In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! In a word, brothers and sisters, we have gathered to strengthen ourselves with Christ's peace and prayerfully remember the violent expulsion of our people, unprecedented in Europe, from the ancestral hearths where they lived for centuries throughout Dalmatia, Lika, Kordun, Banija, and western Slavonia.

To oppose every violence, war, and so-called Storm with this peace. To affirm our unwavering commitment to peace and freedom on this blood-soaked, blessed soil of Serbian land. To remember just one of the countless recent national Golgothas. To try to understand what the brilliant poet Šantić intended to convey creatively and prophetically when he wrote to us about ourselves a century ago:

We know our path, the path of the God-man,
And vigorous, like a mountain river,
We shall all run over sharp rocks.
All the way to Golgotha,
And when our manly lives are taken,
Our graves will fight with you.

Isn't Christ's Golgotha the foundation of His and our Resurrection from the dead and the unstoppable triumph of life within us? Doesn't the blade of the spear that pierced Him resemble the sharp knife that cut us? Aren't the lives, youth, love, and joy taken from us a pledge of our invincibility, immortality, and the tonight’s invocation of peace upon us and among us and all mankind? Isn't the best proof of all this the fact that today, as a much-suffering yet dignified people, we still exist? To base our lives and the existence of our people on the Gospel of Christ means having a solution for ourselves and our loved ones. Only then can we understand how our graves will not only fight but triumph over any opponent of peace, any hater of harmony among people, and any disturbance within creation. Precisely because of this,

Fear will not freeze our chest!
Oxen bear the yoke, not men.
God gave freedom to man.

In other words, there is no weapon stronger than Christ's peace within us. There is no expulsion or tyranny that can prevent us from fighting for survival, freedom, and a full life. This is what our Aleksa is telling us tonight: that peace has no alternative, that freedom must not and cannot be traded. Therefore, in persecutions, in sufferings, and in death, we will not renounce life, freedom, or peace at any cost.

Dear brothers and sisters, you who have borne the cross of persecution and suffering on behalf of all of us during what is called Storm, although you were forced to leave your homeland, God granted, because only He can grant, that you return to your own people and your own land. Thus, this exodus is not a trigger for despair but, on the contrary, an incentive for hope and optimism, for a free and creative life, for the welcoming of our future generations, that mighty mountain river Aleksa speaks of. Our people have countless times, through suffering, sacrifice, and death, attained the inalienable experience of freedom and life. By doing so, they have infallibly shown that the key to all our dilemmas is the program of Saint Sava, and the defense against all our threats is the Kosovo Covenant. This is why we constantly return to Christ and His Gospel of peace, but this does not mean moving backward; rather, it means persistently conquering the reality that comes to us from the future and giving it inalienable meaning and fullness. Therefore, Christians see their lives as meaningful and fulfilling only in the light of Christ's words: Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons and daughters of God! It is no wonder, then, that in seeking higher peace, our Holy Bishop Nikolaj writes:

Wherever I seek peace in this world,
I find only unrest and anguish for the soul...
The entire universe is anguishing and suffocating it...
Only when I am with You (Christ),
Then it is not tight for me,
The secret of my peace lies in You.

Only when we know Christ and, despite our human weaknesses, strive to live by His commandments, will we have an infallible measure of values. Only then will we see everything as it is and as it should be. Only when His word is our measure and criterion can we have correct knowledge of everything and true freedom, and a healthy stance toward everything. When we accept the God-man Christ and His law with faith and love, we will know who a human being is and what their purpose is, what a healthy community is, what our mutual relationships should be, we will know what family is, what our priorities are - in short, we will distinguish right from wrong, truth from lies. Without Him as the foundation and meaning, without Him as the guide, everything will be distorted and perverted - our thoughts, words, and deeds. Everything, even when it is an expression of good will, will be a failure. Our ancestors knew this and lived accordingly. They left us this most valuable lesson in the covenant known as Saint Sava's legacy. Therefore, we too today know our path, and that the only thing that can sustain us is the path of the God-man. If we hold onto that path, there is hope for us and for our children. There will be strength. God will provide.

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you! (John 14:27). With these words, the Lord Jesus Christ strengthens and comforts His disciples and apostles, but also all subsequent followers, among whom we, gathered here tonight, are included as we pray for our deceased ones and thus fulfill the most sacred duty we owe them. Because in prayer, their sacrifice will never be devalued or misused. It is this inherent longing for Christ's peace that has gathered us to invoke higher peace and joy into our hearts, into our families, into our neighborhoods and homeland, among us, among all quarreling and warring individuals, nations, and states, onto the graves of our exiles and innocent victims, and upon the entire beautiful creation of God.

Eternal memory to all our brothers and sisters who suffered innocently wherever and whenever, especially those who suffered innocently and unjustly during the military-police operation called Storm. Eternal memory to all our brothers and sisters. Amen.