Pakrac, Croatia, September 9, 2025
tvhram.rs
His Holiness Patriarch Porfirije of Serbia led the consecration of the restored Holy Trinity Cathedral in Pakrac, Croatia, on Sunday, joined by several Serbian hierarchs and bishops from three sister Local Churches.
The cathedral, which serves as the seat of the Diocese of Pakrac and Slavonia of the Serbian Orthodox Church, was severely damaged during the 1991-1995 war. The church, originally built between 1745 and 1768, was mined by Croatian forces in early 1992, destroying its iconostasis and numerous church artifacts. Further damage occurred in 1996 when the tomb of Bishop Emilijan of Pakrac was bombed inside the church.
Joining Pat. Porfirije for the Divine Liturgy and consecration were Archbishop Nektarios of Antidon from the Jerusalem Patriarchate, Metropolitan Ignatios of Demetrias and Almyros from the Church of Greece, Archbishop Juraj of Michalovce and Košice from the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, 11 Serbian hierarchs, and a host of clerics, reports the Serbian Church’s Televizija Xram.
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In his sermon following the reading of the Holy Gospel, the Patriarch expressed prayerful wishes that the faithful would always gather in love, mutual understanding and readiness to hear one another, would always come to Pakrac with prayer, in order to glorify the One God in Trinity, to Whom the church is dedicated. He emphasized that the church in Pakrac testifies to the Crucifixion, but also to the Resurrection, and that although it was more than wounded, it testifies to the fact that God is the Lord of history and that He is Love.
tvhram.rs Following the service, the local hierarch Bishop Jovan of Pakrac and Slavonia awarded medals and certificates to individuals and institutions that contributed to the church’s restoration, including Pat. Porfirije and the late Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro.
The ceremony also marked the opening of the Slavonian Diocese Library in the Episcopal Palace. The library, originally established by Bishop Nikanor Grujić as the Episcopal Library in Pakrac, houses the world’s second-largest collection of early Serbian printed books, along with Serbian 18th-century books and European works. The collection was confiscated during World War II and later retained by socialist authorities before being partially returned to the diocese in the mid-1980s. It was largely preserved during the recent war through the efforts of Croatian officer Ivan Hitij.
The restoration of the Holy Trinity Cathedral began in 2003, with work continuing on the church’s interior. The church stands adjacent to the Episcopal Palace and includes the Chapel of St. Tryphon, built in 1747.
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