The largest city in South Africa and, in general, one of the largest on the African continent, in the true sense of a metropolis, Johannesburg is located on the southern slope of the so-called “Witwatersrand”, on the White Water Plateau, in the southern part of the Transvaal province, the homeland of the South African Zulu blacks and the Boers or white Afrikaners.
With the opening of gold mines, especially after 1886, the city experienced rapid growth, although it was not near the sea coast, lakes or rivers, as were other cities that were established at the same time. Today, Johannesburg is the headquarters of the gold, diamond and uranium industries.
The city was founded by the Boer trading elite. The Boers are of Dutch origin. In addition to them, at the beginning of the seventeenth century, French Huguenots arrived in the Transvaal and mixed with the Boers.
The city is named after Johannes Risik and Christian Johannes Joubert, who were leading members of the local mining council of the then Boer Republic or “Zuid-Afrikaanische Republiek”. Later, in 1897, this council became the “Stadsraad” or city council. At the same time, thanks to economic expansion, a number of Anglo-Saxons from the British colonies, various merchants and mining experts, such as the Forrest brothers, arrived here.
The connection of Johannesburg by railway with Cape Town, a city in the south of the country, in 1892, accelerated the influx of English people to the Transvaal. Over time, the English became the majority population and demanded their participation in political life. As the government in Pretoria rejected such demands, they came into conflict with it.
After the defeat of the Boer Republic in a bloody war with British rule, which lasted from 11 October 1890 to 31 May 1902, a large number of the population emigrated from the city, which then had about 100,000 inhabitants. The British administrator had to import Chinese to work in the mines. The exodus from Johannesburg continued until 1910, when the remaining citizens revolted and the Transvaal became part of the Union of South Africa under the British Crown.
After World War I, Johannesburg was hit by major strikes and riots, especially after 1922, when the mining industry allowed the local black population to work in the mines. In 1922, a general strike broke out in which about two hundred protesters died.
Johannesburg celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in 1936. During that time, it experienced a great demographic expansion. In the 1970s, the city covered 104 square miles and had over 700,000 inhabitants, and in the suburbs, several million.
According to the racial composition of Johannesburg, about 60% of the population is black, 30% white, European and other Asian or mixed “Coloureds”. National minorities include Germans, Dutch, Hungarians, Italians, French, Scandinavians, Swiss, Poles and others with a significant number of Jews and immigrants from Central and East Asia. Of the tribes, the most significant are: Zulu, Goat, Pedi, Venda and Tswana.
SERBIAN IMMIGRATION TO SOUTH AFRICA
The immigration of Serbs to South Africa began in the second half of the nineteenth century. It should be understood that these were larger immigrations. They were mostly individuals, not entire families. Over time, Serbs, who had settled down somewhat, invited their closer or more distant relatives, and thus a small colony of Serbs gradually formed in Johannesburg and the surrounding area.
The first immigrants to South Africa were economic emigrants, mostly from Boka Kotorska. In addition to Boka, there were also those from Montenegro, Lika and Dalmatia. Among the Dalmatians, in addition to Orthodox Serbs, there were also Catholics, mainly from the Adriatic islands.
The motive that drove our people to emigrate from their homes and abandon their families was economic. This is also the reason why among the emigrants we mainly meet people from more passive regions. This applies to our entire economic emigration, not only to those who came to South Africa, but also to those who emigrated to America, Australia, Europe and other areas. A special motive that attracted Serbs, and even other peoples, to a country as distant as South Africa was the diamond mines that were discovered in Kimberley, and later the gold mines in Johannesburg and the surrounding area. It is an interesting fact that Serbs immigrated to South Africa not only from Serbian areas in the old region, but there were also some from North and South America, as well as Australia, mainly those who were also engaged in gold mining there. When the gold deposits there were depleted, they continued their work in South Africa.
The life of the first settlers in South Africa was very difficult. They lived in primitive workers’ settlements, without money and often without basic means of subsistence.
It is difficult to track the demographic presence of Serbs in South Africa with certainty, because some families died out, others assimilated through mixed marriages, and some emigrated to other areas and continents for certain reasons. Among the first families to come to Johannesburg and its surroundings are the Anteljevićs. Ilija Anteljević, a native of Boka Kotorska, was a very respectable man, one of the wealthier Serbs, who also made friends with leading people in Johannesburg at the time. He managed to bring a large number of his close and distant relatives. In addition to the Anteljević family, the Ćorović families are also known: Boža, Jovan and Lazar. Lazar was Ilija Anteljević’s business partner. In addition to them, the oldest Serbian families in Johannesburg include the Đurićs, Poznanovićs, Mršićs, Lopičićs, Miloševićs, and Bijelićs. Jelena Bijelić arrived in Johannesburg with her son Vas in 1898. Her oldest grandson, Denis, became a general in the South African army. He came from Egypt to Pretoria by truck at the end of World War II. The case of Špiro Ćorović, who as a young man went with his parents to Odessa and from there to Suez, is also interesting. He then left Suez and came to Cape Town and got a job on the construction of the Cape-Johannesburg railway. He traveled on foot from the Cape to Johannesburg, about 1,600 kilometers.
By the end of the nineteenth century, we could already speak of a well-established Serbian colony in Johannesburg, where social life began to develop. The influx of our people from the old region to South Africa brought a certain liveliness among the natives. Although they did not have their own halls for meetings and parties, they usually met in private homes or rented a hall for just one evening. According to some testimonies, the colony at that time resembled one big family. There were no divisions on religious or national grounds. It is known that a society called “Slavic Dawn” was also founded in Johannesburg, which brought together all Slavs in South Africa and lasted until the beginning of World War II.
During World War I, Serbs in South Africa found themselves in an exceptional situation. Namely, they were mostly from the territory of Austria-Hungary and its subjects, which for South Africa meant from an enemy country. However, they were not treated that way. They were not imprisoned in camps, interned, and the like, as was the case in some countries, because many Serbs, out of patriotic motives and intolerance towards the occupiers in their homeland, massively volunteered for the South African army. A photograph is still kept in the Bijelić family home today showing several Serbs in military uniforms of the South African army, namely: Stevo Milošević, Nikola Anteljević, Simo Anteljević, Božo Ćorović and Nikola Ukropina.
The fortunes of war did not always favor Serbian volunteers in the South African army. They fared somewhat better on the battlefields in Namibia, in the conflict with the Germans in 1915, when almost the entire German army was captured. From the battlefield in Namibia, a large military formation of the South African army was sent to the battlefield in East Africa in Tanganyika, which was otherwise a German colony. During the two-year war in East Africa, more soldiers died from malaria and other diseases than from weapons.
Serbs in the ranks of the South African army also fought as volunteers on the French battlefield. In a decisive battle at Delville Wood, the 5th South African Brigade, which entered the war with 3,000 fighters, only 140 fighters remained on their feet in the brigade after the battle. Among the dead was a Serb, Nikola Ukropina. It seems that the Serbian volunteers were excellent fighters. In one photograph, also from that wartime, there is a group of five Serbian volunteers in military uniforms, with decorations on their chests, awarded for bravery.
During the First World War, a Serbian women’s community was founded in Johannesburg. This community, both in its function and in the goals of its work, resembled the circle of Serbian sisters. The president of this first Serbian women’s association was the Jewess Berta Solomon, the wife of the mayor of Johannesburg, Solomon. The members of this association were also Jelena Bijelic, Olga Anteljevic, Nana Djuric-Mestrovic, Jovanka Pantovic, a Czech woman and several other foreigners. Jovanka Pantovic was the daughter of the priest Pero Popovic from Herceg Novi, one of the priest’s 22 children. She came to South Africa from Southampton, England. She traveled for 49 days and nights, and the boat ticket cost 15 pounds sterling.
During World War I, two Serbian monks from the Hilendar Monastery on Mount Athos also stayed in Johannesburg. Their names and the exact time of their stay in Johannesburg are not recorded. All that is known is that they were in Johannesburg collecting donations for the Hilendar Monastery, which had become very impoverished during World War I.
The end of World War I and the cessation of war operations left a great devastation, not only in Europe, but also in other parts of the world, in all the countries that had been drawn into the war.
Due to the material impoverishment and war devastation that the war left behind, many Serbs were forced to move from their homeland in search of a safer life. Many opted for South Africa as a country rich in gold and diamond ores. As before, the most numerous Serbian immigrants were again from Boka Kotorska. This can be explained by the fact that in Johannesburg, or rather in South Africa, there were already families from Boka who were financially well-off and could help the new wave of Serbian refugees from Boka.
The Second World War brought even greater material devastation to our country, as well as to the whole of Europe. New migrations from European and other displacement camps followed. For many emigrants, South Africa was the geographical determinant. In Wejneberg, our immigrants during and after the Second World War bought a house in which they founded the Yugoslav Club. This club did not last long. It ceased to exist in the 1950s. The collapse of the Yugoslav Club was caused by the arrival of political emigration and the creation of the Royal Yugoslav Army Association Draža Mihailović.
During World War II, a Yugoslav military mission came to Johannesburg from Cairo, led by General Staff Major Dušan Babić. This group was joined by a group of soldiers from South America. Here, in the lee, various courses were organized. A particularly important course was the aviation course. In addition, a sanatorium for the treatment of tuberculosis-stricken Allied soldiers was established in Baragwana. Johannesburg was known for its very favorable and mild climate, which was decisive in choosing a place for such a sanatorium. Among these people, the sick, there were also Serbs. One of them was Pera Popović, a radiologist, who stayed to live in Johannesburg. Others, such as Dušan Jovanović, Dobrivoje Milošević, Stevan Nićiforović, Dušan Babić and others, also stayed permanently.
During World War II, there were Serbs from indigenous Serbian families who participated in the war and fought as volunteers in the South African army. Among others, the following are mentioned: Dejan and Milovan Bijelic, Alek Anteljevic, the Lopicic brothers, the Mricic brothers and others. There is an interesting incident with Alek Anteljevic. Towards the end of the war, he was in Italy. Wanting to visit his ancestral homeland, he went to Belgrade. In Belgrade, he was arrested on suspicion of espionage. However, he somehow managed to escape and return to South Africa.
During World War II, an aid service was also organized for war orphans and all war victims in general. In Johannesburg, near the lake, not far from the zoo, pavilions were erected where women of various nationalities from Johannesburg organized national cuisines, made handicrafts, which they sold and in this way raised money for charity. Serbian women, housewives, showed excellent skill in their work, which brought them extraordinary recognition and respect.
ORTHODOXNESS IN SOUTH AFRICA
Orthodoxy came to South Africa through three ethnic groups: Greeks, Russians and Serbs. In addition to them, a small group of Orthodox Lebanese was also present on South African soil.
The majority of Orthodox Christians are Greeks, who came to South Africa mostly after World War II, while a significant number of Greeks were born in South Africa. According to statistics, before World War II there were 3,879 Greeks, and between 1946 and 1951 this number almost doubled to around 7,347. State statistics further show that in 1980 the number of Orthodox Greek Christians had risen to around 30,000. There were Orthodox Greeks on South African soil as early as the beginning of the twentieth century. The first Greek Orthodox priest, Father Artemios, who belonged to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, visited Cape Town in 1901, at the invitation of the Greek community to celebrate the Holy Liturgy for them. During the few months he remained among them, he served in the churches of the Anglican Church. During 1901, Father Artemios returned to his country. At that time, the Greek community sent a request to the Archbishop of Athens to send them a permanent priest. During 1902, Anthimos Lapis arrived in Cape Town. He and the Greek community built a church and a house for the priest in the Cape Town suburb of Woodstock. The current church of St. George from that time is the cathedral church of the Diocese of the Cape of Good Hope.
All correspondence regarding church life in Cape Town was conducted with the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Holy Synod of the Greek Archbishopric in Athens. The Greek community was essentially under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Athens.
The third priest was Archimandrite Mavrocordato, sent by the Synod of the Archdiocese of Athens. He came to Cape Town in 1907 and stayed for five years. After his resignation, the Patriarchate of Alexandria appointed a temporary priest until the arrival of Athanasios Katis, who presented himself as a man capable of “transforming the community into an active, national and religious one, with a desire for national awakening.” During 1920, there was a change in the ecclesiastical jurisdiction on the African continent. Namely, the title of Patriarch of Alexandria was changed. The previous title of “Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and all Egypt” was replaced with “Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and all Africa”, thus extending the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Alexandria to the entire African continent, contrary to the second Canon of the Second Ecumenical Council, which states: “Bishops are not to extend their rights (authority) beyond the borders of their Churches, nor to disturb the Churches, but according to the Canons, the Bishop of Alexandria is to govern only in Egypt.” Whether this happened by a self-proclaimed decision of the Patriarchate of Alexandria, by mutual agreement with the Patriarchate of Constantinople, or with the consent of other Orthodox jurisdictions, is unknown to us. However, with this act, the Greek Orthodox community came under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Alexandria. By changing the title of the Patriarch of Alexandria, the claim to other Orthodox church communities in Africa also occurred.
Today, there are two dioceses in South Africa, in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Both metropolitans and all priests are foreigners by birth. They are Orthodox Greeks, born outside South Africa, ordained by the Archbishop of Athens, the Patriarch of Cyprus or the Patriarch of Constantinople. As for the Orthodox Russians, they emigrated to South Africa in the early 1920s, after the Bolshevik Revolution. Most of them were from noble families. According to official statistics in 1921, there were 6,495 Russian emigrants on South African soil. For comparison, in 1921, there were 1,291 Greeks living here. Over time, the number of Russians decreased drastically. In 1951, there were only 563 who declared themselves Russians. Many assimilated into South African society, and a certain number of them did not want children, indulging in a more comfortable life.
In 1952, the parish and commune of St. Vladimir, of the Russian Orthodox Church, was founded. The first priest was Simeon Starikov from 1953 to 1959. That year, the Holy Synod of the Russian Church Outside of Russia sent Archimandrite Alexei (Cherney) as parish priest in Johannesburg. He used churches of other Christian denominations, Anglican, Protestant, and Roman Catholic, to conduct divine services. In Johannesburg, the Orthodox Russians managed to buy a house on Koch Street and adapt it into an Orthodox church. Archimandrite Alexei remained at the parish in Johannesburg until 1975, a full sixteen years, when, due to poor health, he moved to the United States of America. After Archimandrite Alexei’s departure, the chapel from Koch Street was moved to Fox Street. A Serbian priest also occasionally served there for the Orthodox Russians.
As for the Serbian Orthodox community in South Africa, until the organization of a parish and a church-school community of the Serbian Church in Johannesburg in 1952, for their church needs, the Serbs used the help of a Greek Orthodox priest. In the absence of any Orthodox church, they would choose the nearest Anglican church. Many Serbs were baptized, married and ordained by priests of the Anglican Church. The Anglican Church was always ready to meet the requests of Orthodox Serbs. The case of Zorka Anteljević, a devout Orthodox Serbian woman, who went to every service in the Anglican church in Brankton near Johannesburg by bicycle, covering 17 kilometers in one direction. She was eventually buried by Anglican priests.
THE ARRIVAL OF SERBS FROM EUROPEAN PRISON CAMPS AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PARISH AND CHURCH-SCHOOL MUNICIPALITY
After the end of World War II, nothing was the same again. The political map of Europe and the world had changed. Two hostile military blocs emerged in the world, the North Atlantic bloc, led by America, and the Warsaw Pact, led by the Soviet Union, which brought together all the countries of Southeast and Eastern Europe. All of them accepted communist ideology as the basis of state policy. Given that the then Yugoslavia, as a communist creation, found itself in the camp of communist countries, many Serbs from European prison camps sought refuge in other countries of the world. This fate also befell the Serbs who moved to South Africa. A group of Serbs found themselves in South Africa, in Johannesburg, an equally small group of Serbs, who had been immigrating as economic emigrants since the second half of the nineteenth century, with the influx of an equally small number of Serbs after World War I. Just when a part of the economic emigration, who had acquired something, was preparing to return to their homes in the old region, some had even sold their real estate, the arrival of communism and the creation of communist Yugoslavia completely changed their plans. Mostly everyone remained in South Africa. Stevan Nićiforović writes about this in the Voice of Canadian Serbs: “Both the natives and the newcomers immediately came to the decision that they should work and create resistance in the community against our common enemies. As early as 1947, they tried to establish their own society, but it did not succeed, because the destructive influence of communism and the Ustasha played a decisive role. The Serbian colony is small in number, and there are more Tito supporters than there are nationally conscious people in the so-called Yugoslav colony.”
This knowledge encouraged Serbs in South Africa, and on December 7, 1949, they founded the Association of Fighters of the Royal Yugoslav Army Draža Mihailović. The establishment of the Association caused a reaction among communist-oriented individuals. Gossip, intrigue, and all kinds of fabrications, lies, and subterfuge arose. Since they failed to undermine the Association, they reorganized the Yugoslav Club. To their regret, they experienced complete failure, because no one responded to them. “They,” says Stevan Nićiforović, “wanted with this act to dissolve our newly created association and to protect themselves from the authorities of this country, because a law on the persecution of communists was being prepared in this country… We Serbs have nothing to worry about in that regard, because the late Draža Mihailović protects us with his name even on this remote point of the globe.” The Secretary of the Association Nenad Žakula informed Bishop Dionysius about the establishment of the Association and emphasized: “that all Serbs of South Africa gathered around the Association and thus laid the first foundation for a Serbian organization on African soil.” In a further report to Bishop Dionysius, Secretary Žakula informed the Bishop “…that all Serbs living in South Africa are the faithful flock of the Holy Orthodox Church.” Bishop Dionysije used this information to inquire not only about the number of members of the Association, but also about the number of old and new immigrants, emphasizing: “We and our Diocese want to better connect and help all our brothers scattered throughout the world, so we need your report all the more.” Only half a year later, Secretary Žakula informed Bishop Dionysije in quite detail and said: “Upon my arrival in this distant country two years ago, I found a very small number of our Serbs. They are exclusively sons and daughters of our beautiful Boka, there are none from other regions. They are all related by blood because each individual brought his closest relatives from the family… They are hardworking workers with very little schooling… They came to these regions as workers in gold mines. Later, having earned a little money, they began to engage in trade. Many have completed their butchering trade and have their own butcher shops, and some have opened restaurants… Their material condition is mediocre. There is no rich world… I can proudly assure Your Eminence that I have not met a more honest people. They are all, with few exceptions, devout Serbs and faithful members of the Holy Orthodox Church… Their greatest wish was to have a priest brought to them as soon as possible who would baptize their children, perform weddings, and cut cakes, and the only wish of the elderly was for our priest to give them alms… According to accurately collected data, there are currently about 150 Serbs in South Africa, of whom 51 are newcomers. According to as yet unverified data, there are also a number of our people in Northern and Southern Rhodesia. All of these people of ours are settled mostly in Johannesburg itself and its immediate surroundings. In other cities in South Africa, there are only a few.” The priest’s question for the small Serbian colony in South Africa was a vital one. Stevan Nićiforović warns that “The Church-School Municipality is essential for the preservation and salvation of Serbian life.All our cultural workers, clergy and politicians should think more seriously about this issue. They should forget their mutual disputes and seek solutions to our burning problem abroad.” Bishop Dionysije also used his authority to find a suitable priest for the Serbs in Johannesburg. In a letter to Nenad Žakula, he drew attention to priest Budimir Đukić, who was in the Bagnoli camp in Italy, gave his address and expressed his deep conviction that the Serbian Orthodox Church would be completely satisfied with priest Đukić. However, instead of going to Johannesburg, priest Đukić went to Australia.
Priest Emilian Popović, from Bristol, England, addresses Bishop Dionysius on April 12, 1951, expressing his desire to go to Johannesburg, to be a priest for our Serbs there. Bishop Dionysius granted Priest Popović’s request and recommended him to the Association of Yugoslav War Veterans, as well as to all Serbs in South Africa. However, there was no luck with this priest either, i.e. he did not come to South Africa either.
After several unsuccessful attempts, Bishop Dionysius reports to the Association of Yugoslav War Veterans on August 31, 1951, that he has appointed Hieromonk Sava (Gnjatović), the former parish priest at the Church of St. George in Maystown, Pennsylvania, United States of America, as a priest in Johannesburg. With this, the wish of the Serbs from South Africa was finally fulfilled. On the occasion of this happy event for Serbs in South Africa, the president and secretary of the Association of Serbian War Veterans wrote to Bishop Dionysius: “There is no need to emphasize to you how much our Christian hearts are filled with joy that our spiritual shepherd will find himself among us and that his arrival falls precisely on the days of Holy Week, on the days of the torture and suffering of the God-man.”
THE ATTITUDE OF THE GREEK METROPOLITAN NIKODIMOS TOWARDS THE APPOINTMENT OF A SERBIAN PRIEST AS THE 3RD PARISH PARISH OF SERBS IN JOHANNESBURG
The day after his arrival in Johannesburg, on May 3, 1952, Hieromonk Sava (Gnjatović) was summoned for a meeting by Metropolitan Nikodimos of Johannesburg. At the meeting, the Metropolitan asked Hieromonk Sava for the act of his appointment as a parish priest in Johannesburg. Hieromonk Sava replied that Bishop Dionysije had delivered the act of his appointment as a parish priest to the Association, which had asked Bishop Dionysije to send them one of the Serbian priests to serve as a parish priest for the Serbs in Johannesburg. Further, Hieromonk Sava informed Metropolitan Nikodimos, to the best of his knowledge, that Bishop Dionysije had been authorized by the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church to exercise spiritual care over all Orthodox Serbs, not only in South Africa but also on other continents, until the Synod decided otherwise. The Metropolitan replied that he was not aware of all this, but that there was an agreement between the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Patriarch of Alexandria, according to which he – the Metropolitan – is the competent bishop on the territory of the African continent for all Orthodox peoples and priests and that they fall exclusively under his jurisdiction. Then the Metropolitan asked whom he would mention at the Holy Liturgy and other services and ceremonies, Hieromonk Sava answered Bishop Dionysius, to which the Metropolitan replied no, but him, emphasizing: “you are my priest.” Further, the Metropolitan informed him that he, the Metropolitan, gives approval for the conclusion of marriages, and he again issues the extracts from the protocol, personally, with his signature.
Hieromonk Sava informed Bishop Dionysius about all this. In his report, he speaks of a visit to the Bishop of the Anglican Church in Johannesburg, Ambrose, together with the president of the church community Milovanović and the president of the church committee of the Russian Church Svirodov. The Anglican bishop received them warmly and offered any assistance in case of need. In the same report, Hieromonk Sava informed Bishop Dionysius about the number of Orthodox in Johannesburg and stated: about 125 Orthodox Serbian families, twenty-five Russian families, four Romanian families and two Bulgarian families. The Patriarchate of Alexandria was also informed about the emerging problem of jurisdiction, which quickly reacted to this issue. Already on May 23, Metropolitan Nikodimos again summoned Hieromonk Sava. Although he had been invited to attend the meeting alone, the members of the committee, i.e. The president of the Serbian community, Ilija Milovanović, and the president of the Russian community, Viktor Ivanov, were present at the conversation. In their presence, on behalf of Metropolitan Nikodimos, Archimandrite Kirill read a letter from the Patriarch of Alexandria, which, among other things, stated: “In the event that a Yugoslav priest does not obey the orders and decisions of the competent Metropolitan of Greece in Johannesburg, the competent Metropolitan for all Orthodox confessions on this continent, the same is authorized to deny and prohibit all clerical activities, and if necessary, he is also authorized to use the local authorities.” Bishop Dionysius was also urgently informed of this. The church council made a decision to suspend divine services, but not rituals, until the decision and instructions of Bishop Dionysius.
Bishop Dionysius was informed about the situation in Johannesburg regarding the issue of church jurisdiction over the Orthodox Serbian Church Community in Johannesburg by its President, Ilija Milovanović. In a calm tone and with reasonable and pertinent questions, President Milovanović emphasized: “On May 23 of this month, Father Sava was invited by the local Greek Metropolitan to inform him of the response of the Patriarch of Alexandria… The meeting was attended by Father Sava and the President of our Church Committee and the President of the Russian Church Committee.
Before the content of the received letter from the Patriarch was announced, we were informed that all Orthodox priests, regardless of the Church they belong to, fall under the church jurisdiction of the Metropolitan in Johannesburg, stating that there is an agreement in the spirit of canonical Orthodox rules, which regulates territorial relations and the competences of individual bishops. I would like to remind you that on that occasion the precise provisions of that agreement were not read to us, nor were we clearly informed of the date of that agreement.
Our attention was drawn to the fact that our priest cannot perform any religious services until the issue is regulated in the spirit of the existing Canons. We were unable to discuss this issue and said that we would inform you about that issue and that in any case we expect your response to Father Sava’s letter of the 18th of this month.
After this, we were informed of the text of the letter from the Patriarch of Alexandria, which consists of the following:
1. The Patriarch of Alexandria expresses his agreement with the measures taken here by the local Greek Metropolitan;
2. That there is no notification from you about the appointment of Father Sava as parish priest in
Johannesburg;
3. That all activities of Father Sava be suspended until his position is regulated;
4. If Father Sava objects to this, he recommends that the Greek Metropolitan
address the local civil authorities for intervention and prohibition of the practice;
5. 5. The Greek Metropolitan’s comment on this was that he personally regrets that this has come to pass, but that he is responsible for ensuring that the Canons of the Orthodox Church in this territory must be enforced.
We ask Your Eminence to inform us as soon as possible:
a – What is the relationship of Father Sava towards the Greek Metropolitan in the church-legal sense;
b – What is the relationship of our Serbian Orthodox Church with regard to other Orthodox churches in the territory of Africa;
c – Is there any agreement between the Orthodox churches according to which the Patriarch of Alexandria is the supreme church authority in the territory of Africa;
d – Is Father Sava authorized to engage in church activities, as a member and priest of the independent Serbian Orthodox Church, or should he wait until his position is regulated.” Bishop Dionysije first responded to both reports with a telegram: “Continue with your work and with the divine service. The letter follows.” It is a pity that we were not able to obtain the letter from the Patriarch of Alexandria, which was read before our representatives by Archimandrite Kirill in the presence of Metropolitan Nikodimos. Perhaps something more could be learned about the agreement between the Patriarchs of Constantinople and Alexandria regarding jurisdiction in Africa. This is especially true since the letter mentions Hieromonk Sava, but not Ilija Milovanović, who was also present at the meeting. Perhaps the letter referred to some agreement from 1920, when the title of the Patriarch of Alexandria was changed?
Regardless of the possible assumptions, Bishop Dionysius had his own view of the problem that had arisen, and in this regard he sent his advice for further action to the priest and the church board. In his act, Bishop Dionysius first explains the status of the autocephalous Serbian Orthodox Church in relation to the Patriarchate of Alexandria, the right of jurisdiction of both. Regarding the legal affiliation of Hieromonk Sava, Bishop Dionysius explicitly states that “…Hieromonk Sava does not fall under the authority of the Patriarch of Alexandria, nor his bishop for South Africa. What the Greek Metropolitan Nikodimos is doing is a violation of inter-church love and violence towards the Serbian Orthodox Church. Therefore, we order Hieromonk Sava not to submit to the authority of the Greek Metropolitan of Alexandria in anything, neither he nor any of the Orthodox Serbs.” Bishop Dionysije felt that he should personally inform Metropolitan Nikodimos of Johannesburg about all this. He did so. In a letter dated June 12, 1952, Bishop Dionysije informed Metropolitan Nikodimos that he was the canonical bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church, that he was the Bishop of the American-Canadian Diocese with his seat in the Monastery of Saint Sava in Libertyville. In further introducing himself, Bishop Dionysije emphasized that he had been authorized by the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church to take spiritual care of all Orthodox Serbs in the diaspora and that, accordingly, he had appointed Hieromonk Sava as the parish priest of the Serbs in Johannesburg, South Africa. At the end of the act, Bishop Dionysius adds: “I am sure that Your Eminence knows about the fact that the Serbian Patriarchate in Belgrade is an autocephalous Church and that Your Eminence will recognize it as all the Orthodox Churches in the world do. Accordingly, Hieromonk Sava will fall under my jurisdiction alone.” The issue of church jurisdiction on the African continent was resolved as early as the fourth century. It was defined by the sixth Canon of the First Ecumenical Council, which reads: “Let the ancient customs be preserved that in Egypt, Libya and Pentapolis, the bishop of Alexandria has authority over all the bishops of the upper dioceses, just as it is customary for the bishop of Rome. In a similar way, in Antioch and in other regions, let the prerogatives of the churches be preserved.” It seems that even at that time there was an ambition of some bishops to extend their authority to areas that did not belong to them, so it was necessary to clarify and confirm this at the Second Ecumenical Council. The Second Canon of this Council reads: “Bishops are not to extend their rights (authority) beyond the borders of their churches, nor to disturb the churches, but according to the Canons, the bishop of Alexandria is to govern only in Egypt (our emphasis); the eastern bishops are to govern only in the East, preserving the prerogatives of the Church of Antioch according to the Nicene rules. Likewise, the bishops of the Asian region are to govern only in Asia; those from Pontus are to govern only in Pontus, those from Thrace are to govern only in Thrace. If they are not called, the bishops are not to exceed their rights for the ordination of ordinations or for some other church affairs.In keeping with the above-mentioned rule of administration, it is clear that in each region the council of that region will govern, as was determined at Nicaea. The Church of God, which is among the barbarians, is obliged to be governed according to the order held by the Fathers.” These Canons delimited the regions that fell under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan of Alexandria. The Canons list Egypt, Libya and the Pentapolis, and later, at the suggestion of Saint Athanasius the Great, Thebaid was also included. Thus, the Second Ecumenical Council clearly determines that “the bishop of Alexandria is to govern only in Egypt”. The boundaries to which the Metropolitan of Alexandria was to extend his authority encompassed one large political region (diocese). Here we note that, at the time of the Council of Nicaea, the boundaries of ecclesiastical regions were determined according to the political boundaries of the provinces of the Roman Empire.
In addition to the Metropolitan of Alexandria, at the time of the Council of Nicaea, Proconsular Africa also played a significant role in church life on the African continent, which was divided into four regions: Africapropria, Numidia, Mauritania Caesarensis and Mauritania Cityfensis, with its capital at Carthage, whose metropolitan was the Primate of Proconsular Africa (Primas universae Africae). At the time of the First Ecumenical Council, the Bishop of Carthage was fully autocephalous, as were the Bishops of Rome, Alexandria and Antioch. In the fifth century, the fathers of the Council of Chalcedon confirmed all the previous privileges and powers granted to the Bishops of Rome, Alexandria and Antioch, as stipulated in the Canons of the First and Second Ecumenical Councils. At the same time, they established the status of Constantinople as an important imperial city, the New Rome, and transferred to the bishop of Constantinople the powers enjoyed by the bishops of the dioceses of Pontus, Thrace and Asia, also independent and autocephalous. Not only that, from then on, the bishops of Constantinople, Alexandria and Antioch, and from the Council of Trullo and Jerusalem, bore the titles of patriarch. The Patriarch of Alexandria, due to the importance of the chair he held, was given a place immediately after the bishop of the city of Constantinople.
The same jurisdiction, limited by the Canons of the First and Second Ecumenical Councils, was exercised by the First Bishop of the See of Saint Mark in Alexandria throughout the past centuries. The work “History of the Holy Eastern Church”, volume 3, published in London in 1847 by Neil John Mason, also points us to this. The book, which went through several editions, in 1851 and 1976, is entitled with the title of the then Patriarch of Alexandria from 1847, which reads: By the grace of God, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria, Libya, Pentapolis and all the missions of St. Mark, and Judge of the Universe. A priest of the Greek Church in Thanasa, South Africa, Father Chrysostom Frank, in his work entitled “Orthodoxy in South Africa, a Missed Opportunity”, states that in 1920 the title of the Patriarch of Alexandria was changed. Namely, the previous title of Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and all Egypt was replaced with “Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and all Africa”. Therefore, something was done that contradicted the clear provision of Canon 6 of the First and Canon 2 of the Second Ecumenical Council, which changed the previous canonical practice and tradition, in order to meet the aspiration to place the entire African continent under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Alexandria.
A change of church jurisdiction over Orthodox communities, especially if it is carried out by force, can cause great trauma in church life. That is why the behavior of church pastors in such circumstances is of great importance. A fine example of such pastoral behavior and understanding was given by Patriarch Nicholas VI of Alexandria. In 1961, he served the Divine Liturgy in the chapel of the Russian Church in Johannesburg, concelebrated by Russian Archimandrite Alexei, who was under the jurisdiction of the Russian Church Abroad. On that occasion, the Patriarch expressed his welcome for the first Russian Church south of the Equator. In this spirit, in 1961, Patriarch Nicholas invited the entire Serbian-Russian church community to the consecration of the cathedral church in Pretoria. Regarding the church jurisdiction over the Serbian church community in Johannesburg, the Greek priest Chrysostomos asked the Greek Metropolitan Paul in 1985: “Why is the Serbian community not under his diocese but under Belgrade?” The Metropolitan replied: “They are Serbs, they must have their own Church.” Metropolitan Paul’s decisive statement in favor of the jurisdiction of the Serbian Church over the Serbian community in South Africa indicates that this issue did not pose any problem in the mutual relations of these Patriarchates. Such an approach by the dignitary of the Patriarchate of Alexandria was an expression of Orthodox love, which proved to be the most salutary for the small Serbian community and its survival in the faith of its fathers. Only Christian love and inter-church dialogue with the lofty vision of the growth of Holy Orthodoxy for the common good can remove all misunderstandings that may arise on the path of the mission of the Holy Orthodox Church.
Regardless of the frictions that occasionally arose, the Serbian Church spiritually cared for its community in Johannesburg, first through the American-Canadian Bishop Dionysius, the Midwestern American Bishop Firmilian, and since the establishment of the Australian-New Zealand Diocese by its Bishop. Only recently, in the 1990s, did the Serbian Patriarch take on spiritual care.
ORGANIZATION OF THE CHURCH MUNICIPALITY
Upon arriving in Johannesburg, Hieromonk Sava first visited all the Serbs in the area as well as the Association of KJV Fighters, which was the initiator of bringing a Serbian priest to Johannesburg. According to the report that Hieromonk Sava sent to Bishop Dionysius, one gets the impression that the members of the Association’s board, at least some of them, were not clear that the board of the Association was not the same as the board of a church municipality and that the board of the church could not be run by any associations. Right from the beginning, individuals demonstrated a secularized approach to the Church. This understanding burdened the church life of the parish in Johannesburg from the very beginning.
Informed about these tendencies in the Serbian community in Johannesburg, Bishop Dionysije advised Hieromonk Sava: “As a Serbian Orthodox priest, it must be your duty to gather all Serbs, good Christians, around the new church community, and not just the members of the Association. Therefore, let them keep this in mind, because that way they will be stronger and you will reach your goal, the church and the home, sooner.” The founding assembly of the church-school community was held on July 27, 1952. On that occasion, the first administration of the church community was elected, consisting of: Hieromonk Sava Gnjatović, president, Maksim Poznanović, vice president, General Staff Major Dušan Babić, secretary, Ranko Bijelić, treasurer, who soon underwent surgery and Dušan Jovanović was elected in his place. The Supervisory Board consisted of: Miloš Savić, Jakov Kusovac (father of Nikola Kusovac, director of the National Museum in Belgrade), and Dobrivoje Milošević. In addition to the members of the board, the rules of the church community were also sent to Bishop Dionysius for confirmation. As we have already mentioned, the secularist approach of a large number of Serbs, members and parishioners, and the attempt of individuals to equate the Church with some secular club, led to various intrigues, party quarrels, power struggles and influence in church bodies, and finally to discord and unsuccessful organization. Thanks to the pastoral dedication of individual priests, and most of all to their great patience, such problems were mostly covered up, but not overcome in church communities. However, everywhere in the dispersion, they always resurfaced, in the form of various quarrels, intrigues and dissatisfaction. The Constitution of the Serbian Orthodox Church stipulates that the Patriarch presides over all patriarchal bodies, the bishop over all diocesan bodies, but in the case of a church municipality, the chain of hierarchical order is broken and it is presided over by the president, who is always a civilian. As in the vast majority of cases in the diaspora, in Johannesburg the initiative for the establishment of a church municipality came from laypeople. An additional challenge was the fact that the Association of Fighters of the Royal Yugoslav Army was the initiator. Faced with such a situation, Hieromonk Sava chose to run for president of the church municipality in order to provide himself, as a parish priest, with an instrument of power in managing its affairs.
Bishop Dionysije was not pleased that Hieromonk Sava had accepted the position of president of the church administration. “…I must tell you that it is not right for you to be president of the church community. That does not exist anywhere in our church communities.” Finally, he advises Hieromonk Sava “…to step down from that position and elect a new person as president. That is better and more favorable to the people.” That this is more favorable to the people, it soon became clear. Only five months after the election of the parish priest as president of the church community, Ilija Milovanović, a former lieutenant colonel of the Yugoslav Air Force, complained to Bishop Dionysije about the work of Hieromonk Sava. He cites as his greatest complaint that he had accepted the position of president of the church administration. “His election,” says Lieutenant Colonel Milovanović, “represents the crown of immodesty, ambition and defiance of the people most deserving of the realization of the church.” These remarks also reveal the common view that the president is the “most deserving person,” and that it is the laity who are most deserving of the creation, life, and survival of the church community.
When the Serbian community became sufficiently agitated and quarreled, to a good extent, to which individuals from the church administration contributed greatly, Father Sava resigned from the position of president of the church administration. The entire administration followed him, so that the church municipality was left without an administration, and a great discord and confusion was created in the church community. After this event, an extraordinary assembly of the municipality was convened on October 12, 1952, at which a new administration was elected. Father Sava ignored the assembly as well as the newly elected administration. As a result, the church administration made a completely unchurch decision. It, as they emphasized, “made the decision to terminate the service of Father Sava Gnjatović within the period prescribed by the rules of this church municipality.” The conflict that arose between Hieromonk Sava and the administration of the church community took on wide proportions. The administration tried to find a common language with Hieromonk Sava, but at the same time did everything to discredit him as much as possible. In this regard, it sent a circular letter to all Serbs in Johannesburg and the surrounding area. As a last resort, Hieromonk Sava had no choice but to turn to the Serbian Patriarch in Belgrade and ask for his protection. He did so, accusing the administration of the church community “that the church community had dismissed him from his service and that the church community wanted to bring in Russians as priests, organize a Russian-Serbian parish and church community, and place itself under the jurisdiction of the Russian Church.” Bishop Dionysije was also aware of all this. He sent a letter of reprimand to Hieromonk Sava. “Today, serious accusations have been made against you, that you broke up that church community, that you did not want to come to any of the board meetings, that you did not want to swear in a new board, etc. Should you have become the president of the church community? No one does that here. Is the harmony and unity of the Serbian people maintained in the way that you do? That is how you did it in Cincinnati, and in Youngwood, and you are starting to do the same in that distant world. And where are you going now… are you spreading hatred among your own people?” Bishop Dionysije also addressed the church administration and called on them to remain on their Orthodox and patriotic line and advised them that it would be convenient for Father Sava to be called back to cooperate, and if he does not, we will see what happens next. “I informed the Patriarchs about everything and suggested that they admonish Father Sava to be in harmony and cooperate with the church administration.” In a letter to Patriarch Vincent, Bishop Dionysius regretfully presents the report of the church community from Johannesburg on the behavior of their parish priest, Hieromonk Sava Gnjatović. Bishop Dionysius specifically draws the attention of the Patriarch and expresses doubt about the truthfulness of Hieromonk Sava’s claim that the community wants to pass under the jurisdiction of the Russian Church Abroad, because if it had wanted to, it would have done so from the very beginning, and would not have asked me for a Serbian priest. And about the work of Hieromonk Sava as a priest, Bishop Dionysius says: “In his work in America in parishes, Hieromonk Sava Gnjatović did not show any great results. He changed two parishes, always to the detriment of his pastoral and priestly work.”Thanks to such work, Hieromonk Sava was forced to leave Johannesburg. This put the Serbian community in a very difficult situation. The mood in the community was worse than before his arrival, and even during his stay among the Serbs, with all the inconveniences that were happening. Discord arose in the community. Division, quarrels and intolerance took on great momentum. The severity of the disturbed state in the church community in Johannesburg was also contributed to by the material exhaustion of the community due to the large expenses for accommodation and other expenses that it had to pay to Hieromonk Sava.
The departure of Hieromonk Sava affected not only the Serbs and their community, but also the Russian community, of which Hieromonk Sava was also a priest. After these events, the Orthodox Russian community took action to bring in a Russian priest. Although they did not ask for material support from the Serbs for this action, they expected it. The Russian community decided on Priest Simeon Starikov, who had previously been the priest of a small Russian community in Kenya.
The Holy Synod of the Russian Church Abroad in New York approved the arrival of Priest Starikov in Johannesburg. Starikov arrived a few days before Easter 1953. Immediately after the arrival of Priest Starikov, representatives of the Russian and Serbian communities met to agree on the future work of the priest. The Serbs promised cooperation in every way, just as the Russians did when they served with a Serbian priest, but they were mostly in favor of creating a joint church community. Bishop Dionysije was also informed about all of this. Bishop Dionysije advised the Serbian community to keep the issue of bringing a Serbian priest to Johannesburg open and not to drop the idea. “But by no means immerse yourselves in their Russian church community, do not become members of their church community, as a community you have nothing to do with them. Instead, each of you should use a Russian priest in cases of baptism, funeral, wedding, communion. You should go to their services and that is all that I, as a bishop, can recommend to you.” Based on an insight into the historical material related to this issue, the conclusion is: when the Orthodox Russians needed the support of the Serbs, they had it; When the Serbs needed help from the Russians, they had it. Orthodox unity was achieved in the best possible way.
When Father Starikov arrived in Johannesburg, he addressed Bishop Dionysius with a request for permission to serve Orthodox Serbs in the Johannesburg area. Bishop Dionysius gave his approval and blessing, emphasizing: “I approve and bless your agreement to serve our Serbs in Johannesburg and throughout South Africa, whoever addresses you, but the Serbs remain with their church community… You agree with the community how much they will pay you for the religious services you will perform for the Serbs. You will submit all church divorces to us, to our Church Court for divorce.” From the departure of Hieromonk Sava in February 1953 until the arrival of Father Starikov, there was some confusion regarding the administration of the church community of Saint Sava in Johannesburg. Bishop Dionysius himself was also confused. He writes about this to the church community: “We sent our letter, dated January 28 of this year, to Johannesburg in the name of the church community. We did not divide the community into two parts, but we believed and we believe that when we write to the church community, the administration that is regularly and properly elected receives it, and I did not know that there was a division.” This confusion arose due to the ignoring of the church administration by Hieromonk Sava. Finally, this was corrected on June 28, 1953, when the regular annual assembly was held and a new church administration was elected, consisting of: Nenad Žakula, president, Krsto Vidović, vice-president, Milenko Rajković, secretary, and Žarko Porobić, treasurer.
At the assembly, it was officially decided that the Church Municipality of Saint Sava is separate and independent from the Russian Church Municipality, that every assistance be provided to the Russian Church Municipality and that moral support be expressed to Father Starikov. Here we emphasize another fact: until September 1952, Bishop Dionysius was officially authorized by the Holy Synod of Bishops to lead the spiritual care of the entire diaspora, including South Africa. That year, the care of the diaspora was taken over by the Serbian Patriarch Vikentij, in accordance with the Constitution of the Serbian Church, but many, not only priests but also laypeople, sought help from Bishop Dionysius on various occasions.
BUYING LAND AND BUILDING A TEMPLE
Since 1953, and the departure of the first Serbian priest, Sava (Gnjatović), from Johannesburg, with the approval of the Serbian Bishop Dionysius and the Synod of the Russian Church Abroad from New York, the spiritual care of the Orthodox Serbs has been carried out by a Russian priest.
The church schism, which appeared in the Serbian Church in America and Canada in 1963, spread to other continents. Not even the small Serbian colony in Johannesburg was spared from the schismatic wave. Given that in 1963 the Serbian colony in Johannesburg consisted mainly of Serbs from prison camps, since new economic emigration had not yet arrived, it was easier to decide for or against the schism. In 1963, the church community decided to remain under the jurisdiction of Bishop Dionysius. Priest Veleusic, who dealt with this problem, states that this was an expected move by the church community, given that the majority of its members were people who had belonged to the Chetnik movement for generations or who had left the country after the war, not accepting the communist regime in the country. Due to this circumstance, in the period from 1963 to 1977, the parish in Johannesburg was served by two priests who opted for the schism: Živojin Stanojevic, who came from Trieste, and Sava Cupać, who stopped in Johannesburg on his way from Australia to Vienna and remained there as a priest. Neither of them left any particularly positive mark behind them, except that after a certain number of years they both resigned and left their mark, leaving their parishioners without pastoral care. During all that time, the church-school community did nothing to improve its church life.
Although the church community had opted for the schism, in fact for Bishop Dionysius, its decision was not exclusive. It soon, as they say on the fly, realigned itself and accepted the jurisdiction of the Serbian Patriarchate and for all its spiritual needs addressed the Serbian Patriarch, as the competent hierarch.
Only in 1977 did the church community manage to purchase a 20,000 square meter property from voluntary contributions in Sunninghill Park, in the municipality of Sandton, in the suburbs of Johannesburg. Mile Stojaković financed the construction of a new church on that property and thus became its founder. The only wish of the founder Stojaković was that the church in Johannesburg be dedicated to the Holy Apostle Thomas, since St. The Apostle Thomas was baptized by the founder and to be a copy of the church in Bosanski Grahovo, where its founder was born.
St. Thomas the Apostle Church, Johannesburg
In addition to the church, according to the plan of the church municipality, a church center with a church hall and a parish house was planned. The Association of Veterans of the Royal Yugoslav Army also made a large contribution to the construction of the church center, hall and parish house. They sold their house, which served their needs, and donated 17,000 rands for the church center. The foundations of the church and church center were consecrated by the Australian-New Zealand Bishop Nikolaj (Mrća) on May 21, 1978.
In addition to the work on building the church and church center, the municipality was particularly focused on bringing a priest who would be their spiritual father.
At the session of April 10, 1980, the church and school municipality elected a new administration headed by Kosta Babić. On May 12 of the same year, the administration sent a request to Patriarch German in Belgrade and asked him to send them a priest who would “teach them the Christian faith and Saint Saul”. In the same request, they expressed their desire to place themselves under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Australia and New Zealand, which, as they say, is “geographically closest to South Africa.” Patriarch German sent a copy of the application of the administration of the church and school community to the competent Bishops, Firmilian of the Midwest and Basil of Australia and New Zealand. Both Bishops responded positively to the request of the church and school community. In the spirit of the Bishops’ agreement, the Holy Council of Bishops, at its regular session in May 1981, made the following decision: “Based on Article 16 of the Constitution of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the consent given by His Holiness diocesan hierarchs, the Midwest American G. Firmilian and the Australia-New Zealand G. Vasilije, the Serbian Orthodox Church and School Community in Johannesburg, South Africa, is separated from the Midwest American Diocese and placed under the jurisdiction of the Australia-New Zealand Diocese.” This resolved the canonical status of the church community and parish in Johannesburg, South Africa.
In 1980, the secretary of the church community, Drenka Pavlović, traveled to Belgrade to ask the Patriarch to assign them a priest for their parish. She succeeded in this. Deacon Dragan Veleusić, an employee of the office of the Board of Directors of the Serbian Patriarchate, responded to the request and accepted the challenge to serve the Orthodox Serbs in Johannesburg as a priest. After arranging his canonical status and being ordained to the rank of presbyter, with the blessing of the Serbian Patriarch German, he came to Johannesburg on November 29, 1980, and since then he has taken over the spiritual care of his flock. Although he did not stay in the parish for long, with his work he contributed to the parish and the church community standing on firm feet and gathering the strength that would be a constant incentive for its further successes. Practically, it was only with his arrival, one can freely say, that the church community and parish in Johannesburg began its true church life. First, he founded a church school. He introduced religious education for children and adults, as well as classes in the Serbian language and the history of the Serbian people and the Church. He organized a church choir, established regular church worship life. He paid special attention to the development of social and community life, which had a beneficial effect on the gathering of our people. The entire life took place under the arches of the church center.
JURISDICTION ISSUE AGAIN
After six years, in 1987, Father Dragan had to leave the parish in Johannesburg for objective reasons. Simo Šumar came to be the priest. At the beginning of his work in the church field, Father Sima was very successful. Unfortunately, soon there was a disagreement with the church administration regarding some issues of principle, which over time led to an escalation of the problem and caused great unrest and division. From the misunderstanding and conflict between the two parties, Father Sima and the church administration, three losers were created: Father Simo, who was removed from parish duties by order of the bishop, the church administration, and the church community, whose flock was once again divided.
On Vidovdan, 1996, Archpriest-stavrophor Mirko Skrobonja was appointed priest at the Church of the Holy Apostle Thomas. Before his arrival in Johannesburg, Father Mirko was a priest in Dalmatia, in the parish of Islam Grčki and Biljana Gornji. Due to the war imposed on the Serbian people in the territory of Croatia by America and European countries, members of the NATO alliance, hundreds of thousands of unprotected Serbs, under pressure from the Ustasha-like Croatian soldiers, emigrated from their centuries-old territories in Dalmatia and sought salvation in Serbia and other continents. The fate of their Serbian Orthodox people was fully shared by their church and its priests. For these reasons, Father Mirko also found himself outside his parish area, because the Serbian Orthodox population was expelled from their homes under the threat of death. Thus, Father Mirko first found himself in the parish in Ruma, Srem, and then came to become a parish priest in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Church life in the parish of the Serbian Church in Johannesburg, at the time of Father Mirko’s arrival, was shaken by many frictions created in the relationship between the priest and the church administration. Father Mirko quickly noticed this and in a short time, with his pastoral love, managed to overcome all the problems and regain the trust of the parishioners in the priest. He introduced regular services of the Holy Liturgy on Sundays and holidays, as well as evening services on the eve of Sundays and holidays. He launched the bimonthly magazine Parohijski vesnik, which he sent to 500 addresses free of charge. He created a mood and influenced the formation of an important organization for church life, the Circle of Serbian Sisters, whose first president was Mira Mihaljević. He established good relations with the neighboring Greek priest Nicholas Yamouridis and the president of the church community Ioannis Ziodopoulos from the town of Faderbelparaka, a nearby parish area of the Greek Church.
With his hard work and pastoral zeal, Father Mirko soon founded a parish in Gaborone, Botswana, where about 90 Serbian families lived. A construction committee was formed there for the construction of the church of St. Nicholas. Before that, in Cape Town, Archpriest Milorad Lončar from Australia had founded a missionary parish, which consisted of 40 families.
The comprehensive progress of church life that had begun in the church community and parish of the Serbian Church in Johannesburg, South Africa, as well as in the missionary parishes in Cape Town and Gaborone, Botswana, was halted during 1998 and the following years due to the question of ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the church community of the Serbian Church in South Africa raised by the Patriarchate of Alexandria.
This question arose at the most difficult time for the Serbian Church and the Serbian people, which was the time of the escalation of the war caused by America and its NATO allies, when the Serbian people throughout Serbia, and especially in Kosovo and Metohija, were bombarded with the most powerful and destructive, even nuclear weapons. As a result of the war, communications with the world were irregular and often interrupted. All this affected the normal and timely correspondence with everyone, both within the country and abroad, including the Patriarchate of Alexandria. This is also reminded by the statement of Bishop Ignatius, a member of the Holy Synod of Bishops, at the meeting held in the Patriarchate on December 8, 1998, between Patriarch Paul and members of the Holy Synod of Bishops, with the delegation of the church community and the Archpriest-Staurophorus priest Mirko Skrobonja, parish priest of Johannesburg. On that occasion, Bishop Ignatius stated: “This problem could have been solved much earlier, and we wrote to His Beatitude Patriarch of Alexandria, Mr. Peter, but he did not receive that letter. So, he was waiting for the letter and we for the answer, and so several months passed.” Such circumstances hindered the conduct of the dialogue regarding the problem that had arisen. The Patriarchate of Alexandria was, in all likelihood, in a hurry to resolve the problem in its own favor as soon as possible, without showing any particular understanding for the difficulties in which the Serbian Church and its believing people found themselves, due to the war that was being waged with all its ferocity in the territories of the innocent Serbian people.
The most serious consequences of the ultimatum of the Patriarchate of Alexandria to establish its jurisdiction over the community of the Serbian Church in South Africa were felt by the Archpriest-Staurophor Mirko Skrobonja, who was first, without any canonical or moral guilt, dismissed by the Patriarchate of Alexandria. His only sin, from that point of view, was that he was a priest of the Serbian Church and that he obeyed the hierarchical authority of his Church, as church regulations required of him. Upon the intervention of the Serbian Church, Archpriest Mirko Skrobonja was eventually reinstated, but with the requirement that he immediately leave the parish and move out of South Africa. Thus, Father Mirko, thanks to the archpastoral love of Bishop George, found himself in the parish of Oakville, near Toronto, Canadian Diocese, at the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, under his omophorion.
This event attracted great attention, given that the Serbian Church had been spiritually caring for the church community in Johannesburg for more than fifty years, and that the question of canonical jurisdiction was raised at a most difficult time, both for the Serbian Church as a whole and for the Serbian church community in Johannesburg, which thereby experienced great consequences.
However, thanks to the understanding of the Patriarchate of Alexandria, having before it the interests of Holy Orthodoxy, the parish and church community in Johannesburg, South Africa, continue to be under the spiritual care of the Serbian Patriarch, in accordance with the decision of the Holy Council of Bishops of November 11, 1998.
Following the departure of Archpriest-Staurophorus Mirko Skrobonja from Johannesburg, the pastoral duties of the Serbs of the Orthodox faith are being performed by a Serbian Orthodox priest in the person of Hieromonk Pantelejmon (Jovanović).
After the departure of Hieromonk Pantelejmon Jovanović, the role of priest was taken over by Father Isailo.
Despite our best intentions, we were unable to find reliable facts and arguments that the Patriarchate of Alexandria uses in claiming jurisdiction over the Serbian community in South Africa. In addition, the status of the parish of the Serbian Church in South Africa is linked to the issue of the Patriarchate of Alexandria’s claim to jurisdiction over the whole of Africa, which, by the way, goes beyond the scope of this work.