The dialogue between the SOC and the MOC-OA must be continued in order to resolve the church issue

 

 The Bishop of Backa, Irinej (Bulović), said that the dialogue between the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) and the Macedonian Orthodox Church - Ohrid Archbishopric (MOC-OA) should be continued to resolve the open church issue, the Skopje-based Nezavisen newspaper reported.

In an interview with the Serbian weekly Pechat, published on the Backa Diocese's website, Bishop Irinej, a spiritual father and one of Serbian Patriarch Porphyry's closest associates, said the current general situation in the Republic of Northern Macedonia and the spiritual needs of believers encourages dialogue as the only right way to solve the problem.

 He points out that, as he states, there is no longer any judicial-police violence against Jovan Vraniskovski, the first hierarch of the SOC-related POA, its priests, monks and believers. However, he noted that the Strasbourg court's decision to register the POA had not yet been implemented.

 "I believe that despite these negative side effects, the general atmosphere of our southern neighbors and, above all, the necessary spiritual need allows for the continuation of the dialogue between our Church and the Church, which is divided. And not only does it make it possible, but it encourages and calls for dialogue as the only right and effective way to overcome this decade-long problem. The unity of the Church and its canonical order is the greatest gift of God for us and at the same time the most important task and feat ", says the Bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church Irinej Bachki.

 The call for the resumption of dialogue between the Serbian and Macedonian churches comes after the recent reception of the Bishop of Antanya and Abbot of the Bigorski Parthenius Monastery, accompanied by monks and nuns to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople. issue and recognition of MOC-OA.

 The reception of Bishop Parthenius with the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew followed the visit to Athens, where he attended an evening service and a Divine Liturgy in the church "St. Panteleimon ”, the largest temple in the Greek capital, as well as the International Festival of Orthodox Church Music, with the blessing of the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Jerome.

The Serbian Orthodox Church, previously through the vicar of Patriarch Porphyry, Bishop Anthony of Moravia, has threatened that a split with the Ecumenical Patriarchate is possible if the autocephaly of the MOC-OA is recognized.

 The SPC has been in a decade-long dispute with the MOC-OA, challenging its autocephaly. The periodic talks did not lead to a positive result, which is why the MOC-OA recently turned to Fanar and Patriarch Bartholomew to resolve their status.