Let the candles burn from Kosovo, long live our mother Serbia!

People often ask us from Kosovo and Metohija, “Where is your state?” And we always look up. They might think we are desperate and don’t know the answer, but in reality, this is how we show in whose power we trust. It is not naivety or illusion, but boundless and unconditional love for our homeland.

But what is a state? A monopoly on the legitimate use of force. A constitution. Legislative, executive, and judicial power. The past, present, and future connected through history. Democratic principles. Human rights. Freedom. Independence. These are all essential parts of a modern state. Yet what unites them into a meaningful whole are the oldest witnesses of statehood the people, language, and faith. Without them, there is no state, and a state cannot disappear as long as these three elements exist. Our state lives in our churches, schools, and children. No earthly law or powerful occupier can conquer the soul of a patriot. Since the time of Stefan Nemanja, despite great persecutions and suffering, Serbs have continued to live here. Through the lives of ancestors and descendants, Serbian territory, national, and cultural identity are preserved. In these lands, the Serbian language and people, under the shield of Orthodoxy, have managed to endure against global powers. That is why we are grateful to the Lord that even today, on the Feast of the Presentation, on Serbia’s Statehood Day, there are still those of us in Kosovo and Metohija who go to Liturgy and pray for the salvation of the entire Serbian people, for the preservation of every clod of our sacred land, whose candle flames will shine wherever Serbs live. As long as we are here – this is Serbia!