06.05.2018.
Celebration of Slava of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces
The General Secretary of the President of the Republic of Serbia and Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces, Nikola Selaković and Minister of Defence Aleksandar Vulin attended today the celebration of Slava of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, Holy Martyr George – Đurđevdan, in the barracks “Banjica” in Belgrade.
The divine episcopal liturgy was conducted by His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Irinej. The host and the God father of Slava that was marked in the General Staff for the first time, was Chief of the General Staff General Ljubiša Diković.Congratulating the Slava, Patriarch Irinej said: “This is a great day in our history”.
- I am glad to be here with you today. This great holiday is celebrated by the entire Orthodox world. It is a great name in our church. He used to be what you, who are present here, are – a high ranking officer in then Roman army. It gives us great hope for our survival despite all hardships and hostilities around us, because we are not alone. As the great Apostle Paul used to say: “who will dare go against us if we are with God.” This is the first Slava celebrated by our General Staff, which is a great event and our orientation towards God’s truth. May this beautiful example be followed in our future in the entire Serbia, may we remain close and united together, since our power lies in our unity and harmony – Patriarch Irinej sent a message.
General Diković underlined that celebrating the Slava of the General Staff could have happened much sooner but “it took time for the people to mature”.
- We understood that we could be even more useful to ourselves and others through the faith in God as well, regardless of the religious affiliation. There were often examples in our history of soldiers of Muslim or Catholic religion fighting side by side with us. Today as well we are a multi-ethnic environment and that is how we will continue to be and be the pride of all. Our tradition and our power have brought us to this day when we celebrate the Slava of the General Staff – St. George, who believed in God and did not flinch in face of such force such as imperial power-wielders and who eventually gave his life for the faith. It is important that our officers, NCOs and soldiers believed in God, justice, the state they belong to and be as tough as St. George. Building such soldier’s path we need this Slava and this day – the Chief of General Staff concluded.In memory of this day and of the Slava of the General Staff, General Diković presented Patriarch Irinej with a plaque of the Serbian Armed Forces wishing that the priesthood, like it had been the case until that moment, was support to our people both in good and bad times. Also, General Diković presented the icon of St. George to Chief military chaplain Major Slađan Vlajić as a token of gratitude.
