URGENT INVESTIGATION EXPECTED REGARDING DISAPPEARANCE OF BELL FROM CHURCH IN BRNJAČA

BELGRADE, JULY 21 /SRNA/ - The Eparchy of Raška-Prizren announced that it received the news of the disappearance of the bell from the church in the village of Brnjača, near Orahovac, with deep concern, and it expects an urgent investigation into the matter, specifically to examine whether this case contains elements of religious or ethnic intolerance.

The Eparchy expects the so-called Kosovo police to conduct a thorough investigation into the disappearance of the bell from the Church of the Holy Great Martyr Nedelja in the village of Brnjača, and for international representatives to closely monitor the actions of the authorities, as many previous attacks, burglaries, and desecrations of Serbian Orthodox Church properties have not resulted in police or judicial resolutions. It was emphasized that a church bell is not merely a piece of church property, but a consecrated liturgical object that calls the faithful to prayer and gathering. Because of this, as explained by the Eparchy, its disappearance precisely on the day of the church's patron saint feast has deeply disturbed the few believers in this area, keeping in mind that this church—near which no Serbian population currently lives—already suffered during the March violence in 2004. "Only a swift, professional, and impartial investigation can show that the sanctuaries and rights of the Serbian Orthodox Church are truly protected in practice, and not just declaratively," the statement concluded. Upon arriving at the Church of Holy Nedelja in Brnjača near Orahovac on the day of the patron saint feast, believers noticed that the bell was missing, prompting them to call the police. Believers gather at the Church of Holy Nedelja in Brnjača twice a year, on Thomas Sunday and on today's feast of the Holy Great Martyr Nedelja, when a liturgy is served, after which a priest leads a procession accompanied by the sound of the bell.