – and the only way we will continue to endure and overcome evil.”
The monastery marked its patronal feast – the Translation of the Relics of Saint Stephen the Protomartyr and Archdeacon – with a liturgy led by Bishop Grigorije of Düsseldorf and Germany, Metropolitan Teodosije of Raška-Prizren, and Bishop Ilarion of Novo Brdo, alongside clergy and monastics of the Eparchy.
This year also marked the 21st anniversary of the revival of monastic life in this medieval endowment of King Milutin, abandoned for 520 years until August 15, 2004, when the late Serbian Patriarch Pavle celebrated the Divine Liturgy here.
“Life is the Greatest Gift”
Drawing on biblical imagery of the vineyard, Bishop Grigorije reminded the congregation that every person is a caretaker – of a family, community, or their own body – but ultimately, “the Lord is the vine grower of all vineyards.”
“There is no greater gift than the gift of life,” he said, stressing that imperfections are part of its perfection and cannot destroy God’s gift. Those who see life as a gift, he added, will live with gratitude rather than constant lament.
Banjska – A Place of Light and Suffering
While he did not directly mention the 2023 attack by a Serbian paramilitary group in Banjska – which left Kosovo Police Sergeant Afrim Bunjaku and three Serbs dead – Bishop Grigorije described Banjska as “a place of beauty and light, but also of suffering… a place where life was lost and where life was attacked – always a terrible sin.”
Recalling the martyrdom of Saint Stephen and the conversion of Saul into Paul, he urged believers to follow the example of those who endure, not those who harm:
“Even when they are a threat to our lives, we must not imitate the stoners, but those who suffer, as Stephen suffered.”
He concluded with an appeal to keep hearts free from hatred:
“Endure, so that you never let a grain of hatred enter your heart. Celebrate life – even here, with all the difficulties – for here, too, it is perfect to live. Faith is what makes this possible.”
From Banjska, Teodosije Reminds: “Our Path Is the Cross – But Never Meaningless”
“We are witnesses in Kosovo and Metohija to our suffering and to the cross, but we are also witnesses to resurrection and renewal,” Metropolitan Teodosije said today from Banjska Monastery.
He shared a message of resilience, describing the Christian path as one of the cross and suffering – but never meaningless.
“After the cross, after Golgotha, after the crucifixion, the Lord gives us renewal and resurrection,” he said. He thanked Bishop Grigorije for his unwavering support of Kosovo, adding: “This holy liturgy means a great deal to us, especially here in this monastery, where we have endured, suffered, and remained through God’s power and grace.”
Metropolitan Teodosije also acknowledged Banjska’s history as both a place of light and of suffering. He urged the faithful to safeguard their lives and make righteous choices. “Sin is a wrong choice, a turning away from God. If we choose wrongly and sin, the Lord will allow it, but we will bear the consequences for years and even centuries,” he warned.
Metropolitan Teodosije from Banjska: “We Are Witnesses to Suffering, But Also to Resurrection”
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