Vraćevšnica Monastery celebrated its glory, Đurđić, November 16. We had the great honor to attend the Holy Liturgy of the Bishop of Žička, Mr. Justin, who spoke in his sermon about Christianity and the suffering of St. George, and after the breaking of the celebratory cake and the consecration of the grain, with a large number of clergy and faithful parishioners, a memorial opening program was held – the rooms of Ana Adžić’s mother and her father Sreten.
On behalf of the Municipality of Gornji Milanovac, Dejan Kovačević, the president of the municipality, greeted the attendees, and Aleksandar Marušić, historian and director of the Museum of the Rudnica-Takovo region, spoke about the history of the monastery. About Mother Anna and our common task to present to the public the rich life of the famous abbess who changed the image of human charity and the image of the monastery itself from her arrival in 1949 until her death in 1975.
Friends from Jagodina, especially Oliver Đorđević, who started the story of mother Ana and Sreten Adžić with his book and the idea of establishing this memorial room, contributed to making the program dignified and solemn. Ninoslav Stanojlović, a historian, spoke about the life of Sreten Adžić, our great pedagogue, the founder of the Male Teacher’s School in Jagodina. Our little friends, also from Jagodina, spoke the verses of the hymn that Bishop Nikolaj Velimirović wrote for the “St. Nikola” in Bitola, and the Milanova theater performed a stage program written for this occasion. Mrs. Ilijana Čutura designed the entire program and Milica Stanković prepared the choir and orchestra that made the day even more festive.
We would like to thank all of them, as well as the students of the Faculty of Education in Jagodina who led the program and gladly participated in everything. Bishop Žički expressed his desire to take a detailed look at the memorial room, and in a conversation with the museum workers, he got acquainted with the contents of the exhibition, which the museum opened in 2019 in Gornji Milanovac and then traveled all over Serbia, and now found itself in the memorial room. The museum would like to thank all the donors, especially Mr. Dragan Parezanović, who was also present at the ceremony, the craftsmen who donated their work to make this our joint work better, and all those who supported the idea that this memorial room should see the light of day and become permanent a testimony of the difficult and rich life of Abbess Anna, who is already called Saint. The sisterhood of the monastery experienced the opening of this establishment as a great blessing, and we will always be there to support all their endeavors.
Saša Savović’s photos tell how much this day meant to us.
