“We think that today, in Kosovo, we need Marko Kraljević, Miloš Obilić, and the Nine Jugovići, but we forget that perhaps there, among the remaining people, there are knights. I am convinced that everyone who is still in Kosovo is a knight, because it is very difficult to be there today,” Bishop Grigorije told KoSSev. He told the Serbs in Kosovo that everyone had abandoned them except God.
Bishop Grigorije of Germany received the “Knight of the Call” award for 2024, awarded by the LEX association of experts.
“This award both pleases and saddens me at the same time. It pleases me because its existence for 18 years confirms that truth and honor are still recognized as the highest ideals. It saddens me, however, because the number of those who consistently follow these ideals is clearly insufficient, so it is necessary to single them out and reward them for what should actually be taken for granted,” he said on the Grand Stage of the National Theatre in Belgrade on Sunday, where he, along with several other prominent Serbian experts, was awarded the recognition.
He emphasized that the word “knight” contains all the lordship and courage of a nation and its distinguished individuals throughout history: dignity and honor, nobility of spirit, and above all, a willingness to sacrifice one’s own good and privileges for the sake of others and for others, for those who do not have that good and privileges.
“For that act of sacrifice, it is necessary to step out of oneself, to overcome one’s own selfish impulses and needs, and to put the common good and noble goals first and foremost. Only from such a selfless spirit are noble ideas and deeds born. Such a selfless spirit, full of potential for noble deeds, is manifested today among these young people, students and pupils, who advocate for the common good, and that precisely when we thought that there were no more knights or that there were very few left,” said Bishop Grigorije.
In an interview for KoSSev, he explained that in his address he mentioned precisely that the word knight has a multi-layered meaning, and that in our people, a knight is always someone who is a fighter for honor.
“A fighter primarily for others, because he is never a fighter only for himself. That is why it was truly an honor to receive the aforementioned award, although I believe it sounds archaic when we mention the word knight in our time. However, I think that our people have truly nurtured the meaning of that word and given it an ontological meaning. That is why it is very beautiful and significant, and it would be good if young people wanted to be knights, and that in the deepest sense of the word. A knight who was not only by name and title but also by life and behavior,” Bishop Grigorije recalled.
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When asked who today’s knights are for him, he explained that he sees them in those who protect the helpless.
“So, in brave mothers, brave sisters, brave workers and peasants, among brave people who work in the prosecution, judiciary, among brave doctors, professors, brave students and pupils. That is what, in fact, gives that word enormous strength and dimension – the thought that it is noble to be a knight and that one should fight for it. And what is even more important, everyone can be that. When I say everyone, I mean everyone in their profession, whether they are a farmer or an academic,” he stated.
He emphasized that Kosovo is for him a land of knights. “It was so in the past, but it is also so now. What is even more important, we think that today in Kosovo we need Marko Kraljević, Miloš Obilić, and the Nine Jugovići, but we forget that perhaps there, among those remaining people, there are such people precisely in the sense I just talked about. A knight is everyone who is still in Kosovo, because it is simply – we know this very well – very difficult to be in Kosovo today,” said Bishop Grigorije.
He added that it is necessary to talk with the authorities in Pristina “long and openly.” “I would tell them that they have no one closer in Kosovo than us and that we have no one closer than them, and that we must talk to each other. They with us and we with them. That we must talk about our wounds, about our disagreements, that we must talk about our future, because the truth is that we have no future without each other,” he explained.
“Discerning youth is our greatest hope”
When asked what the outgoing year sowed for the next, Bishop Grigorije replied that it was above all the appearance of youth who will fight for life, for justice, and for dignity.
“Those are our students and pupils. For me, that is the most beautiful thing that could have happened at the end of this terrible year, in this confused world in which we live and in this confused country. That youth who is discerning, who knows what they are talking about, who knows what they want – they are our greatest hope,” Bishop Grigorije is convinced.
When KoSSev asked what he would say to the Serbs in Kosovo, he replied: “I would tell them that, unfortunately, everyone has abandoned them except God.”
Note: This translation aims to be as accurate as possible while maintaining the style and tone of the original text. However, nuances in language and cultural references can be challenging to fully convey in a different language.
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Source: N1, Photo: Vesna Lalić / Nova.rs