Culture

Life of Our Holy Father Sava I

Enlightener and First Archbishop of the Serbs (+1235)

Seek ye first the kingdom of God,
and His righteousness; and all these
things shall be added unto you.
Matthew 6:33

He Serbian Grand Zhupan (Patriarchal leader) Stephen Nemanja had two sons, Stephen and Vukan; yet, he and his wife Anna desired, if it be God's will, to have another child. Their pious prayers ascended before God, Who heard their petition and blessed them with their last child, a son who was born in the year of our Lord 1175. At baptism the child was given the name Rastko, a name derived from the Old Slavonic verb "rasti" which means "to grow." And grow divinely he did. There were many special things about Rastko: he was a lovely child, with pronounced features and smooth skin, and possessed, already in his childhood, an unusually alert and pious demeanor. Little did Rastko's parents and all those of the Royal Court (and even the entire Serb nation) realize that his birth and baptism into Orthodoxy would providentially set in motion their own historical and spiritual journey, which would result in the blossoming of their Christian faith, nation hood and total Christian cultural orientation. This young child, Rastko, whose monastic name later was Sava, became and still remains the most beloved of all Serbian Orthodox saints, considered by all Serbs everywhere and at all times as the ultimate expression and example of what it means to be fully human, that is, what it means to be a devout and committed follower of Jesus Christ.

God Entered into the Depths of Human Life

In truth God as a man was born on earth! Why? That we might live through him (1 John 4:9). For without the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ, human life is wholly and completely a suicidal absurdity, and death is truly the most outright and horrible absurdity on earth. To comprehend death means comprehending life in all its depth, height, and limitlessness.

The Living church remains undamaged

An exclusive invterview with Protojerej-Stavrophor Dr. Zivojin Jakovljevic, Dean of St. Sava Cathedral, New York City by Vesna Pumpalovic, Balkan Express.

At Easter this year the New York parish experienced a great dislocation. The only Serbian Orthodox church in the New York City area caught fire, and since then the services are taking place in Episcopalian or Greek church buildings.

Why early Appalachian settelrs celebrated Christmas in January

Ask any of the millions of children scattered throughout the Appalachian Mountains what day of the year Christmas is on and you will undoubtedly hear, “December 25th”. Everyone from Northern Alabama to the Katahdin Summit in Maine knows that it is on this date that Santa Claus comes to town.

Interestingly, if you had been roaming the Appalachian hillsides only a few centuries ago, the answer to this same question would have produced a far different date — January 7th.

„Selected Homilies“ of Metropolitan Christopher (Kovacevic)

Book review by Dr. Sava Milin, protodeacon

With the blessing of His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Irinej, and with the assistance of the Office of Cooperation with Churches and Religious Communities of the Government of Republic of Serbia, the Publishing Foundation of the Archdiocese of Belgrade-Karlovci offered the public a true spiritual jewel.

Role of priests in war times

With the blessing of His Holiness Irinej, Serbian Patriarch, the Association of War Volunteers 1912-1918 and of their descendants and admirers organized a scientific meeting on the topic “The Role and significance of priests in the Balkan Wars and the First World War”, held at the Serbian Patriarchate in Belgrade on 20 December 2016.