More than 1.1 million people have visited Serbia’s Church of Saint Sava in recent weeks to view a revered Christian relic believed to be part of a belt worn by the Virgin Mary while she was pregnant with Jesus.
According to Breitbart News, which visited the church during a reporting trip to Belgrade, Orthodox Church officials estimated that more than 1.1 million people passed through the church during the relic’s display.
The relic was brought from Mount Athos in Greece, where it is normally kept. Church officials said it was the first time in centuries that it had returned to Serbia.
“She made it by hand and wore it when she was pregnant with the baby Jesus,” Serbian Minister of European Integration Nemanja Stavorich told Breitbart News.
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Church official Bozidar Lijeskic said the occasion carried deep significance for Serbian Christians.
“It’s a very special occasion for us because for 650 years, this belt wasn’t in Serbia,” Lijeskic told Breitbart News. “It’s actually one of the holiest and most prized and venerated possessions of the whole of Mount Athos.”
The relic was displayed around the clock, drawing pilgrims from across Serbia and beyond. The turnout underscores the enduring importance of Christian faith and sacred history for millions throughout the Orthodox world.
The display took place inside the Church of Saint Sava, one of the largest Orthodox churches in the world and one of Serbia’s most recognizable religious landmarks.
Lijeskic told Breitbart News that the church’s entrance reflects its mission of welcoming visitors from every nation.
“Basically, for every person coming from any part of the world approaching the church, the first thing they will feel and also notice will be the prayer either in their own language or in a language that they can understand,” he said. “You get an immediate feeling of warmth coming inside.”
The church is named after Saint Sava, the founder of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the nation’s first archbishop. Lijeskic described him as “one of the most important as well as most venerated Saints in our spiritual heritage.”
Construction of the massive church began in 1935 and continued for decades through wars and political upheaval. Today, it houses what church officials describe as the world’s largest mosaic art installation.
“This is the biggest mosaic art piece in the world,” Lijeskic told Breitbart News. “It’s placed on a surface of more than 17,000 square meters.”
The mosaics depict Jesus Christ, biblical scenes and Orthodox saints using millions of pieces of stone, glass and 24-karat gold.
For many visitors, however, the focus remained on the relic that drew more than a million people through the church’s doors — a rare opportunity to witness a treasured piece of Christian history that had not been seen in Serbia for generations.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
