ERP KIM Newsletter 20-04-04

Devic sisterhood returns to its burned out monastery - First Holy Liturgy served in Devic one month after the pogrom

Devic nuns return to the ashes of their monastery - Restoration of destroyed holy shrine begins - First Holy Liturgy served in Devic - Princess Linda Karadjordjevic visits Kosovo's destroyed holy shrines, takes Holy Communion with Devic sisterhood during liturgy

Devic nuns begin restoration of their destroyed holy shrine - Mother Agripina busily at work clearing the ruins (Click on photo to enlarge)

ERP KIM Info Service
Gracanica-Devic, April 20, 2004

ERP KIM Info Service correspondent Fr. Jezekilj Stakic visited the monastery of Devic on Saturday, April 17, and together with photo reporters from "Glas Juga" (Voice of the South) took photos to record the beginning of the restoration of the monastery of Devic. With the photographs by "Glas Juga" and the ERP KIM Info Service we are including an article published in Belgrade daily "Politika" on April 17, 2004 which records in words the moving story of the courage of the Devic nuns who, for the second time in the past 100 years, have started to rebuild the monastery on its ruins. Some of the older nuns were young novices after World War II when they worked with the late Abbess Paraskeva on the restoration of their holy shrine, burned down in 1941 by Albanian Balists. The Devic sisters returned to their torched monastery on April 16, almost one month after their exile subsequent to the destruction of the shrine by Kosovo Albanian mob.

First liturgy on the ashes of Devic

Today on the ashes of the monastery of Devic the first Holy Liturgy was served by Fr. Petar Ulemek, the abbot of the monastery of Djurdjevi Stupovi near Novi Pazar, and Fr. Radivoje Panic, the parish priest of the church of St. Aleksander Nevsky in Belgrade, who for many years has been the serving priest of this monastery.

ERP KIM Info Service, April 18, 2004

Today on the ashes of the monastery of Devic the first Holy Liturgy was served by Fr. Petar Ulemek, the abbot of the monastery of Djurdjevi Stupovi near Novi Pazar, and Fr. Radivoje Panic, the parish priest of the church of St. Aleksander Nevsky in Belgrade, who for many years has been the serving priest of this monastery. Fr. Radivoje and Mother Makarija of Sokolica Monastery brought French KFOR to Devic in June 1999 and saved the Devic sisterhood and hieromonk Seraphim, who were being held prisoner by members of the Kosovo Liberation Army. 

In addition to the Devic sisterhood Holy Liturgy was also attended by the nuns of the Pec Patriarchate and HRH Princess Linda Karadjordjevic, who has recently been touring the ashes of destroyed Orthodox shrines and expressing her great solidarity with the suffering people. Princess Linda is the first member of the Karadjordjevic family to visit Kosovo and Metohija after last month's pogrom and offer her support and encouragement. In the last few days, Princess Linda has visited Decani, the Pec Patriarchate, Gorazdevac, Prizren, Gracanica as well as other destroyed Serbian churches and villages, calling on the people to be courageous and determined in their desire to remain in their centuries-old homes.

This noble gesture by the brave princess, who in previous wars visited the victims of war with her late husband, HRH Prince Tomislav, to deliver humanitarian aid, will be remembered in the hearts of the Serbs of Kosovo and Metohija.

ERP KIM Info Service report on the destruction of the monastery of Devic during the March pogrom:

Photo gallery on the destruction of Devic monastery in March pogrom:
http://www.kosovo.net/pogrom_march/devic1/page_01.htm

Politika daily, Belgrade
April 17, 2004

AFTER ALMOST ONE MONTH IN EXILE

Sisterhood returned to Devic

Four more nuns expected to join them from Sokolica Monastery - Restoration of the 15th century holy shrine begins

Accompanied by a strong escort of French KFOR troops, four nuns from the monastery of Devic were returned yesterday to the ashes of an Orthodox holy shrine built in the 15th century which was completely destroyed during the rioting of Albanian terrorists and then looted until March 21. The nuns of this sisterhood who returned yesterday will be housed in two portable containers received as part of a humanitarian shipment. Due to the fact that connections with this monastery, located in the municipality of Srbica, are very difficult and impossible, workers of the Belgrade institute for the protection of cultural monuments have already begun working on restoring this Orthodox shrine.

The eight nuns managed to evacuate following the Albanian attack on March 17 with the help of French KFOR and were subsequently lodged in the monastery of Sokolica near Zvecan, whose sisterhood refused to leave their monastery despite direct danger from Albanian extremists.

Elderly nuns of Devic before the ruins of their holy shrines whose walls have been covered with KLA graffiti

March rampage

According to Abbess Makarija from the monastery of Sokolica, telephone service with the sisterhood of the monastery of Devic is interrupted; there are still four more nuns in the monastery of Sokolica waiting for French KFOR to transport them to Devic.

We remind that the terrorists completely destroyed and set fire to the monastery, as well as the church of the Dormition of the Theotokos (Mother of God), the chapel of St. Joanikije (Ioannichus) and all the residence quarters. The tomb of St. Joanikije was desecrated; it was opened by force and filled with garbage.

This is only one of 30 monasteries and churches that have been destroyed during the March rampage by Albanian terrorists. The monastery of Devic was the last remaining Serbian holy site out of 13 formerly in the region of Drenica. All of the others were destroyed in the period since 1999 and the arrival of KFOR and the UN mission in Kosovo.

Tradition states that the monastery of Devic was built in the location of a hollow beech tree where Joanikije of Devic, the saint to whom this holy shrine is dedicated, lived in his ascetic labors. He built the church dedicated to the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. Later the church, as well as the other monastery buildings, were restored by Despot Djuradj Brankovic out of gratitude after he cured his seriously ill daughter in the monastery. The monastery was destroyed during the Turkish occupation and remained desolate until the restoration of the Pec Patriarchate in 1557.

The monastery of Devic suffered its greatest destruction at the beginning of World War II. Nevertheless, the nuns continue to maintain it; the greatest thanks go to Abbess Paraskeva who worked for 30 years on the restoration of this Orthodox holy shrine.

However, in 1999 Albanian extremists again attack the monastery, looting it, breaking the cover on the sacrophagus of St. Joanikije and mutilating the icons by inscribing on them the acronym UCK (KLA). Upon the departure of the Serbian Army and police the same year, the nuns of Devic left the holy shrine. Soon afterward members of French KFOR assumed control of the monastery, and the nuns returned. However, attacks and rampaging by Albanian terrorists from the municipality of Srbica were continuous. On several occasions the Albanian extremists looted and attacked the nuns, the French KFOR troops barely managed to defend them from such attacks.

The monastery complex includes about 100 hectares of meadows and forests. In one of the attacks and break ins into the monastery estate, the Albanians first killed all the watchdogs on the property and then looted it, taking all the agricultural machinery. They also stole the livestock from the barn on that occasion.

Return to the ashes of Devic http://www.kosovo.net/povratnici/devic/page_01.htm Photos: Glas Juga and ERP KIM Info Service (Click on any photo to enlarge) The photographs show the ashes of the monastery of Devic which the Albanians looted and set on fire on March 17-18, 2004 after KFOR troops forced the sisterhood to evacuate. We also see pictures of the sisterhood as they begin to clear the ruins, photos of the portable container and tent where they are lodged and the ruins of the residence quarters and church. In the end, as a sign of hope, we see flowers on the graves of nuns where Albanian vandals have broken all the crosses.

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Miracle-working waters

According to tradition the spring water from the spring located some 50 m. from the monastery has healing properties. For centuries this monastery was visited by numerous pilgrims of all confessions and creeds for whom this monastery represented the same thing in this region as the monastery of St. Basil of Ostrog in Montenegro. However, this did not prevent the Albanian extremists and terrorists from constantly attacking on the helpless nuns, who determinedly resisted their daily disturbances.

It should also be said that the monastery of Devic was a meeting place for Serbs from remaining nearby Serb villages near Srbica. They would come here with strong KFOR escorts to seek salvation and cure themselves with the miracle-working waters and its healing properties. This included Serbs from Suvo Grlo, Crkolez and Banja, as well as returnees from Osojane some 30 kilometers from Devic. Since 1999 the monastery complex is extremely difficult to access. Serbs from northern Kosovo, as well as all others in the province, can come here only escorted by armored transporter since the road leads through exclusively Albanian villages and settlements as well as through Srbica itself and the notorious village of Lausa nearby, to get to Devic, located only 25 kilometers from Kosovska Mitrovica.

B. Radomirovic
http://www.politika.co.yu/juce/tekst.asp-t=3913&r=40.htm

Mother Anastasija, the abbess of Devic (right) and young nun Efimija in front of the ashes of their monastery on March 23, shortly after it was torched by Albanian mobs from nearby Lausa, Ludovic and other villages. (Click on photo to enlarge)