Joanikije of Devič (), archaically also Janićije (Јанићије) was a 15th-century

Serbian Orthodox The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. The majority of the populat ...

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

. He was a native

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...

from the

Principality of Zeta This is a list of princes of Zeta. Background After Constantin Bodin's death, fighting among his potential successors weakened the state of Duklja and the region succumbed to Rascia's reign between 1183 and 1186. In 1190, Grand Župan of Ra ...

or, according to another source, a Serb from Austrian Dalmatia. As a young man with a passion for

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

, he left his home and moved to the

Ibar river The Ibar ( sr-cyrl, Ибар, ), also known as the Ibër and Ibri (), is a river that flows through eastern Montenegro, northern Kosovo and central Serbia, with a total length of . The river begins in the Hajla mountain, in Rožaje, eastern Mo ...

valley, to the mouth of the Crna Reka river, to the narrow cave in which, according to the tradition, St. Peter of Koriša previously lived. However, when his fame began to spread among the people, he fled to

Drenica Drenica (, ), also known as the Drenica Valley, is a hilly region in central Kosovo, covering roughly around of Kosovo's total area (6%). It consists of two municipalities, Drenas and Skenderaj, and several villages in Klina, Zubin Potok, Mitr ...

, and hid in the dense Devička forest. Joanikije spent years there in solitude, in silence and in

prayer File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

. According to the tradition, Serbian Despot

Đurađ Branković Đurađ Vuković Branković ( sr-Cyrl, Ђурађ Вуковић Бранковић, ; 1377 – 24 December 1456) served as the Serbian Despot from 1427 to 1456, making him one of the final rulers of medieval Serbia. In 1429, Branković was form ...

brought him his mad daughter, who was healed by the Saint. Out of gratitude, Branković built a monastery on that place, still known today as the Devič Monastery. He was known as the healer of all diseases, especially the "obsessed"."Constantinople Herald", Constantinople in 1900 This is where the relics of St. Joanikije rest, which Christians believe are miraculous. Devič Monastery was burned in 1941 by Albanian extremists and reconstructed in 1945. It was once again a target in 1999 during the

Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...

by the

Kosovo Liberation Army The Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA; , UÇK) was an Albanians, ethnic Albanian separatist militia that sought the separation of Kosovo, the vast majority of which is inhabited by Albanians, from the Republic of Serbia (1992–2006), Republic of R ...

. The monastery was vandalized and all food and two cars were stolen. The marble tomb of St. Joanikije was desecrated by local Albanians in June 1999. Since then it has been under the constant protection of French

KFOR KFOR may refer to: * KFOR (AM), a radio station (1240 AM) licensed to Lincoln, Nebraska, United States, * KFOR-TV, a television station (channel 4 analog/27 digital) licensed to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, * KFOR-TV (Nebraska), a defun ...

troops.

See more

* Serbian Saints

References

Literature

* Ohrid Prologue, Bishop Nikolaj Velimirović

External links

Ohrid Prologue for April 26 (9 May)

{{Serbian Orthodox saints Podgorica Serbs of Montenegro Serbian saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church