From the Eparchy of Puračić to Čečeva near Teslić: Both Serbs and Bosniaks wept for Father Pantelić

The decision of the Zvornik-Tuzla bishop to transfer Father Slavko Pantelić from the Eparchy of Puračić to Čečeva near Teslić saddened not only Orthodox believers but also their Bosniak neighbors, writes the Bosnian news agency Patria.
When Father Pantelić and his family left Puračić last Monday, eyewitnesses claim that both Serbs and Bosniaks wept equally.

- It was hard for me too. My children were born there, I made friends there – Father Pantelić told the Patria agency.

- But I have no right to choose. I carried out the order I received from the bishop – says Pantelić, believing that a new priest will come to his place in Puračić who will continue building peace where he left off.

The media has written about Pantelić, who promotes peace, before; newspapers are full of headlines about how the priest, without any hesitation, entered the harem of the mosque, attended Bosniak iftars, and rang the bells of the church in Puračić when Efendi Mrahorović died.

The priest's son Ilija wore the jersey of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team with the inscription „Džeko“. Ilija often goes to Islamic religious education classes, so as not to be alone in the classroom, to be with his school friends. Little Ilija also cried when, by order of the Serbian Orthodox Church, they had to leave their Puračić.

In this place, Pantelić served for a full 11 years.

- I don't think of myself as being that good. I have mistakes like everyone else. But, well, I really try to promote peace, I take care of my neighbors regardless of their faith, I try to promote good among people – says Pantelić, who warns that every person on earth should act this way.

For the 11 years that Pantelić served in Puračić, people in this place claim that he did more to reconcile Bosniaks and Serbs after the conflicts of the '90s than all the politics in the country, writes Patria.