VIDOVIĆ: NEW SPIRITUAL CENTER TO BECOME PRIDE OF REPUBLIKA SRPSKA

TESLIĆ, AUGUST 8 /SRNA/ – Republika Srpska Finance Minister Zora Vidović has stated that the completion of the parish center in Teslić, dedicated to Serbian King Dragutin, would be a major achievement for the residents of Teslić and Republika Srpska as a whole.

"This Memorial Church of the Holy Trinity and the facilities being built alongside it will be a source of pride for the entire Republika Srpska," Vidović told reporters after attending the consecration of the foundations of the parish center in the churchyard of the Memorial Church of the Holy Trinity in Teslić.

She said she was honored and proud that His Eminence Metropolitan Fotije of Zvornik-Tuzla had presented her today with the Order of Saint King Dragutin II for her active involvement in the life of the Church in the Teslić area.

Republika Srpska Government Secretary-General Dalibor Panić, who is also a member of the Construction Committee overseeing the parish center dedicated to King Dragutin, said that this was a great day for Teslić and the Orthodox people.

"I hope that, with God's help, the roof of this building will also be completed within the next year or two," he said.

The foundations of the parish center were consecrated today in the churchyard of the Memorial Church of the Holy Trinity in Teslić, where the Holy Hierarchical Liturgy was also served.

The Liturgy was served by His Eminence Metropolitan Fotije of Zvornik-Tuzla, concelebrated by His Grace Bishop Gerasim of Gornji Karlovac and His Grace Bishop Heruvim of Osječko-Polje and Baranja.

In February last year, Metropolitan Fotije consecrated the start of construction of the parish center dedicated to King Dragutin.

The center, which represents a debt to ancestors and a pledge to descendants, will be a modern facility with two towers – the Kosovo Tower, symbolically representing Holy Prince Lazar, and the Hilandar Tower, symbolizing Saint Sava.

The facility will include offices, a memorial room, a library and a community dining hall, among other amenities, and is expected to have around 2,000 square meters of usable space.

The Construction Committee previously announced that the estimated total value of the project is around BAM 5 million.