Work on the Formation of a Church Library in Whitby Completed
On March 15, 2026, on the third Sunday of Lent (known as the Veneration of the Cross), the library at the Saint Arsenije Sremac Church in Whitby was officially opened thanks to the diligent and hard work of the members of the Church and School Congregation and parishioners of the church.
The formation of the church library began as an idea in October 2025, and implementation began in December 2025. At the end of February 2026, more serious work began on achieving this goal when the library cabinet was purchased and donated to the church by the sisters of the Mala Gospojina Circle of Serbian Sisters. Sinisa Popovic, Zeljko Kliska, Miladin Micanovic, Zoran Zugic, Zoran Radosavljevic and Bora Nikolic participated in the installation of the library cabinet while Djuradj Vujcic began work on the digital cataloguing of the book collection.
Initially, the idea was to have the library in the auxiliary room behind the diaconicon, but later, in order to make the books more accessible, it was decided to place the library in the church hall where it is now located. The initial library fund was created thanks to gifts and bequests and currently has about 500 books in Serbian and English. In the library are also the latest editions of the magazine Pravoslavlje (Orthodoxy) which regularly arrives from the Patriarchate in Belgrade, as well as local media publications in Serbian. All parishioners of the Saint Arsenije Sremac Church can use the library free of charge. Books can be borrowed for a month, and the library is open on Sundays after the Holy Liturgy.
The Saint Arsenije Sremac Church and School Congregation thanks everyone for the books that have been donated to the church so far, with a reminder that new books are always welcome. Old church magazines and calendars are also welcome as it is certainly better for the words of the Gospel and images of the Saints to be found in a church library rather than a recycling bin. It is beautiful and blessed when one cultivates their approach towards church institutions and the written word.
It was truly a team effort in realizing this idea. May the Lord God reward everyone for the effort they put into this Church and School Congregation.
