CEC Visit Addresses Kosovo Religious Freedom & Social Reconstruction

A five-member delegation from the Conference of European Churches (CEC) has completed a four-day visit to Serbia on 14 February. As it is the first official visit by CEC to the country since 2001, it has been very fruitful in renewing the relationship with the churches there. The prominent leaders from CEC have also reviewed the social life in war-torn Kosovo, which was ravaged by inter-ethnic conflicts in March last year.

The visit was hosted by the Serbian Orthodox Church. It aimed to renew and strengthen the links between CEC and the Orthodox Church and other member churches of CEC. In Belgrade, following a visit to the Orthodox Faculty of Theology, the delegation met with His Holiness Pavle, Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, and members of the Holy Synod.

Later, CEC leaders met the leaders of the three Protestant CEC member churches in Vjovodina including Bishop Samuel Vrbovsky and Dr Arpad Dolinszky (Slovak Lutheran Church in Yugoslavia), Bishop Istvan Csete-Szemesi (Reformed Church), and Superintendent Ana Palik-Kuncak (Methodist Church) and continued the meeting in Novi Sad where they held lengthy discussions with His Eminence Bishop Irinej of Backa.

The delegation headed for Kosovo on Saturday 12th February. They visited the historic sites of Serbian Orthodoxy in Kosovo: the monastery of Gracinica, the ancient churches of the Patriarchate of Pec, and the monastery of Decani, all of which are under armed protection by the troops of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) and the NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR).

In wake of the fears of the Serb minority in Kosovo, the need for an early return for Serb refugees and displaced persons, and the prospects for inter-religious dialogue were discussed at Gracinica with His Eminence Bishop Artemije of Prizren and Kosovo-Metohija and at Decani with Bishop Teodosije.

In addition, the delegation met Mr Søren Jessen-Petersen, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Kosovo and his staff. They addressed the need for security to be maintained, for confidence to be rebuilt among the communities in Kosovo, the prospects for return of refugees and the role which the church can play in the processes of reconstruction.

Apart from social reconstruction, the rising restrictions in religious laws in Kosovo have sparked great concern from the CEC. Last November, a new draft religious law was introduced. It will require religious communities to gain registration with the Ministry of Public Services to perform any religious ceremonies or religious public speakings. In addition, new religious groups, in order to be recognised as officially sanctioned religious communities must be at least five years old and have a membership of at least 500 people.

In Kosovo, there are numerous small independent Protestant communities with their own traditions and many express that it is unfair to force them into one union. The Evangelical Movement of Kosovo, a coalition of several Albanian-speaking Protestant churches, wrote in a statement criticising the draft law, "We believe the rights of religious freedom within the Protestant community of Kosovo will be seriously hindered should the existing draft of this Law on Religious Freedom be adopted in its present form."

Therefore, the delegation has captured this opportunity to reflect on the opinions of Protestant Christians to the Serbian Minister of Faiths, Mr Milan Radulovic. The proposed new Religious Law for Serbia, would especially affect the Methodist Church and the Baptist Church, which are not recognised as "traditional church".

On returning to Geneva CEC General Secretary Dr Clements stated, "This visit underlined for us the need to stay with and encourage our member churches in difficult and complex situations once they are no longer news headlines. It was most encouraging to see how the Orthodox Church is recruiting into its own life, and that of related organisations, very gifted and committed young people who want to translate their faith into social praxis with openness for dialogue. This is particularly significant for us in CEC in view of our sponsorship of projects for peace-building and inter-religious dialogue in South-East Europe. But huge challenges remain."

"Above all, Kosovo must not be forgotten. Hope there is still very tenuous after the tragedies of March last year. But no opportunity, however small it may seem, must be lost to maintain and promote the status of Kosovo as a multiethnic society. In that effort, Serb and Albanian politicians, the international community and Serbian religious leaders themselves all have inescapable responsibilities - and so do we in the ecumenical world."

The five-member delegation on Serbia trip comprised: Rev. Dr Keith Clements, General Secretary of CEC; His Eminence Bishop Athanasios of Achaia (Church of Greece, member of CEC Central Committee); Dr Mariela Michailova (Methodist Church, Bulgaria, member of CEC Central Committee); and Rev. Matthew Ross (Executive Secretary, CEC Church and Society Commission, Brussels). A fifth person appointed to the delegation, Okrin Antje Heider-Rottwilm (Evangelical Church of Germany) was unfortunately unable to participate at the last minute due to illness.