Podgorica (MINA) – Extending Christmas greetings, Montenegrin President Jakov Milatovic said that the spirit of Christmas calls for personal responsibility and that everyone, to the best of their abilities, should contribute to building a more humane, cohesive, and just society.

“Christmas days remind us of how closeness among people, mutual respect, and solidarity are important for preserving the foundations on which our society lies. Woven into these foundations are the values of tolerance and respect for diversity”, Milatovic said.

He also emphasized the importance of multireligious and multiethnic harmony, adding that it represents “our strength and a lasting value.”

Prime Minister Milojko Spajic, according to a press release from his office, extended his Christmas Eve and Christmas greetings to the clergy and citizens who celebrate the birth of Christ according to the Julian calendar.

“I wish you to, in good health and perseverance, stay on the path laid by the greatest teachers and enlighteners of the Metropolitanate of Cetinje, whose legacy, based on the universal values of repentance and forgiveness, has become an inseparable part of our national tradition, culture, and identity,” Spajic said.

Parliament Speaker Andrija Mandic said in his message that reconciliation, dialogue, and coexistence have no alternative, and that Christmas calls for commitment to these values.

He extended Christmas greetings to SPC Patriarch Porfirije, Metropolitan Joanikije of Montenegro and the Littoral, Metropolitan Metodije of Budimlja and Niksic, and others, as well as to all Orthodox believers, wishing that Christmas bring them blessing and peace.