Patriarch Irinej receives authors of book on WWI

BELGRADE - Serbian Patriarch Irinej received at the Patriarchate on Wednesday authors and publishers of the book titled "Serbia in the Great War 1914-1918" which was released on the occasion of the centenary of the beginning of World War I.

The book was authored by Ljubodrag Dimic, a history professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and academician, and Mira Radojevic, a PhD at the History Department of the Faculty of Philosophy, and publishers are the Belgrade Forum for the World of Equals and the Serbian Literary Cooperative.

President of the Belgrade Forum for the World of Equals Zivadin Jovanovic and editor with the Serbian Literary Cooperative Dragan Lakicevic also attended the reception.

Patriarch Irinej commended the authors, publishers and Serbs in the diaspora who, with their understanding and solidarity, helped publish this scientific work.

In this way, a major contribution has been given to the preservation of the truth about real causes of World War I and tribute paid to the huge number of Serbian victims that fell for the freedom of Serbia and entire Europe, the Patriarch said.

"Only peoples that respect themselves and do no forget their victims and suffering for peace and freedom can expect others to recognize, respect and appreciate the interest of Serbia and the Serbian people," the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) said.

This book also represents a voice of the Serbian people that does not allow for a distortion of the truth about the Great War and historical revisionism, which is quite often the case in publishing efforts outside Serbia, the Belgrade Forum for the World of Equals stated.

For its great victory in World War I, the Kingdom of Serbia paid dearly: it lost...