Commenting on the draft law on legal recognition of gender identity based on self-determination, Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral of the Serbian Orthodox Church Joanikije said that religions should be heard when laws are enacted that to some extent encroach on religious feelings and heritage.
“Cases of sex change are quite rare and we understand such people. But encouraging a person to such an unnatural dilemma is really dangerous because those are minors. It is known that those who change their sex later have problems, they want to return to their original state, incurable traumas occur, suicides occur… Don’t we already have enough problems, but we want more? We must, for pastoral reasons, have a position on this and it must be heard”, said Joanikije on TVCG.
The head of the Islamic Community of Montenegro, Rifat Fejzic, said that one should not misunderstand the fact that one of the dignitaries wants to comment on something.
“We have the right to express our positions. I also understand state policy, which has to do some things, but the state should also respect us and our opinion. I believe that it is not strange that we sometimes comment on something and express our opinion. We should find a balance between secularism and the work of religious communities, I think it is possible to harmonize that”, said Fejzic.
Archbishop of Bar Rok Gjonleshaj said that we should not talk about borders and that they denote divisions.
“The state and religious communities live in the same state and take care of the same people. Who will we set a border for? If the state believes that we, as religious leaders, must remain silent, then it is wrong, because we cannot remain silent. We baptize children, baptism is rebirth, we are their spiritual parents, and parents cannot remain silent if their child is in danger”, said Gjonleshaj.
He emphasized that they were not competitors of the authorities.
“If we want to make a contribution to the well-being, then no one should consider anyone else as competitors”, he added.
