Porfirios of Serbia to Military Cadets: "Faith is not a heroic feat"translated

On the day of the feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, on Sunday, July 12, 2026, the Patriarch of Serbia, Mr. Porfirios celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Church of Agios Savvas in Vratsar, with the prayerful participation of the cadets of the Military Academy and the Military Medical Academy. Specifically, the Divine Liturgy was attended by the graduating Cadets of the 147th class of the Military Academy and the 12th class of the Medical School of the Military Medical Academy and received the blessing of His Beatitude.

After reading the Gospel passage about the healing of the paralytic, the Patriarch of Serbia emphasized in his speech that "Faith is not a personal heroic feat of any of us individually, nor a guarantee that we will be loved by God and that he will recognize us as His children. Our faith is saving, our faith is healing, because it is the faith of the Church, because it is the faith of the community. No one can say that he is sufficient for himself and everyone needs the support of his neighbor, as the Holy Apostle Paul reminds us when he says: "Bear one another's burdens".

The Church is not a community…