Beloved Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Pavle Dies. Successor to be Chosen.

We encourage readers throughout the whole world to pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit as the Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church gather.

BELGRADE (Catholic Online) - President Boris Tadic expressed the heartfelt sentiment of so many of the Serbian Orthodox faithful around the world upon hearing of the death of Patriarch Pavle with these words, "The death of Patriarch Pavle is a huge loss for Serbia...There are people who bond entire nations and Pavle was such a person."

The beloved Patriarch also evoked extraordinary praise from many of the Serbian Orthodox faithful around the world. Biljana Djukic, 28, a schoolteacher from Belgrade Pavle, offered her prayers and lit candles in the front of Belgrade's St. Sava church. She told a reporter that the now deceased leader of the Serbian Orthodox throughout the world "...was a living saint and he now went to the saints."

Thousands of Serbian Orthodox faithful throughout the world filled their churches as soon as they heard the news that the leader whom they loved so dearly had died. He had been sick for some time, but had lived for 95 years and, he won the hearts of the faithful. They gathered to mourn, to pray and to honor his memory.

Patriarch Pavle's body was brought to Saborna Crkva church in Belgrade to lie in state, presenting an opportunity for the faithful to mourn and pray until his funeral which will occur early next week.

Not without his detractors, the 95 year old Patriarch led the Serbian Orthodox Church during the dissolution of the former "Yugoslavia" in the 1990's and through the hostilities which surrounded that entire period in history. However, after the war, he became a vocal opponent of some of the policies of Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic.

Patriarch Pavle was born and christened as Gojko Stojcevic in 1914 in Kucanci, a village in what is now Croatia. The official account of his life, derived from several sources is as follows:

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"His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle was born Gojko Stojčević on September 11, 1914 to a farmer family in the village Kućanci in the county of Donji Miholjac, in Slavonia. He finished primary school in his native village and junior high school in Tuzla. He graduated from the Fourth Men's Gymnasium in Belgrade and simultaneously attended the Medical School.

He studied at a seminary in Sarajevo and graduated in 1936, and the Faculty of Orthodox Theology in Belgrade, where he previously completed two years of the Medical School. As novice Gojko, he made a wooden cross that is still kept in the Monastery of Vujan today as an object of special value. He took monastic vow in Blagoveštenje Monastery in the Ovcar-Kablar Gorge and was given monastic name Pavle on the eve of the Annunciation in 1946 where he was ordained a hiearodeacon the same year.

From 1949 to 1955, he was a monastic of Raca Monastery performing different disciplines. In 1954 he was promoted to hieromonk. He did postgraduate studies at the Orthodox Theological Faculty at the University of Athens from Christmas 1955 to May 1957, when he studied the New Testament and liturgics. He was elected as Bishop of Raska-Prizren in 1957.

He dedicated his service in the Raska-Prizren Eparchy to construction and restoration of churches and monastieries, in particular to restoration of the monastic lifestyle aimed at preservation of the Ortodox religion and tradition. On December 1, 1990, Bishop Pavle was elected the 44th Serbian Patriarch and took over St Sava's throne from Patriarch German.

His Holiness published the Monograph on Devich Monastery and Liturgical Studies, published in the Church Reader in 1972, which later on served as a basis for the three-volume edition entiled Questions and Answers and published in 1998 "Life According to the Gospel" and "Prayers and Pleas" , the collections of speeches and addresses the Patriarch gave on various occasions were also published.

The most monumental contribution of H. H. Patriarch Pavle was the translation of the New Testament published in 1984 under his supervision. This was the first official Serbian translation of the New Testament approved by the Serbian Orthodox Church. The revised edition of the translation was published in 1990.

Patriarch Pavle also contributed by working on restoration and establishment of new eparchies, restoration of the Seminary in Cetinje, opening of the Spiritual Academy of St Vasilije of Ostrog in Srbinje.

Bearing in mind numerous contributions of Patriarch Pavle, especially his scientific and theological work, the Faculty of Orthodox theology of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Belgrade bestowed upon him the degree of honorary doctor of theology in 1998.

Patriarch Pavle was hospitalized at the Military Medical Academy since November 13, 2007. His tenure as Patriarch lasted 19 years"

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Sadly, the time of his service was marked by continual hostility between Catholic and Serbian Orthodox Christians. Fortunately, that hostility has abated in recent years. Many pray and hope that his successor will continue the move toward healing and reconciliation between the two Christian Churches in these critical times.

Consecrated as a Serbian Orthodox Bishop in 1957, Patriarch Pavle was first set over the faithful in Kosovo. His wartime experiences certainly informed and influenced his life. He and his people suffered greatly; in fact he was personally attacked and beaten.

In 1990 he became the Patriarch of all Serbian Orthodox Christians, including all who are dispersed throughout the world. It is clear from the accounts of those who knew him that he was a man of deep prayer and sincere Orthodox Christian faith who was beloved by his people. Many attest to his special humility and his holiness of life.

He refused many worldly goods, choosing to live simply in imitation of the Lord. In fact he refused to be driven and usually opted for public transportation. He made his own shoes and lived in relative simplicity. He was deeply loved as a father to his clergy, a true sign of a Bishop who understands his calling in the Lord.

Patriarch Pavle's successor will be elected in a gathering of at least 2/3 of the Serbian Orthodox Bishops. He died at an apartment in Belgrade's Military Hospital. It was there that he had been receiving treatment since 2007 for his multiple ailments.

Bells could be heard tolling from Serbian Orthodox Churches around the world upon the news of his death. One of the Bishops who served with him - and had deep brotherly affection for him - was Bishop Lavrentije. He exhorted the faithful not to be sad noting, "...the Serbian people now have someone to represent them before God better than anyone else."

We encourage our readers throughout the whole world to pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit as the Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church gather to discern together who will succeed Patriarch Pavle. We also offer our condolences, solidarity and prayers for all Serbian Orthodox Christians at the loss of their beloved Patriarch.

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