Amfilohije Radović

Metropolitan Amfilohije Radović (2009)

Amfilohije (Amphilochius) Radović Serbian - Cyrillic Амфилохије Радовић , real name Risto Radović; (Born January 7, 1938 in Donja Morača , Yugoslavia , † October 30, 2020 in Podgorica , Montenegro ) was the Serbian Orthodox Metropolitan of Montenegro and the coastal region and Archbishop of Cetinje . Amfilohije was born during the illness of Patriarch Pavlefrom November 13, 2007 until Pavle's death on November 15, 2009, interim patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church. He remained so until Irenej's election in 2010. Amfilohije was one of the leading theologians of the Serbian Orthodox Church.

Under Amfilohije, the Orthodox Eparchy of Montenegro was rebuilt after the particularly rigorous suppression of religious life here in the time of the Communist Socialist Federal Republic of Montenegro in what was then Yugoslavia. He was a member of the conservative wing of the Serbian Orthodox Church and one of the most prominent figures in modern Montenegrin history.

Amfilohije was the key figure in the citizens' protests from 2019 to 2020 against the rule of the DPS under its chairman Milo Đukanović , as his strongest opponent, he made a significant contribution to his election on August 30, 2020 . He led the civil protests that had sparked off the resolutions of the Religious Act 2019.

Amfilohije died after contracting SARS-CoV-2. The day of Amfilohije's death was proposed by the transitional government as a nationwide day of mourning. Many communities, including Budva, Kotor, Plužine and Tivat, announced a day of mourning for the funeral on their own initiative.

Life

Amfilohije was born on Christmas 1938 in Bara Radovića in Donja Morača, a hamlet in the Morača Valley in Montenegro. He is a descendant of the Montenegrin voivod Mina Radović . Amfilohije spent his school days in his birthplace.

Study time

Amfilohije studied theology at the theological seminary of St. Sava in Belgrade . He continued his theological studies at the Serbian Orthodox theological faculty until 1962. Amfilohije also studied classical philology at the University of Belgrade . He completed further studies at the Institut de Théologie Orthodoxe Saint-Serge in Paris , at the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome and at the University of Bern .

The theological studies took him to Greece , where he lived for seven years. His monastic tonsure took place in the Greek Orthodox Church and on Mount Athos . At the Theological Faculty of the Kapodistrian University in 1973 defended Amfilohije his dissertation on "Mystery of the Holy Trinity , according to the church's teaching of St. Gregorios Palamas ”. His dissertation was first translated into Greek and then into Russian and French. According to Bogoljub Šijaković, professor of theology at the Belgrade Theological University, Amfilohije's dissertation is the most profound of thought by a Serbian theologian.

Amfilohoije held the funeral orations for the following important personalities of the Montenegrin, Serbian and Yugoslav culture and history: Danilo Kiš , Zoran Đinđić , Momir Bulatović and in the second burial to Jovan Dučić .

University professor

Afterwards Amfilohije was appointed professor at the Institut de Théologie Orthodoxe Saint-Serge in Paris . From 1976 he was first a lecturer and then a professor at the theological faculty of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Belgrade, where he taught specialist didactics and orthodox pedagogy . He was Dean of the Faculty of Theology for two terms.

Bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church

Amfilohije to the left of Kyrill I in the role of Serbian Archimandrite at the funeral for Alexius II in Moscow in 2008

In May 1985, Amfilohije was bishop of the eparchy of Banat , based in Vrsac appointed. On December 30, 1991, he was appointed Metropolitan of Montenegro . In 2012 he became Bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Buenos Aires .

Amfilohije brought about the renewal of the ecclesiastical life of Orthodox Christians in Montenegro. The monastic life , which had almost come to a complete standstill, was revived and numerous new churches were built. When he took office he found only 30 priests and monks, and Amfilohije devoted himself to building the church structure with great energy. One goal was to rebuild the chapel of Prince-Bishop Petar I. Njegoš on Lovčen, which was destroyed by the communist nomenclature in 1974. In the mid-1990s, Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople and Patriarch Kyrill I of Moscow visited Montenegro for the first time . Numerous patriarchs from individual Orthodox churches, including those from Jerusalem, Athens, Constantinople, Moscow and Cyprus, came to the inauguration of the Podgorice Cathedral.

Even though he had the most supporters in the election of the new Serbian Patriarch, the choice fell on Irinej because of the specific regulations. Nevertheless, the influence of Amfilohijes remained great, who significantly promoted the participation of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the Pan-Orthodox Council in Crete in 2016, which the Moscow Patriarch refused to accept. At the urging of Amfilohijes, "ethnophyleticism" was confirmed as a form of heresy at the Council of Crete .

Amfilohije published numerous theological works and translations. His work has also been translated into Greek and published. He was a member of the "Union of Montenegrin and Serbian Writers". He spoke Greek, Russian, Italian, German and French. He also mastered Latin and ancient Greek.

Amfilohije was chairman of the Serbian Orthodox Church Commission in the inter-church assessment of the Causa Alojzije Stepinac under Francis . As chairman of the Synod for the construction of the Church of St. Sava for many years , from 2012 to 2020 he especially designed the political and organizational implementation to complete the interior decoration on the part of the church.

Amfilohije led the largest protest movement in Montenegrin history in 2019/2020. He called on his supporters to vote out the incumbent party of the Montenegrin Socialists around Milo Đukanoić in the 2020 parliamentary elections. With his defeat and the death of Amfilohijes two months later, significant changes took place in Montenegrin society.

Musician

Amfilohije played Gusle and also mastered the singing of epic heroic songs. He had presented the gusle not only in public appearances but also in church meetings. He thus continued a tradition that already distinguished Njegoš like other clergymen in Montenegro.

Sickness and death

Amfilohije was admitted to the Podgorice hospital on October 6, 2020 with symptoms of SARS-CoV-2. As of October 20, the results were negative, but an inflammation had developed on both lungs. By October 28th, his health had improved significantly. This was followed on October 29 by a significant deterioration in health, with chest pain and heavy breathing. The doctors diagnosed mediastinal emphysema in the middle layer of the skin, which led to death. In the late evening, the clinic issued information about the patient's severe health crisis to the public. He died on the morning of October 30th to great public sympathy. The anniversary of Amfilohijes death took place on the eve of the death days of his two most important predecessors on the Cetinian throne, the Prince-Bishops of Montenegro Petar I and Petar II, who both died on October 31st and are a holiday of Saint Petar of Cetinje. His body was transferred to the Cetinj monastery on the same day and laid out in public. The burial place is the cathedral in Podgorica at his own request. The funeral mass on November 1, 2020 will be held by the Serbian Patriarch Irenej and other high dignitaries from other Orthodox churches. The funeral ceremony will be broadcast live on the state television of Montenegro.

Amfilohijes passing was honored by domestic and foreign personalities with condolences. Both the ambassadors of the US missions in Belgrade and Podgorica expressed their deep condolences to the Church and the people. Expressions of condolences also came from Milo Đukanović and Duško Marković , his most important opponents on political church issues in Montenegro.

Awards

Amfilohije received an honorary doctorate from the Moscow Spiritual Academy in 2003 , the Institute of Theology of the Belarusian State University in Minsk in 2008, the Institut de Théologie Orthodoxe Saint-Serge in Paris in 2012 and the Petersburg Spiritual Academy in 2014. In 2001 he was awarded the Lomonossov Order, in 2015 he was elected honorary member of the Slovenian Writers' Association.

Historical classification

When Amfilohije was installed as a Mitropolit of Montenegro on the eve of Christmas 1990 in Cetinje, his diocese had a completely degraded church structure after almost 50 years of communist rule. New churches had not been built, the priesthood and monks in active monasteries had sunk to a minimum. In 1993 he obtained approval to build the new Podgorice Resurrection Cathedral, in which the ruling socialists initially participated. Numerous other church buildings followed, including the Church of St. Jovan Vladimir in Bar. After the break between the Montenegrin (DPS) and the Serbian Socialists (SPS) in 1997, the relationship between the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro and the one from 1991 to 2020 deteriorated continuously ruling DPS. This supported the ecumenically unrecognized Montenegrin Orthodox Church at the latest with the independence of Montenegro from the State Union of Serbia-Montenegro in 2006. Amfilohije, initially a supporter of Milo Đukanović , Montenegro's long-term president , soon became his sharpest critic and only opponent on an equal footing. In 2019, the DPS itself brought the final stone rolling with a draft law intended to nationalize the SPC (Srpska Pravoslavna Crkva) that led to a power struggle between the SPC and the state. The citizen protests advocated by Amfilohije quickly developed into nationwide crystallization points that called for a change of power in Montenegro. In the parliamentary elections on August 30, 2020, the DPS was able to maintain its position as the strongest force, but the opposition narrowly won the government majority. This was in spite of the fact that up to 70,000 phantom votes were suspected in the electoral roll. Amfilohije himself exercised his right to vote for the first time. He is generally named as the main person responsible for the political change. The circles around the SPC had also recommended Zdravko Krivokapić , a completely unknown in political circles, as list leader.

Lovčen chapel

Amfilohije tried to eradicate the communist legacy in Montenegro, which, according to him, led after Albania the worst policy of repression during the socialist era in Europe. In particular, it was Amfilohije's claim that the small burial chapel of Vladika Petar II. Njegoš on Lovčen , dedicated to Father I , was destroyed by the Communists in 1974 to build an atheistic ensemble designed in the sense of a "Yugoslav national mausoleum" To rebuild function and form there. The last days of his life were concerned with the rebuilding of the chapel on Lovčen, which he regarded as the final removal of communist heritage and the suppression of the church in Montengro.

Web links

• Serbia: Bishops threaten government with death. In: Spiegel Online . May 11, 2013. 
• Serbian Orthodox bishop accuses EU of tyranny. In: Focus Online . April 1, 2013. 
• Metropolitan Amfilohije (Radovic) of Montenegro and the Coastlands. In: orthodoxresearchinstitute.org. Orthodox Research Institute, archived from the original on October 20, 2006 . 
• Amfilohije (Radović). In: mitropolija.cg.yu . Archived from the original on May 23, 2007 (Serbian). 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Ко је био и како је говорио митрополит Амфилохије. In: RTS.rs . October 30, 2020, accessed October 30, 2020 (Serbian). 
2. ↑ RTS, October 31, 2010 Amfilohije Mitropolit crnogorsko-primorski
3. ↑ Vecernje Novosti, October 31, 2020 VRATIO NAROD, OBNOVIO 650 CRKAVA: Dolaskom Amfilohija na tron ​​mitropolita 1990. godine počela je duhovna obnova i preobražaj crne gore
4. ↑ Vijesti, October 31, 2020 Svi nasi usudi u jednom covjeku
5. ^ Bishops pay tribute to Pope Francis on the Stepinac issue. In: noek.info. Eastern Churches News Service, January 11, 2018, accessed October 30, 2020 . 
6. ↑ Osveštan Ruski Konzulát: Amfilohije svirao gusle u Budvi. In: alo.rs. April 29, 2015, accessed October 30, 2020 (rs). 
7. ↑ Politika, October 31, 2020 Одлазак неустрашивог српског пастира
8. ↑ Nedeljnik, October 30, 2020 [1]
9. ↑ RTS, October 31, 2020 [ https://www.rts.rs/page/radio/ci/story/28/radio-beograd-2/4132153/amfilohije-radovic.html Амфилохије Радовић Александар Александар Ракокив, Васларав лоцд Станковић]

predecessor	Office	successor
Danilo Dajković	Metropolitan of Montenegro and the coastal area Archbishop of Cetinje 1991–2020	-