CVIJANOVIĆ: CHRISTMAS IS HOLIDAY OF LOVE AND JOY, BUT ALSO OF FAITH IN BETTER FUTURE

ISTOČNO SARAJEVO, JANUARY 15 /SRNA/ - Serb member of the Presidency of BiH Željka Cvijanović emphasized that these are days remind us of the importance of tolerance and mutual respect. For those who live in complex, multiethnic societies such as BiH, the right to identity, faith, and tradition carries particular weight.

"This evening, we are gathered in honor and celebration of the Nativity of Christ. Christmas is a holiday of love and genuine joy - a joy that grows as it is shared. It is a holiday of hope, which is essential in all times, and especially in difficult and uncertain ones. And it is a holiday of faith - faith in a better future," said Cvijanović in her address to guests at the traditional Christmas reception, which she organized at the headquarters of the Government of Republika Srpska in Istočno Sarajevo, with the Christmas greeting: "Peace of God - Christ is born!"

SRNA publishes the address of the Serb member of the Presidency of BiH in its entirety:

Allow me to extend my heartfelt thanks to all of you for attending this traditional Christmas gathering.

For us, the Serbian people - Orthodox Christians - the word peace carries sacred meaning. It is with this word that we begin our Christmas greeting, announcing the most important message in the history of Christian civilization.

To us, peace - like freedom - is a profound value and the ultimate human and divine principle. The pursuit of peace, with ourselves and with others, is an inseparable part of both our national and religious identity. By preserving peace, we safeguard that identity, fulfilling not only a Christian obligation but a universal one.

This evening, we are gathered in honor and celebration of the Nativity of Christ. Christmas is a holiday of love and genuine joy - a joy that grows as it is shared. It is a holiday of hope, which is essential in all times, and especially in difficult and uncertain ones. And it is a holiday of faith - faith in a better future.

These days remind us of the importance of tolerance and mutual respect. For those who live in complex, multiethnic societies such as BiH, the right to identity, faith, and tradition carries particular weight.

No society can realize its full potential or achieve lasting success if it is built on imposition, dominance, or the denial of the rights and identities of others.

Likewise, BiH cannot rest on exclusion and disregard - it must be built on dialogue and consensus among all three constituent peoples and its two entities. It cannot endure through external decrees, but only through internal agreement. And it cannot move forward through foreign steps, but only through steps taken from within.

It is high time to bring an end to the artificial and unlawful project of nation building or rebuilding, and to instead acknowledge reality and reaffirm its constitutional principles.

And although this is a festive season, we cannot close our eyes to the reality in which we live. It is clear that we live in a time marked by division and interethnic mistrust. We live in a climate in which denial has triumphed over affirmation, creating countless problems not only in political discourse, but in everyday life.

Externally imposed, unconstitutional and undemocratic interventions - and the repercussions they have triggered internally - have led to political and economic paralysis, deepened divisions, and generated one crisis after another.

The time has come to correct these wrongs and address the systemic distortions - not to close our eyes to their causes. The only path forward is internal dialogue. It is a difficult, and often painful, process, but it is the only one capable of delivering real results.

In closing, I sincerely thank you once again for honoring this meaningful and cherished occasion with your presence. To you and your families, I extend my warmest wishes for peace and well-being, for success and progress, for happiness and good health.

Our gathering this evening, in celebration of the most joyous Christian holiday, is also an opportunity to recall the words of Christ:

"For where two or three are gathered in My name, there am I among them." /Mathew 18:20/

With that faith in our hearts, I greet you once again with the traditional Christian salutation:

Peace of God – Christ is born!