In the evening of 4. September 2021, His Royal Highness Crown Prince Davit Bagration Muhranbatoni, Head of the Royal House of Georgia, attend the gala dinner, which was organized for a small number of selected guests, mostly present hierarchs, in Podgorica’s elite Hotel CUE.
His Royal Highness were once again given the highest possible respect and esteem, together with His Royal Highness Prince Filip Karadjordjevich of Serbia and Yugoslavia and his wife, Her Royal Highness Princess Danitsa Karadjordjevich of Serbia and Yugoslavia.
During this gala dinner, with the blessing of His Holiness k.k. Porfirije, Archbishop of Pech, Metropolitan of Belgrade and Karlovtsi and Serbian Patriarch, a ceremony of decoration was also organized for His Eminence k.k. Joanikije II, Metropolitan of Montenegro, Littoral, Zeta, Brda and Skenderija and Exarch of the Holy Throne of Pech with the Order of the Eagle of Georgia and the Seamless Tunic of our Lord Jesus Christ in the rank of the Grand Cross.
His Highness made this investment with the help of Mr. Aleksandar Djurdjev, Vice-Rector of the Order of the Eagle of Georgia and the Seamless Tunic of our Lord Jesus Christ in Serbia and Member of Parliament in the Parliament of the Serbian Autonomous Province of Vojvodina; Reverend Deacon Hadzi Nenad M. Jovanovich, Chaplain of the Georgian Royal Orders in Serbia; Mr. Goran Milenkovich, Assistant Minister for Rural Welfare – Sector for International Cooperation, European Integration and Projects in the Government of Serbia and Monsieur Henri Durand de Grossouvre, Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Eagle of Georgia and the Seamless Tunic of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In his address, His Highness congratulated His Eminence upon his upcoming enthronement as the 56. Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral, and the 41. Metropolitan to be enthroned at the Holy Throne of Saint Petar of Tsetinje in the Tsetinje Monastery, in the old Montenegrin Royal capital of Tsetinje. His Highness also said on this occasion:
“Your Holiness,
Your Eminences and Graces,
Your Royal Highnesses,
Very Reverend Fathers, ladies and gentlemen,
brothers and sisters in Christ,
It was a great honour and exceptional spiritual pleasure for me to be in Podgoritsa today and under the vaults of its magnificent Cathedral, which indeed symbolizes a part of Paradise on Earth.
I am also honoured that I was graced to find myself among the selected guests, who have gathered in this sacred place as a part of the enthronement ceremony of Your Eminence and elevation to the Throne of Saint Petar of Tsetinje and to the sublime duty of the Metropolitan of Your Saint–Savaian Metropolitanate.
This honour and joy, which the universal Orthodoxy shares with the Serbian Orthodox Church, is enhanced by the fact that I have the opportunity to present to Your Eminence the highest decoration of the Royal House of Georgia – the Order of the Eagle of Georgia and the Seamless Tunic of our Lord Jesus Christ in the rank of Grand Cross.
It is Our wish that this solemn act becomes one of the pebbles in building of even closer and fraternal relations of our peoples, who are connected by many things that we are often unaware of, because our historical ties are often not sufficiently known.
According to Divine Providence, the holidays of Saint Ninо, the Enlightener of Georgia and Saint Sava of Serbia are celebrated on the same day, January 27. In our understanding, this is more than just a coincidence! As it is more than just a coincidence that, in the biography of his father Saint Simeon, who was born exactly in this city, Saint Sava noted that at the funeral of Saint Simeon, on Mount Athos, Georgian monks chanted and officiated immediately after the Greeks, and before the Russians, Bulgarians and the Serbs themselves.
Therefore, the foundations of our fraternal relations are deep and were laid by our Holy Ancestors, which obliges us, the generations of today, to improve and develop them further.
May You have many blessed years, Your Eminence, and may You always have us in Your holy prayers!”
Metropolitan Joanikije thanked His Highness for the high Royal Honour and agreed that the Serbian and Georgian people had and developed fraternal relations throughout their history. He stressed that the Holy Mount Athos testifies to that the best.
“But also many other shrines in the Holy Land, because wherever our history and tradition are, we meet. We celebrate the monarchy of God the Father in the Church, and every nation on the Earth, which has its own history, holds to its own monarchy. I wish your Dynasty, which has a deep historical foundation in the Georgian people, every success and that You, Your Highness, do everything to keep both the Faith and the tradition of the fraternal Georgian people. Although we are geographically far away, with Your arrival we became closer, and in Faith we were always close, as well as in our prayers and general care for the entire Orthodoxy. I express great pleasure that You came today to Montenegro to visit us on this very occasion, on the occasion of my enthronement”, His Eminence Metropolitan Joanikije said, among other things, on this occasion.
This event received extremely great attention in the public of Montenegro, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, because it is difficult to find an electronic or printed media that did not report on it.
We will single out only some of them:
1. The official web-site of The Srbian Orthodox Church: http://www.spc.rs/sr/princ_davit_od_gruzije_uruchio_mitropolitu_joanikiju_najvetshe_kraljevsko_odlikovanje?fbclid=IwAR3MW-EHcGYXTZ4BNRaqdO1E3eGCP4sulrrTphQ8CiO71m67b8F29AmRgy4
2. The official web-site of The Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral of the Serbian Orthodox Church: https://mitropolija.com/2021/09/06/princ-davit-od-gruzije-urucio-mitropolitu-joanikiju-najvece-kraljevsko-odlikovanje/?fbclid=IwAR2rbsqt-zN5InpiSCgPwoPnkQiMIHqFRbJ8C8BeBC-X9bFnu1zR-lfLA60
3. Radio “Slovo Ljubve”, the radio station of the Archbishopric of Belgrade and Karlovtsi of The Serbian Orthodox Church: http://www.slovoljubve.com/cir/Newsview.asp?ID=29451&fbclid=IwAR3IT5OCQBcZGB_rn3N7mqYLSYFGPZkBWAFdNNUtPRshyyZ9QEKQWPFZ3sw
4. “Svetigora”, the news agency of The Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral of the Serbian Orthodox Church: https://svetigora.com/princ-davit-od-gruzije-urucio-mitropolitu-joanikiju-najvece-kraljevsko-odlikovanje/?scr=cir
5. Radio “Glas”, the radio station of the Bishopric of Nish of The Serbian Orthodox Church: http://www.radioglas.rs/Newsview.asp?ID=7961&fbclid=IwAR0kBz2fdu0P3kZw7SoE6S-0mcSlhdeaSiEraNmW5RqPbwpC8eD–z2P1qo
6. Radio-Television of Republic of Srpska, the official TV station of Republic of Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina: https://www.rtrs.tv/vijesti/vijest.php?id=444449&fbclid=IwAR0VOxj4F33KleuOtjv79LD09Skpsf91cT-f6BjkOhSZP2K-SVJB6vBKbNQ
7. Most influential Montenegrene news agency IN4S: https://www.in4s.net/najvece-kraljevsko-odlikovanje-za-mitropolita-joanikija-princ-davit-od-gruzije-urucio-orden-mitropolitu/
8. IN4S – the complete speech of HRH Crown Prince Davit: https://www.in4s.net/govor-princa-davita-od-gruzije-prilikom-urucenja-odlikovanja-mitropolitu-joanikiju/
9. “Etos Press”, the Montenegrene Orthodox news agency: https://etos.press/?fbclid=IwAR0RdNg4wKOLf94IeyAsngLgMTJNWXfIPwy6um9UdVKGYH9KjCbnA39Wpck#/post/301
10. Serbian daily “Glas Javnosti”: https://www.glas-javnosti.rs/crna-gora/priinc-davit-od-gruzije-odlikovao-mitropolita-joanikija-orao-gruzije-za-njegovo-preosvestenstvo-398?fbclid=IwAR2jT0HvUAlO4NyyQhgTRnSEWaF9SEG1hktfykqgKHZbHX-Vwv9p779g7fI
11. Montenegrene daily newspaper “Vijesti”: https://vijestisrpske.com/mitropolitu-joanikiju-najvise-gruzijsko-kraljevsko-odlikovanje/?fbclid=IwAR0VOxj4F33KleuOtjv79LD09Skpsf91cT-f6BjkOhSZP2K-SVJB6vBKbNQ
12. “Trebinje Danas”, the news portal from Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina: https://trebinjedanas.com/vijest/najvece-kraljevsko-odlikovanje-za-mitropolita-joanikija-princ-davit-od-gruzije-urucio-orden-mitropolitu?fbclid=IwAR0paoO6uZ7otfPKFibIED0sMjQTbXZUav4Ehf0ZdxyHdxJ7lxh7Bm_daM8
13. “Vesti Srbija”, the news portal from Serbia: https://vestisrbija.rs/2021/09/06/najvece-kraljevsko-odlikovanje-za-mitropolita-joanikija/?fbclid=IwAR1vSWqGEQAQISIsnFElHiEArxADCAi4xOXIbFP8nt-yCOhIWEBE0hsrdKc
14. “Borba”, the news portal of the Democratic Front coalition, Montenegro: https://vojvodjanskenovine.co.rs/2021/09/06/najvece-kraljevsko-odlikovanje-za-mitropolita-joanikija/
15. Vojvodjanske Novine”, the news portal from Vojvodina, Serbia: https://borba.me/najvece-kraljevsko-odlikovanje-za-mitropolita-joanikija-princ-davit-od-gruzije-mu-urucio-orden/?fbclid=IwAR09JYRagxqNTY3xfbMWkrK4OaqQX1HkRzkS49CKfCnRrs1yJVuPyPLTtZs
16. “Glas Srpske”, the news portal from Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina: https://www.glassrpske.com/cir/novosti/region/mitropolitu-joanikiju-najvise-gruzijsko-kraljevsko-odlikovanje/375879?fbclid=IwAR2diD7XFrWyFpZSXqrAp6LOiRgxtk05ujii8y_jKbY4hLeditoPwQDTtWU
17. “Region”, the regional news portal about Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Croatia: https://region.alo.rs/kraljevsko-odlikovanje-princ-davit-od-gruzije-urucio-orden-mitropolitu-joanikiju/
