A group of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) Bishops have distanced themselves from the SOC statement following the Holy Synod session and a meeting with the President Aleksandar Vucic, Belgrade-based Danas daily writes on Monday.

According to Danas the group of bishops headed by Montenegro-Littoral Metropolitan Amfilohije in a letter sent to the Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej said they disagree with the statement of the SOC spokesperson Bishop of Backa Irinej Bulovic on May 18, adding “he has formulated some decisions contrary to the will of the Holy Synod”. The letter also said the bishops are distancing themselves from that statement.

The main point of contention, according to the letter that Danas daily claims it had insight into, is the fact that Bishop Irinej Bulovic “intentionally overstated the importance of the visit by political leaders Aleksandar Vucic and Milorad Dodik.”

The bishops also denied Vucic and Dodik were invited to the meeting by the Holy Synod, saying the invitation was made by the Patriarch Irinej. They demanded the issuing of a new, amended statement, Danas further reported, adding Patriarch Irinej did not respond to the letter.