Bishop Metodije ( sr-Cyrl, Методије, secular name Ljubiša Ostojić, sr-Cyrl, Љубиша Остојић; born 1 April 1976) is a

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 ...

bishop from Montenegro who has served as the head of the

Eparchy of Budimlja and Nikšić The Eparchy of Budimlja and Nikšić or Budimlja–Nikšić () is an eparchy (diocese) of the Serbian Orthodox Church, covering eastern, central, and western parts of modern Montenegro. The ecclesiastical seat of the eparchy is the Đurđevi Stupo ...

(headquartered in the town of

Berane Berane (Cyrillic: Беране) is a town in Montenegro in the northern region. It is former administrative centre of the Ivangrad District. The town is located on the Lim river. From 1949 to 1992, it was named Ivangrad ( cyrl, Ивангра ...

) since 29 May 2021. He is a former auxiliary bishop in the

Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral The Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral of the Serbian Orthodox Church () is the largest eparchy (diocese) of the Serbian Orthodox Church in modern Montenegro. Founded in 1219 by Saint Sava as the Eparchy of Zeta, it has continued to ex ...

(2018–2021).

Biography

He was born on 1 April 1976 in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

to Milinko and Dragica (née Milićević), the third child. His parents come from

Žabljak Žabljak (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Жабљак, ) is a small town in Montenegro in the Northern Montenegro, northern region. It has a population of 1,723. Žabljak is the seat of Žabljak Municipality (2011 population: 3,569). The town is in ...

in northern Montenegro. He is related to

Milojko Spajić Milojko "Mickey" Spajić (; born 24 September 1987) is a Montenegrin politician and financial engineer serving as Prime Minister of Montenegro since October 2023. He also served as the minister of finance and social welfare in the government of ...

, a member of the Krivokapić government since December 2020, following the

parliamentary election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

in August that year. Upon finishing a secondary school and two years in the Gymnasium in Sarajevo, due to the outbreak of war in BiH, he relocated to

Podgorica Podgorica ( cnr-Cyrl, Подгорица; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Montenegro, largest city of Montenegro. The city is just north of Lake Skadar and close to coastal destinations on the Adriatic Sea. Histor ...

along with his family. In 1994, he finished the

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

and enrolled at the Economics department of the

University of Montenegro The University of Montenegro () is a national public university of Montenegro. Its central administration and most of its constituent faculties are located in the country's capital Podgorica, with campuses in Nikšić, Cetinje, and Kotor. Its ...

, from which he took a degree in 2001. He was ordained a monk in the

Cetinje Monastery The Cetinje Monastery () is a monastery of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro. It is located in Cetinje and is the seat of the Metropolitanate of Montenegro. A center of historical and cultural importance, it was founded c. 1484 by Prince ...

on 11 July 2004. He was ordained a deacon on 19 August 2004 and a presbyter (hieromonk) on 6 January 2008. From the end of 2007, he was a personal assistant (cell-attendant) to Patriarch

Pavle Pavle (Macedonian language, Macedonian and sr-Cyrl, Павле; ka, პავლე) is a Serbian, Macedonian, Croatian and Georgian male given name corresponding to the English Paul (given name), Paul; the name is of biblical origin, coming from ...

, until Pavle's death in November 2008. On 1 February 2010, he was appointed Father Superior of the Cetinje Monastery, where he was elevated to Archimandrite on 12 July 2013. The same year, he graduated from the Orthodox Theological Faculty of the

University of East Sarajevo The University of Istočno Sarajevo ( lit. University of East Sarajevo) is a public university located in Istočno Sarajevo, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2018–19 school year, there are 8,049 enrolled students. According to ...

Foča Foča ( sr-Cyrl, Фоча, ) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina, located in the south-east on the banks of Drina river. As of 2013, the town has a population of 12,234 inhabitants, while the municipality has 1 ...

. In 2015, at the Orthodox Theological Faculty of the

University of Belgrade The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it me ...

he defended his master's thesis on the topic of Vavila, Metropolitan of Zeta (1494–1520) and his contribution to Serbian spirituality and culture, under the mentorship of prof. Dr. Predrag Puzović. From 2012, he was a member of the Patriarchal Board of Directors of the Serbian Orthodox Church on behalf of the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral. He was also a member of the Diocesan Council and the Diocesan Board of Directors of the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral. In 2016–2017, he studied Greek at

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki ( AUTh; ), often called the University of Thessaloniki, is the second oldest tertiary education institution in Greece. Named after the philosopher Aristotle, who was born in Stageira, about east of Thessa ...

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...

, Greece. He was consecrated as auxiliary bishop by Patriarch Irinej in the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Podgorica on 22 July 2018. Since August 2018, he served as editor-in-chief of the journal ''Svetigora'' of the

. On 26 December 2019, in the course of the clerical protests, he was beaten by police with batons on

Đurđevića Tara Bridge The Đurđevića Tara Bridge ( cyrl, Мост на Ђурђевића Тари, Most na Đurđevića Tari, ) is a concrete arch bridge over the Tara River (Montenegro), Tara River in Statistical regions of Montenegro, northern Montenegro. It is l ...

. On 29 May 2021, in the Belgrade

Church of Saint Sava The Church of Saint Sava ( sr-Cyrl, Храм Светог Саве, Hram Svetog Save, lit='The Temple of Saint Sava') is a 79 m high Serbian Orthodox church, which sits on the Vračar plateau in Belgrade, Serbia. It was planned as the bishopric ...

, he was elected by the Bishops' Council of the SOC as Bishop of Budimlja and Nikšić. According to news media reports, his enthronement in

is scheduled for On 26 September 2021, he was enthroned by Patriarch Porfirije at Đurđevi Stupovi Monastery in

References

External links

Хиротонија Епископа диоклијског Методија
Metodije's bio on the official web site of the SOC {{DEFAULTSORT:Ostojic, Metodije 1976 births Living people Clergy from Sarajevo Serbs of Montenegro Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church University of Montenegro Faculty of Economics alumni