In the Serbian capital Belgrade, thousands of people attended the funeral of the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, who died from the corona virus on Friday at the age of 90. One of those present was Serbian President Vucic. At the funeral, corona rules were ignored.
The Serbian authorities had taken measures in advance to prevent the funeral from becoming a source of a corona outbreak.
For example, the number of people present in the church was limited and the ceremony could be followed outside via large screens. Within the church many attendees only did not wear a mask. In addition, many kissed the glass screen placed over Patriarch Irinej’s open casket, and the same spoon was used throughout the taking of wine at Communion, an important ritual in the Serbian Orthodox Church.
The funeral of Irinej, who has headed the Serbian Orthodox Church since 2010 and was interred in the crypt of the church after the service:
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