Jovan Pavlović ( sr-Cyrl, Јован Павловић; 22 October 1936 – 3 April 2014) was a Serbian Orthodox

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

who was the

metropolitan bishop In Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan (alternative obsolete form: metropolite), is held by the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a Metropolis (reli ...

of Zagreb and Ljubljana of the

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodox Church#Constit ...

from 1982 until his death in 2014. He was one of the most prominent individuals in

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

community in Croatia during his lifetime. Jovan was born in the village of Medinci in 1936 and died in the Sisters of Charity Hospital in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

on 3 April 2014. He was the highest representative of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Croatia for more than two decades.

Early life and education

Jovan was born in Medinci, Yugoslavia on 22 October 1936. He finished elementary school in Medinci and secondary in Podravska Slatina. After he completed his seminary education at Rakovica Monastery he graduated at University of Belgrade Faculty of Orthodox Theology in 1963. For postgraduate studies he attended universities in

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

: he studied

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

theology at the Evangelical Academy in

Schleswig The Duchy of Schleswig (; ; ; ; ; ) was a duchy in Southern Jutland () covering the area between about 60 km (35 miles) north and 70 km (45 mi) south of the current border between Germany and Denmark. The territory has been di ...

and the Faculty of Theology of

University of Kiel Kiel University, officially the Christian Albrecht University of Kiel, (, abbreviated CAU, known informally as Christiana Albertina) is a public research university in the city of Kiel, Germany. It was founded in 1665 as the ''Academia Holsator ...

, and he studied

Catholic theology Catholic theology is the understanding of Catholic doctrine or teachings, and results from the studies of theologians. It is based on canonical scripture, and sacred tradition, as interpreted authoritatively by the magisterium of the Catholi ...

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

. During this period, he spent some time in Chevetogne Abbey in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and St. Matthias' Abbey and

Niederaltaich Abbey Niederaltaich Abbey (Abtei or Kloster Niederaltaich) is a house of the Benedictine Order founded in 741, situated in the village of Niederalteich on the Danube in Bavaria. Foundation and early history After its foundation in 741 by Duke Odilo, D ...

in Germany. Jovan worked as a professor in the Serbian Orthodox Seminary of Prizren and in

Krka monastery The Krka Monastery ( sr-Cyrl, Манастир Крка, ; ) is a Serbian Orthodox monastery dedicated to the Archangel Michael, located near the river Krka, east of Kistanje, in central Dalmatia, Croatia. It is the best known monastery of the S ...

. In 1967, in Krka he became a

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

and in 1969 a

hierodeacon A hierodeacon (Greek: Ἱεροδιάκονος, ''Ierodiákonos''; Slavonic: ''Ierodiakón''), sometimes translated "deacon-monk", in Eastern Orthodox Christianity and all other Churches that follow Byzantine Rite is a monk who has been ordained a ...

. In 1977, he became bishop of

Lepavina Monastery The Lepavina Monastery () is a Serbian Orthodox Church, Serbian Orthodox monastery dedicated to the Presentation of Mary and located at the village of Sokolovac, Koprivnica-Križevci County, Sokolovac, near the town of Koprivnica in Croatia. Fr ...

and Metropolitan of Zagreb in 1982.

Metropolitan of Zagreb and Ljubljana (1982–2014)

Between 1982 and 1992 Metropolitan Jovan was the representative of the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, most jurisdictions of the Eastern Orthodo ...

. He was member of the

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox ...

of the Serbian Orthodox Church in several mandates. Serbian Orthodox churches in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

were also under his jurisdiction from 1994 to 2011.

Awards and recognition

Croatian Helsinki Committee The Croatian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights (CHC; , HHO) is an organisation founded to protect and promote human rights in Croatia. It was founded on 31 March 1993, initially as a branch of the International Helsinki Federation and latterly ...

Award for promotion of inter-religious dialogue and religious tolerance.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pavlovic, Jovan 1936 births 2014 deaths Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church Croatian Eastern Orthodox theologians Eastern Orthodox theologians Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana Serbs of Croatia Serbian theologians University of Belgrade Faculty of Orthodox Theology alumni University of Kiel alumni