Gerasim I Sokolović ( sr-cyrl, Герасим I Соколовић) was
Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch
This is a list of heads of the Serbian Orthodox Church, since the establishment of the church as an Autocephaly, autocephalous archbishopric in 1219 to today's patriarchate. The list includes all the archbishops and patriarchs that led the Se ...
from 1574 to 1586. He was the third primate of the restored
Serbian Patriarchate of Peć
Serbian Patriarchate of Peć (, ''Srpska patrijaršija u Peći''), or simply Peć Patriarchate (, ''Pećka patrijaršija''), was an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate that existed from 1346 to 1463, and then again from 155 ...
, and cousin of previous Serbian Patriarch
Antonije I.
Gerasim belonged to the prominent Serbian
Sokolović
Sokolović ( sr-Cyrl, Соколовић, may also be transliterated as Sokolovic or Sokolovich) is a South Slavic surname. It derives from the Slavic word ''sokol'', meaning "falcon" and literally means "son of the falcon". The Sokolović of the ...
family. He was nephew of Serbian Petriarch
Makarije Sokolović
Makarije Sokolović ( sr-cyrl, Макарије Соколовић; died 1574) was the Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch from 1557 to 1571. He was the first head of the restored Serbian Patriarchate of Peć, after its lapse in 1463 that r ...
(1557–1571). During the patriarchal tenure of his cousin Antonije I (1571–1574), Gerasim became
Metropolitan of Herzegovina. When Patriarch Antonije died in 1574, Metropolitan Gerasim was elected new Serbian Patriarch, with residence in the
Patriarchal Monastery of Peć
Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of authority are primarily held by men. The term ''patriarchy'' is used both in anthropology to describe a family or clan controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males, and in fem ...
. In that time, his other cousin
Mehmed Sokolović
Sokollu Mehmed Pasha (; ; ; 1505 – 11 October 1579) was an Ottoman statesman of Serb origin most notable for being the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire. Born in Ottoman Herzegovina into an Orthodox Christian family, Mehmed was recruited as ...
, from the
Islamized
The spread of Islam spans almost 1,400 years. The early Muslim conquests that occurred following the death of Muhammad in 632 CE led to the creation of the caliphates, expanding over a vast geographical area; conversion to Islam was boosted ...
branch of the family, held the post of the Grand Vizier of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
(1565–1579) and acted as protector of the Serbian Patriarchate. As patriarch, Gerasim appointed his cousin
Savatije Sokolović
Savatije Sokolović ( sr-cyr, Саватије Соколовић; 1573 – d. 1586), was Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch from 1585 to 1586. Before that, he served as Metropolitan of Herzegovina from 1573 to 1585. He was a member of th ...
to be the next Metropolitan of Herzegovina. In time, some disputes arose between two cousins, resulting in rivalry for the patriarchal throne. Eventually, Metropolitan Savatije managed to succeed Patriarch Gerasim, probably in 1585 or 1586.
References
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External links
Official site of the Serbian Orthodox Church: Serbian Archbishops and Patriarchs
Gerasim I
16th-century Eastern Orthodox bishops
16th-century Serbian people
16th century in Serbia
Year of birth unknown
1574 deaths
Ottoman Serbia
16th-century people from the Ottoman Empire
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