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On Tuesday, Patriarch Irinej Gavrilović, the head of the influential Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), denounced a gay pride march planned for the weekend, adding to tensions over the event, which faced threats from extremists. He issued a statement that the “shameless” event casts a moral shadow on Serbia… a conservative Balkan country whose gay population faces harassment. Officials suggested that they could allow Sunday’s event despite fears of a repeat of the violence in 2010 when rightwing groups attacked a gay march in Belgrade, triggering clashes with police that left more than 100 people injured. Authorities banned gay marches planned for the following three years, citing security reasons. Some see that holding the march is a test of Serbia’s pledge to respect human rights as it seeks EU membership. Irinej said that the gay organisers “and their mentors from Europe” haven’t learned the lesson from past marches, adding that “a great majority” of Serbs are against holding the event, saying, “Thousands of policemen will have to be brought to Belgrade”, adding that they face the threat of injury and death. Several far-right groups, which include soccer hooligans, announced anti-gay marches in the capital a day before the gay event. On Tuesday, police said that they have filed charges against eight people who made threats against gays on social media. Milorad Todorović, a police officer in charge of cybercrime, said, “Police are here to secure the safety of all citizens. I hope that the gay event will be held on Sunday”.
Associated Press
http://news.yahoo.com/head-serb-church-denounces-gay-pride-march-105151087.html
******
An official SPC statement, signed by Patriarch Irinej condemned an announced gay parade, “You have the right to make a parade, but only at your own cost and expense of your principals, no matter how they’re called; that is, both the cost for the organisation of the parade, and for security, but not at the expense of Serbia… bombed, destroyed, morally and economically crippled, impoverished, flooded, nailed to the pillory. It’s absurd grandstanding that the state should spend millions in its current poverty to secure a handful of citizens and their guests for a parade of several hundred metres in the centre of Belgrade. These days, we’re seeing an unbelievable gay parade again imposed on Belgrade and Serbia. The organisers of this grandstanding and their mentors from Europe don’t want to learn from the events of the last parade”. Patriarch Irinej warned of the dangers that a parade could cause to both sides. The statement also pointed up that previous parades provoked resistance from the majority of citizens, unleashing rioting and aggression, awakening chaos and destructiveness in some sections of society, especially amongst younger people. The SPC asked the organisers and participants of the parade if they can and must exercise their rights to privacy by causing “humiliation and oppression of the moral sentiments of the majority of mankind. If the gay sexual orientation is justified and we should propagate it, then, why isn’t it true for paedophilia too, widespread in the Western world, as well as incest? Why are their rights less important than the so-called right of your sexual (dis)orientation? Are you so blinded by your lust and selfishness that you don’t mind putting the whole state apparatus in your service and imposing it to high and unjustifiable costs for organising your parade?”
23 September 2014
B92
http://www.b92.net/eng/news/society.php?yyyy=2014&mm=09&dd=23&nav_id=91690
Editor:
HH put it clearly… “We respect all human choices, including those of sexual orientation, but we reserve the right to call sin ‘sin’”. HH, Patriarch Ilie of Georgia, and now Patriarch Irinej of Serbia have spoken of the inadmissibility of gay rights initiatives on the Western model in their countries. The societies involved won’t have it. One of the reasons for their strong stance is that such gay actions would be counterproductive. They don’t want to empower schmidiots like K Yu Dushenov, who’d use the turmoil around such events to twist them to the ends of far-right creeps. Yes, we still have some of the Old School anti-Semite haters amongst us, I’m afraid… Dushenov did three years in an IK for anti-Semitic agitation… he’s just as anti-gay as he’s anti-Semitic.
That is, the motive isn’t hatred of gays, as one sees amongst American konvertsy… the motive is two-fold… firstly, to forestall gnarly elements within the Church that’d cause untoward kafuffle, not only in gay matters, but in other things as well (as one can see with the American konvertsy obsession with the questionable notion of the toll houses). Secondly, it’s to protect the majority of gay people who do NOT march in such parades… who do NOT push themselves into people’s faces… who do NOT wish to upset the larger society about them. The Church DOES stand for those hated by the “respectable”… it does its best to further their interests. Gay parades are counterproductive in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus. The Church understands this, so, it opposes them forcefully.
The Church, most of all, is a bastion of Good Sense… it knows that a small fraction of people are homosexual, and it wishes to see that they don’t suffer. It does NOT bless homosexuality (just as it doesn’t bless abortion)… but just as it tolerates abortion in some limited cases (the Church has a prayer for a woman who’s aborted a child), it doesn’t persecute the homosexual people in its midst. The Church does NOT bless abortion or homosexuality… but it has mercy on those enmeshed in them. That’s a subtle point, which most loudmouthed konvertsy miss. I know that some loudmouthed Anglo konverts are going to accuse me of saying that the Church blesses abortion and homosexuality… it does NOT. However, I believe that the Church follows the lead of its Founder… who was a solid good-sense workingman who “judged not”… we’d do well to follow His lead (that’s a lifelong pursuit, I’ve found)…
BMD
Voices from Russia 
Patriarch Irinej Slams Proposed Gay Pride March in Belgrade
Tags: Belgrade, Christian, Christian ethics, Christianity, Eastern Orthodox Church, ethical orientation, ethics, EU, European Union, Gay, Gay Lesbian and Bisexual, homosexuality, moral, moral stance, moral theology, morality, morals, Orthodox, Orthodoxy, Patriarch Irinej, political commentary, politics, Pride parade, Religion, Religion and Spirituality, Russia, Russian, Russian Orthodox Church, same sex marriage, Serbia, Serbian Orthodox Church, SPC
______________________________
On Tuesday, Patriarch Irinej Gavrilović, the head of the influential Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), denounced a gay pride march planned for the weekend, adding to tensions over the event, which faced threats from extremists. He issued a statement that the “shameless” event casts a moral shadow on Serbia… a conservative Balkan country whose gay population faces harassment. Officials suggested that they could allow Sunday’s event despite fears of a repeat of the violence in 2010 when rightwing groups attacked a gay march in Belgrade, triggering clashes with police that left more than 100 people injured. Authorities banned gay marches planned for the following three years, citing security reasons. Some see that holding the march is a test of Serbia’s pledge to respect human rights as it seeks EU membership. Irinej said that the gay organisers “and their mentors from Europe” haven’t learned the lesson from past marches, adding that “a great majority” of Serbs are against holding the event, saying, “Thousands of policemen will have to be brought to Belgrade”, adding that they face the threat of injury and death. Several far-right groups, which include soccer hooligans, announced anti-gay marches in the capital a day before the gay event. On Tuesday, police said that they have filed charges against eight people who made threats against gays on social media. Milorad Todorović, a police officer in charge of cybercrime, said, “Police are here to secure the safety of all citizens. I hope that the gay event will be held on Sunday”.
Associated Press
http://news.yahoo.com/head-serb-church-denounces-gay-pride-march-105151087.html
******
An official SPC statement, signed by Patriarch Irinej condemned an announced gay parade, “You have the right to make a parade, but only at your own cost and expense of your principals, no matter how they’re called; that is, both the cost for the organisation of the parade, and for security, but not at the expense of Serbia… bombed, destroyed, morally and economically crippled, impoverished, flooded, nailed to the pillory. It’s absurd grandstanding that the state should spend millions in its current poverty to secure a handful of citizens and their guests for a parade of several hundred metres in the centre of Belgrade. These days, we’re seeing an unbelievable gay parade again imposed on Belgrade and Serbia. The organisers of this grandstanding and their mentors from Europe don’t want to learn from the events of the last parade”. Patriarch Irinej warned of the dangers that a parade could cause to both sides. The statement also pointed up that previous parades provoked resistance from the majority of citizens, unleashing rioting and aggression, awakening chaos and destructiveness in some sections of society, especially amongst younger people. The SPC asked the organisers and participants of the parade if they can and must exercise their rights to privacy by causing “humiliation and oppression of the moral sentiments of the majority of mankind. If the gay sexual orientation is justified and we should propagate it, then, why isn’t it true for paedophilia too, widespread in the Western world, as well as incest? Why are their rights less important than the so-called right of your sexual (dis)orientation? Are you so blinded by your lust and selfishness that you don’t mind putting the whole state apparatus in your service and imposing it to high and unjustifiable costs for organising your parade?”
23 September 2014
B92
http://www.b92.net/eng/news/society.php?yyyy=2014&mm=09&dd=23&nav_id=91690
Editor:
HH put it clearly… “We respect all human choices, including those of sexual orientation, but we reserve the right to call sin ‘sin’”. HH, Patriarch Ilie of Georgia, and now Patriarch Irinej of Serbia have spoken of the inadmissibility of gay rights initiatives on the Western model in their countries. The societies involved won’t have it. One of the reasons for their strong stance is that such gay actions would be counterproductive. They don’t want to empower schmidiots like K Yu Dushenov, who’d use the turmoil around such events to twist them to the ends of far-right creeps. Yes, we still have some of the Old School anti-Semite haters amongst us, I’m afraid… Dushenov did three years in an IK for anti-Semitic agitation… he’s just as anti-gay as he’s anti-Semitic.
That is, the motive isn’t hatred of gays, as one sees amongst American konvertsy… the motive is two-fold… firstly, to forestall gnarly elements within the Church that’d cause untoward kafuffle, not only in gay matters, but in other things as well (as one can see with the American konvertsy obsession with the questionable notion of the toll houses). Secondly, it’s to protect the majority of gay people who do NOT march in such parades… who do NOT push themselves into people’s faces… who do NOT wish to upset the larger society about them. The Church DOES stand for those hated by the “respectable”… it does its best to further their interests. Gay parades are counterproductive in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus. The Church understands this, so, it opposes them forcefully.
The Church, most of all, is a bastion of Good Sense… it knows that a small fraction of people are homosexual, and it wishes to see that they don’t suffer. It does NOT bless homosexuality (just as it doesn’t bless abortion)… but just as it tolerates abortion in some limited cases (the Church has a prayer for a woman who’s aborted a child), it doesn’t persecute the homosexual people in its midst. The Church does NOT bless abortion or homosexuality… but it has mercy on those enmeshed in them. That’s a subtle point, which most loudmouthed konvertsy miss. I know that some loudmouthed Anglo konverts are going to accuse me of saying that the Church blesses abortion and homosexuality… it does NOT. However, I believe that the Church follows the lead of its Founder… who was a solid good-sense workingman who “judged not”… we’d do well to follow His lead (that’s a lifelong pursuit, I’ve found)…
BMD