THE HISTORY OF THE ORTHODOX DIOCESE OF VRANJE

THE DISTRICT OF VRANJE IN THE MIDDLE AGES

The Romans, who conquered this territory which used to belong to the Dardanians, settled here as pagans. Gradually, during the first centuries, among newcomers and natives, Christians appeared as well. The Roman pagan emperors used to persecute and kill the Christians. Nevertheless, Christianity spread clandestinely bringing about an increase in the number of Christians.

During the first half of the VI century, Vranje and the parish of Vranje used to be under the spiritual guidance of the Diocese of Lipljane, which was within the Archdiocese of Justiniana Prima, founded by the Emperor Justinian in 535. The ancient Roman city Ulpiana, present-day Lipljane, was renewed later on in the name of Justiniana Secunda. It used to be the capital of Dardania all the way from Skadar and LJeš up to Niš.

The struggle for predominance over the Balkans between Roman emperors and bishops of the west on one side and bishops and emperors of the east lasted up to the year 732. when the Byzantine Emperor Leo III Isaurian subjugated the entire eastern territory of the Balkans making it pledge its political and ecclesiastical allegiance to Constantinopol. Thereafter, a gradual formation of Slavic religious and political power followed.

In a 1019. Charter by the Byzantine Emperor Basil II the city of Vratios is mentioned, its name signifying the district of parish of Vranje as well as the city of Vranje within the aforementioned district. The city and the district fell under the spiritual guidance of the Diocese of Priština.

In the vicinity of the city of Vranje, within a few tens of kilometers, runs the Pčinja river. Far above, the Kozjak mountain rises. During the fist half of the XI century, in this region rich in abundant natural resources, mountains and the rippling Pčinja river, a higher hermitic monastic way of life thrived. The representative of this harsh monastic Christian way of life was St. Prochorus of Pčinja. He is the embodiment of the Christianity which was quite thriving at the time on the territory of the parish of Vranje.

Vukan, the Serbian parish priest, the son of the great parish priest Stevan Nemanja, mediatized the district of Vranje to Serbia from the Byzantians in 1193, but only temporarily. From then on Vranje has been chronicled as the first place taken over from the Byzantians by the Serbs ever.

In his father's biography, listing the places and regions mediatized to Serbia by his father, Stevan Nemanja - holy-blessed St. Simeon, Saint Sava, states as follows: "And thus he giveth to the land of his fatherhood the entire Nišava region, Lipljan and Morava, called Vranje".

In the King Milutin's official gold-sealed document, the 1321 HRISOVULJA, Vranje, as well as the districts of Slavište, Zletovo and Pijanac, are recorded as constituents of the Diocese of Lipljane. Nevertheless, according to the historian Radosav M. Grujić, PhD, at that time, these regions were considered to have been only temporarily allocated to the Diocese of Lipljane. After the battle of Velbužd, in 1330, Vranje was probably restored to Skoplje along with the districts of Slavište and Zletovo. Among the bishops of Skoplje, only one, named Stefan, is famous.

When, in 1240, the Serbian Orthodox Church was raised to the rank of patriarchate, the Diocese of Skoplje was proclaimed a metropolitan diocese. Beside that, some other episcopates were founded.

"It cannot be asserted whether the foundation of the Diocese of Vranje within the Metropolitan Diocese of Skoplje, also mentioned afterwards, was ruled on at that very convocation", states our historian PhD Radosav M. Grujić. He assumes that this official decision could have been ruled on at a subsequent convocation with no preserved records available.

The primary records of the Diocese of Vranje

In his History of the Serbian Ortodox Church, Nikanor Ružičić, the church historian and bishop, states that the Diocese of Vranje is the former Diocese of Končul.

The writer, Đura Daničić, in his famous dictionary under the letter -K- states that Končul is situated on the left bank of the Binačka Morava, "beyond the town of Vranje" but near the village of Trnovac. It has also been said that this diocese is situated between Gnjilane and Vranje as located on the map by the travelogue writer Hans.

In the chronicles, the Diocese of Končul, at the time of the King Milutin, is recorded as the diocese of the Kingdom of Serbia. Its boundaries and bishops cannot be asserted since there are no clear historical records available.

The writer, Milan Đ. Milićević, states: "Vranje used to have its bishop under the Turks"

The travelogue writer, F. Kanic, describing Vranje mentions that even though the Christians remained loyal to Christianity, the Ottoman invaders still left behind an oriental air in this ancient diocesan town, surrounded by beautiful orchards and vineyards.

The travelogue writer, Sreten L. Popović, records that upon the liberation of Vranje in 1878. "...there was an ecclesiastical throne in Vranje".

PhD Radosav Grujić, the historian, states: "Afterwards it became the separate diocese of the district of Vranje". In his inscription and heading he puts it as "The Diocese of Vranje".

With no written documents available, the exact date when Vranje got a vicar bishop for the fist time cannot be defined. The Syncellus of metropolitan Climent, written in Greek in 1550, is said to have been dedicated to the Metropolitan of Skoplje, Vranje and Žigligovo. According to it, anyone unwilling to obey was threatened with anathema.

In the Memorial of the the Holy Trinity Monestery in Prizren, following the revival of the Patriarchate of Peć in 1550, the bishop Sofronius is mentioned as the suffragan of the metropolitan of Skoplje in 1565. The note reads as follows: "And there cometh the Right Reverend Metropolitan Metodije and the Right Reverend Bishop of Vranje, Venerable Sofronije who addresed Abbot Martirije".

In the Memorial of the Patriarchate of Peć "the bishop Josif Vranja" is mentioned.

Vranje within the Metropolitan Diocese of Skoplje and the Diocese of Niš

Since 1847 up to 1865, the metropolitan Pajsije, as the vicar bishop of Joakim, the metropolitan of Skoplje, resided in Vranje. He remained known as, inter alia, a generous benefactor of Serbian Education, famous for having stood up for the opening of Serbian Theological School in Skoplje through his titular bishop, the metropolitan Joakim, since 1854. He had also consecrated the cathedral of Vranje in 1858.

The bishop Pajsije erected a building, that people used to call the centre of the metropolitan diocese, next to the church in Vranje. Following the liberation of Vranje in 1878, he came back to Vranje and bought the biggest and the most beautiful house from the daughter of Husein, the pasha of Vranje, which he then donated to the municipality of Vranje as a school. He is also associated with Vladičin Han, the name of the town on the Southern Morava river, situated twenty-odd km away from Vranje in a northward direction. This town was named after an inn initially occupying the area of the present-day center of the town of Vladičin Han, that once used to be in possession of the bishop Pajsije.

It was only after 1878, that Vranje was liberated from the Turks, along with a part of the Metropolitan Diocese of Skoplje which was adjoined to the Diocese of Niš in 1882, remaining its integral part up to March 1st, 1932, with a short interruption during the war time.

Since March 1st, 1932, cantons such as the ones of: Bosilegrad, Masurica, Poljanica and Pčinja, had been disincorporated from the Diocese of Niš and incorporated within the Metropolitan Diocese of Skoplje. Owing to the concurrence of war events, after the end of World War II, this region of the Metropolitan Diocese of Skoplje had existed under the name of "the district of the Diocese of Skoplje" up to May 30th,1975 when the Holy (Archpriest) Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church adopted a resolution calling for the revival of the Diocese of Vranje with see in Vranje.

The Diocese of Vranje since rivival to date

On May 30th, 1975, the Holy (Archpriest) Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church adopted a resolution calling for the revival of the Diocese of Vranje with see in Vranje. The regencies such as the ones of: Pčinja, with archpriest's see in Vranje, Masuričko- Poljaničko, with see in Vladičin Han, Bosilegrad, with see in Bosilegrad and Preševo, with see in Bujanovac, were incorporated within this diocese.

Temporarily, the restored diocese passed under the administrative and spiritual guidance of Jovan Ilić PhD, the bishop of the Diocese of Niš; afterwards, following bishop Jovan's death on February 5th, 1975, under the rule of the newly elected bishop Irinej Gavrilović on June 1st, 1978, Domentijan Pavlović, the archimandrite and rector of the St. Sava Theology Faculty in Belgrade, was elected (first) bishop of this diocese by the Holy Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church.

The very day of the enthronement of Domentijan, the newly elected bishop of the Diocese of Vranje, on September 24th, 1978, marked the end of the construction as well as the consecration of the episcopal manor church. In that way, in less than 2 years, the project initiated by the Bishop Irinej on December 15th, 1976, at the time holding a position of the bishop of the Diocese of Niš and the administrator of the Diocese of Vranje, when he laid the foundation stone of the new palace, was completed.

The Right Reverend Domentian, immediately after his enthronement, founded the Church Court of the Diocese of Vranje and appointed his official and his secretary. He also set up the Administrative Committee of the Diocese of Vranje as well as the Diocesan Council.

The prolific bishop's work was interuppted by his sudden death on July 2nd, 1983. The bishop had a car accident on the road between Markovac and Velika Plana. Both he and his deacon driving the car, were admitted to the neurosurgery in Belgrade due to serious injuries. The deacon passed away on July 1st, 1983, whereas the bishop passed away the day after. He was buried in the Vranje Cathedral, inside the newly raised tomb in the northern-west part of the temple.

Up to the consecration of the new bishop the Diocese of Vranje was administered by Mr. Irinej, the bishop of the Diocese of Niš. The former bishop of Morava, Mr. Sava Andrić became the newly consecrated bishop. He was enthroned the bishop of Morava on June 20th, 1982, on the Pentecost Day, and enthroned the bishop of Vranje on the Pentecost Monday, on June 11th, 1984.

Based on the book "The Supplement to the History of the Diocese of Vranje", priest Petar V. Gagulić