Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana | |
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| Location | |
| Territory | NorthernCroatia andSlovenia Italy(1994–2011) |
| Headquarters | Zagreb,Croatia |
| Statistics | |
Population
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| Information | |
| Denomination | Eastern Orthodox |
| Sui iuris church | Serbian Orthodox Church |
| Established | 1557 |
| Cathedral | Cathedral of Holy Transfiguration, Zagreb |
| Language | Church Slavonic Serbian |
| Current leadership | |
| Bishop | Vacant since Feb 2021 Administrated byKirilo |
| Map | |
 Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana | |
| Website | |
| www | |
TheMetropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana (Serbian:Митрополија загребачко-љубљанска,romanized: Mitropolija zagrebačko-ljubljanska) is anEastern Orthodox eparchy (diocese) and one of the five honorary metropolitanates of theSerbian Orthodox Church. The headquarters of the metropolia is located inZagreb,Croatia, and its jurisdiction covers northernCroatia and the entire territory ofSlovenia.
During the Middle Ages,Slovenia was underHabsburg rule, while the neighbouringBanate of Slavonia was under the rule ofHungarian kings. Some eastern regions of medieval Slavonia were inhabited bySerbs, who settled there after fleeingBosnia during the 15th century, even before theOttoman conquest of Bosnia in 1463. In 1438,Pope Eugene IV sent the inquisitorGiacomo della Marca toSlavonia as a missionary to baptize "schismatic" Serbs in "Roman religion", and if that failed, to banish them.[1] In 1454, the Serbian Orthodox liturgical bookVaraždin Apostol was written in Upper-Slavonian city ofVaraždin, for princessKatarina Branković ofSerbia, wife ofUlrich II, Count of Celje.
In the first half of the 16th century,Slavonia was devastated by frequent wars. The eastern part (Lower Slavonia) was conquered by theOttomans, while the western part (Upper Slavonia) came underHabsburg rule.[2] Since the renewal of theSerbian Patriarchate of Peć in 1557, the Orthodox Serbs of Lower Slavonia were placed under the jurisdiction of theEparchy of Požega, centered at theOrahovica Monastery.[3] In 1595, the Serbian Orthodox metropolitan Vasilije of Požega moved to Upper Slavonia, under Habsburg rule, in order to avoid Turkish oppression.[1] His successors were headquartered in theMarča Monastery. In those areas, Serb migrants served as soldiers of theVaraždin Generalate. During the 17th century, bishops of Marča led the difficult fight against Roman Catholic proselytism.[citation needed]
In addition to Marča Monastery, the other spiritual center of Orthodox Serbs in the area was and still isLepavina Monastery. Abbot Kondrat of Lepavina was killed in 1716, defending the purity of the Orthodox faith. He was killed by those Serbs who had become Catholics. In 1734 the headquarters moved to a monastery at Lepavina and the diocese was called "Eparchy of Lepavina". Serbian Orthodox bishop Simeon Filipović of Lepavina (1734-1743) also had residence in Sjeverin. After his death and several years of administration, the Eparchy of Lepavina was abolished, and in 1750 its territory came under the jurisdiction of the Serbian Orthodox bishops of Kostajnica. In 1771, the region came under the jurisdiction of the Orthodox bishops of Pakrac, and that remained until 1931.[citation needed] This eparchy was suffragan of theMetropolitanate of Karlovci,autocephalous after 1766 (it became thePatriarchate of Karlovci in 1848).
Soon after the creation of theKingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (1918), all Serbian Orthodox ecclesiastical provinces were merged into the unitedSerbian Orthodox Church in 1920. Since the city of Zagreb was the second capital of the kingdom, initiative was revived for the restoration of the old "Eparchy of Lepavina" under newly proposed name "Eparchy of Zagreb". After long preparations, the region was detached from the Eparchy of Pakrac in 1931, and the newSerbian Orthodox Eparchy of Zagreb was created, with its bishop receiving the honorary title of Metropolitan.[4]
The first Eastern Orthodox Metropolitan of Zagreb wasDositej Vasić, a learned theologian and man of broad vision and understanding in relations with other nations and religions. In spite of that, after the Nazi occupation of Yugoslavia inWorld War II and the creation of theIndependent State of Croatia (1941), he was arrested and tortured. As a consequence, he died in 1945, exiled from his eparchy.[5] From 1942 to 1945 Zagreb was the centre of theCroatian Orthodox Church and Zagreb Cathedral became the seat of PatriarchGermogen.
AfterWorld War II, the Zagreb metropolitanate and other dioceses in the territory of Croatia were administered by auxiliary (vicarian) bishopArsenije Bradvarević. He was succeeded byDamascus Grdanički, previously Bishop ofBanat, and after his death in 1969, the metropolitanate was administered by the Bishop of Slavonia,Emilian Marinović.
At the regular session of the Holy Assembly of the Serbian Orthodox Church in 1977, the spiritual guidance of this metropolitanate was entrusted to vicarian bishopJovan Pavlović of Lepavina, who was elected Metropolitan of Zagreb in 1982. The following year, the name of the eparchy was expanded intoEparchy of Zagreb and Ljubljana. On the proposal of the metropolit Jovan, the name of the eparchy was expanded once more in 1994 into "Metropolitanate of Zagreb-Ljubljana and all Italy". Jurisdiction over Serbian Orthodox churches in Italy, that was transferred to the metropolitanate in 1994, lasted until 2011.[6]
Metropolit Jovan organized the meeting ofSerbian Patriarch Pavle and CardinalFranjo Kuharić (first in the spring of 1991 inSremski Karlovci, and the other later inSlavonski Brod). He also organized a meeting of Patriarch Pavle and the Croatian PresidentFranjo Tuđman.[citation needed]
In 2014, bishopPorfirije Perić was electedMetropolitan of Zagreb and Ljubljana and enthroned inZagreb on 13 July bySerbian Patriarch Irinej.[7]
On 18 February 2021, Metropolitan Porfirije was elected as the newPatriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church.[8][9][10][11]
Orthodox bishops and metropolitans who had jurisdiction over the territory of present-day Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana
Since 1705, under jurisdiction ofOrthodox Bishops of Pakrac.
After 1771, again under jurisdiction ofBishops of Pakrac.
The following is a list ofmetropolitan bishops since 1931:
| No. | Portrait | Metropolitan Bishop (born–died) | Reign (Time served) | Reason of withdrawal | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | .jpg) | Dositej Vasić (1878–1945) | May 1931 – January 1945 (13 years, 7 months) | Died | |
| Administered by Titular bishopArsenijeof Moravica between January 1945 and May 1947(2 years, 4 months) | |||||
2 |  | Damaskin Grdanički (1892–1969) | May 1947 – October 1969 (22 years, 4 months) | Died | |
| Administered by BishopEmilijanof Slavonia between October 1969 and May 1977(7 years, 7 months) | |||||
3 |  | Jovan Pavlović (1936–2014) | May 1977 – April 2014 (36 years, 10 months) | Died | [12] |
| Administered by BishopFotijeof Dalmatia between April and May 2014(1 month) | |||||
4 |  | Porfirije Perić (born 1961) | May 2014 – February 2021 (6 years, 8 months) | ElectedSerbian Patriarch | [13] |
| Administered by Patriarch Porfirije between February 2021 and May 2023(2 years, 3 months) | |||||
| Administered by BishopKiriloof Buenos Aires and South America since May 2023(2 years, 6 months) | |||||
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