SIX BISHOPS SPEAK OUT AGAINST OFFENSIVE REMARKS ABOUT STUDENTS: “Metropolitan David’s text, in which he calls our youth ‘Ustaše,’ is a shameful stain on the body of the church!”

After Metropolitan David of Kruševac, in his text published on the official website of the Serbian Orthodox Church, linked students to a “color revolution” and referred to them as “Serbian Ustaše,” six bishops have publicly responded, condemning such rhetoric and calling for respect for students, responsible expression, and the preservation of the Church’s unity.

Their statement is presented in full:

Given that various accusations against students have appeared in public in recent days, some of which were made by church dignitaries and published through the official media of the Serbian Orthodox Church, we feel the need and duty to express our position and call for respect for students and their righteous and dignified struggle, as well as for responsible speech and reporting:

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CALL FOR RESPECT FOR STUDENTS, RESPONSIBLE EXPRESSION, AND REPORTING

As bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, we feel obligated to publicly express our disagreement and distance ourselves from any speech that dehumanizes others, especially speech that belittles young people, students, as a factor in building society and contributing to its future, or that humiliates them for thinking and seeking the truth.

The Church of Christ, as the chosen people and the house of the Living God, exists in every era to guide all people toward salvation with love. History teaches us that any speech that denies the dignity of others leads to great social tragedies, and as shepherds, we must not allow such rhetoric to take hold in our people and our Church. Words serve for communication. They are a force and a foundation for change and must be authentic to be true to themselves. As Christians, we live by witnessing the Word, which is God Himself.

In these days of preparation for Great Lent, Metropolitan David of Kruševac, in his latest text, which was also published on the official website of the Serbian Orthodox Church, placed students in the context of a “color revolution,” marking them in such a way that they are perceived as “Serbian Ustaše.” This is both offensive and unacceptable. We believe that it is not justified for a bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church today to remain silent in the face of such words—words that demonstrate insensitivity and disregard for the Body of the Church. Their dehumanizing nature compels us to speak out. The Serbian people, having endured the horrors of Ustaša terror, know that identifying anyone with such a monstrous movement must never happen again, primarily out of reverence and respect for the victims. But likewise, labeling our youth with such words is more than disgraceful—it is a shameful stain on the Body of the Church.

Students are our future, and it is our duty to guide them with love and understanding, even if they err at times, rather than reject and demean them. Only with such an approach can we preserve unity, freedom, and the dignity of every person, which is the essence of the Orthodox faith and the ethos of our Church and the tradition of Saint Sava.

For all these reasons, we can no longer stand idly by. After such statements, which have also appeared on the official website of the Serbian Orthodox Church, we wish to clearly and unequivocally state that our Church does not believe our students are “Serbian Ustaše.” This kind of rhetoric, combined with the suppression of dissenting voices from the Church’s official platform, has led to a tyranny of arrogant and offensive words spoken without accountability.

Every free person fights for what they believe to be true, fights as if their actions can influence the course of events, even if they do not, but always guided by the principle of never speaking or publishing anything that could incite hatred. In these days, our students are giving us this lesson.

We can no longer be indifferent or ignore the suffering of others, like Job’s friends, living in illusions and rhetoric about cosmic justice. Instead, we must be initiators and followers of goodness and justice for every individual, especially our youth.

We also appeal to our fellow bishops, urging them not to allow this kind of language to become normalized and entrenched. Furthermore, we request a review of the editorial policy of the official website of the Serbian Orthodox Church, as it must reflect the Church’s conciliar nature, its voice, and its maternal care.

Finally, we must remember Christ’s words that man does not live by bread alone, “but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”—that is, from the mouth of Christ, who is pure Love and Mercy. As we enter Great Lent, we hope that this unfortunate event will awaken us to preserve the Church together as the Body of Christ—not for tyranny, but for the salvation of us all.

This statement was signed by: Metropolitan Grigorije of Germany, Metropolitan Joanikije of Montenegro and the Littoral, Metropolitan Justin of Žiča, Metropolitan Dimitrije of Zahumlje-Herzegovina and the Littoral, Archbishop Maksim of Western America, and Bishop Irinej of Eastern America.