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Jovan Vraniškovski

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Jovan Vraniškovski
Metropolitan of Kruševo and Demir Hisar
Vraniškovski in 2011
Native name
Јован Вранишкоски
ChurchMacedonian
Personal details
Born
Zoran Vraniškovski

(1966-02-28) 28 February 1966 (age 58)
Bitola, SFR Yugoslavia
NationalityMacedonian
DenominationEastern Orthodoxy
OccupationMetropolitan of the Macedonian Orthodox Church
EducationCivil engineering, theology
Alma materUniversity of Belgrade

Jovan Vraniškovski (Serbian and Macedonian: Јован Вранишковски; born 28 February 1966), Metropolitan Jovan of Kruševo and Demir Hisar, of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, formerly known as Jovan VI, Metropolitan of Skopje and the Archbishop of Ohrid, is the former head of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric (2005–2023).

Life

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He was born in Bitola, SR Macedonia, SFR Yugoslavia, on 28 February 1966 and christened as Zoran Vraniškovski.[1] Vraniškovski graduated from the Faculty of Civil Engineering in Skopje in 1990 and graduated from University of Belgrade's Faculty of Orthodox Theology in 1995. He started his master's studies in the same year and later completed his doctoral dissertation called "The Unity of the Church and the Contemporary Ecclesiological Problems".[2] Vraniškovski was named a monk with the name Jovan (John) in February 1998.[3] In 1998, he was consecrated as a bishop with the title Bishop of Dremvitsa and assigned to be a vicar of the Bishop of Prespa and Pelagonia. In March 2000, he was elected as Bishop of the diocese of Veles.[2]

Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric

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Patriarch Bartholomew and Vraniškovski in 2004

Some Macedonian bishops sought to reconcile their differences with the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) and negotiated regarding the status of the Macedonian Orthodox Church (MOC), which had separated from SOC since its self-declared autocephaly in 1967.[2] These negotiations led to an agreement that was signed in Niš in May 2002 - the Niš Agreement.[4] The agreement was signed by three bishops of both delegations. The signing of the document caused an uproar in Macedonia (now North Macedonia).[5] The Macedonian bishops attempted to defend it for a short time.[6] It was soon rejected by the Synod of MOC.[7] The Serbian patriarch Pavle invited all MOC's bishops, clergy, monastics and faithful people to enter into liturgical and canonical unity with the Serbian Orthodox Church.[8] Vraniškovski and all priests of Veles agreed to respond to this call, and all signed a document of agreement.[9] Vraniškovski was the only metropolitan to accept the invitation.[10]

A few days after entering into liturgical and canonical unity with the Serbian Orthodox Church, Vraniškovski was expelled from the seat of the Metropolitanate together with the monastic community living with him.[11] The Macedonian media and clergy labeled him a "traitor", a "Serbian servant" and a "fool".[12] Since then, Vraniškovski had been subject to persistent persecution by Macedonian authorities.[13] In 2003, he was sentenced to five days' imprisonment for "disturbance of public peace and order and resisting a police officer", after attempting to perform a baptism in a church run by the Macedonian Orthodox Church.[14] In December 2003, he was elected as the head of the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric.[5]

In January 2004, Vraniškovski and a dozen of his followers were arrested by the police.[5] Amnesty International found him to be a prisoner of conscience.[15] The US Mission to the OSCE in its February 2004 report stated: "The United States is concerned that Vraniskoski's January detention and his ongoing trial may be disproportionate to his alleged offenses and violate his freedom of religion. We believe that governments should avoid involvement in religious disputes."[16] He was sentenced to 18 months in prison for "instigation of ethnic and religious hatred, discord and intolerance."[17] The verdict stated the conviction relied on three points:[18]

  1. He wrote a text in a religious calendar in which he slandered the Macedonian Orthodox Church.
  2. He agreed to be appointed as an Exarch of the Ohrid Archbishopric in Macedonia and participated in the ordination of the bishops Joachim and Marko.
  3. He officiated at a religious service in an apartment owned by his parents.

The Commission of the Churches in International Affairs of the World Council of Churches summarized his case as being based on "unfounded charges" in which the defendant was denied the "basic right to defense." The European Union also criticized his sentencing, considering his case a violation of freedom of conscience.[2] Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe reported that Macedonian officials, in response to the ecclesiastical dispute concerning the status of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, have over-reacted and found the 18-month prison sentence to be excessive and unjustified.[19] The Holy Community of the Mount Athos sent a letter of support to him, signed by all Representatives and Abbots who are in the common Assembly of the twenty Holy Monasteries of the Holy Mount Athos.[20] The Orthodox churches reacted upon his imprisonment and appealed for his release. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople sent a letter to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Macedonia, requesting his immediate release.[21] Reporting about the imprisonment, Freedom House wrote that "the charge was loosely based on the fact that he had performed a baptism and held church services in his apartment. Amnesty International has declared him a prisoner of conscience."[22]

In 2005, the Serbian Orthodox Church appointed him as Archbishop of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje.[23] He was imprisoned on 26 July 2005 and served 220 days in prison before the Supreme Court declared the last two of these three points to be unconstitutional[24] and his sentence was shortened to 8 months. On 27 July 2005, he was sentenced to two years and a half in prison due to "defaming the Macedonian Orthodox church and harming the religious feelings of local citizens." He had distributed Serbian Orthodox church calendars and pamphlets.[12] Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow sent a letter to the President of the Republic of Macedonia, demanding his immediate release.[25] The Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas condemned his imprisonment and asked for his release.[26] In the same year, Vraniškovski and other members of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric have been physically attacked on a number of occasions and the churches they have built or used have been destroyed.[27] In Freedom House's 2005 publication, the increase of harassment of leaders of various religious groups was cited as a reason for Macedonia receiving a downward trend arrow.[28]

In 2006, Vraniškovski was again tried and sentenced to two years on charges of embezzlement of a donation of 57,000 euros. Initially, the Court refuted the indictment,[29] but the Court of Appeal returned the case for a retrial.[30] The Holy Synod Of Hierarchs of the Church of Greece expressed a severe protest for an emergent release of him from prison, and for respect of religious freedom in the Republic of Macedonia.[31] In the second trial, the defendants were acquitted of the indictment,[32] but the Court of Appeal returned the case for a third trial.[33] On the third trial both defendants were found guilty, and as a second defendant, Vraniškovski was sentenced to two years' imprisonment, where the first defendant was sentenced to 1 year and 3 months imprisonment.[34] He was imprisoned on 8 August 2006 and served 256 days before being released.

Vraniškovski faced a detainment order for a third retrial of a third case in which the Veles Trial Court initially acquitted him in April 2006 on charges of embezzling 324,000 euros from MOC funds while he was a bishop with the MOC. Metropolitan Herman of the Orthodox Church in America called for his release.[35] The case was returned to the Veles Trial Court for retrial by the Court of Appeals in Skopje, and he was acquitted for a second time in April 2007. On 14 November 2007, the Court of Appeals in Skopje returned this case to the Veles Trial Court for a third trial. Vraniškovski's attorney claimed that neither he nor Vraniškovski was asked to appear in court to testify in the case. Freedom House, speaking of his imprisonment, reported that he has been again arrested for his ties to the Serbian Orthodox Church.[36] On 17 March 2008, the Veles court issued a detention order for Vraniškovski for failing to appear in court.[37] In October 2009, a court in Bitola sentenced him in absentia for the charge of embezzling money while serving as a cleric in Macedonia. In December 2010, Bulgarian authorities detained him as he was transiting the country. He was arrested by the Macedonian police at the Medžitlija border crossing with Greece in December 2011.[38] In July 2013, he was sentenced to three years in prison by the Skopje Criminal Court for embezzling money from MOC. The Conference of European Churches urged Macedonia to release him.[39] Two Macedonian bishops have called for his immediate pardoning in 2014.[40] He was released on parole in 2015.[41] After the reconciliation between the Macedonian Orthodox Church and the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric was dissolved in 2023 and he became the Metropolitan of Kruševo and Demir Hisar in MOC.[42]

Personal life and views

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In a 2020 interview, he said that the Macedonian Orthodox Church is not taking good care of the churches and monasteries founded by Serbian rulers and that many are in a poor state. He characterized the behavior of the MOC as "irresponsible".[43] In 2021, he was vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus and he emphasized the importance of vaccination.[44]

References

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  1. ^ Macedonian Encyclopedia (in Macedonian). MANU. 2009. p. 641.
  2. ^ a b c d Sabrina P. Ramet, ed. (2019). Orthodox Churches and Politics in Southeastern Europe: Nationalism, Conservativism, and Intolerance. Springer Nature. pp. 174–177. ISBN 9783030241391.
  3. ^ "Biography of the Archbishop of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje Kyr Kyr John VI". Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  4. ^ "The Nis Agreement". poa-info.org. 17 May 2002. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  5. ^ a b c Sabrina P. Ramet (2014). Religion and Politics in Post-Socialist Central and Southeastern Europe: Challenges Since 1989. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 245–246. ISBN 9781137330710.
  6. ^ "Dnevnik". star.dnevnik.com.mk (in Macedonian). Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  7. ^ Lucian N. Leustean, ed. (2014). Eastern Christianity and Politics in the Twenty-First Century. Routledge. p. 428. ISBN 9781317818663.
  8. ^ Summon by the Patriarch Paul
  9. ^ "The Agreement of the Priests from the Metropolis of Veles and Povardarje for Entrance into a Liturgical and Canonical Unity with the Serbian Orthodox Church". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  10. ^ Sabrina P. Ramet; Vjeran I. Pavlakovic, eds. (2011). Serbia Since 1989: Politics and Society Under Milosevic and After. University of Washington Press. p. 269. ISBN 9780295802077.
  11. ^ "Dnevnik". star.dnevnik.com.mk (in Macedonian). Retrieved 19 April 2016. [dead link‍]
  12. ^ a b "Church Rivalry Threatens to Brim Over". IWPR. 10 August 2005.
  13. ^ John Anthony McGuckin, ed. (2014). The Concise Encyclopedia of Orthodox Christianity. Wiley. p. 462. ISBN 9781118759332.
  14. ^ "The head of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Macedonia was put in Jail". southeasteurope.org. 27 July 2005. Archived from the original on 12 December 2007.
  15. ^ "Macedonia: Prisoner of Conscience. Zoran Vraniskovski (m), religious leader". Amnesty International. 13 January 2004.
  16. ^ "Statement on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (PDF). US Mission to the OSCE. 5 February 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 October 2011.
  17. ^ The 18-month sentence was based on charges that Vraniškovski held private religious services in union with the Serbian Orthodox Church and that he was responsible for the content of a religious calendar describing the MOC as "the last fortress of communism" and its believers as heretics. US State Dept. Report on Religious Freedom in Macedonia, 2006
  18. ^ "Verdict Racial Hatred". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  19. ^ In addition to these legal problems, concern exists about the situation surrounding Bishop Jovan (Zoran Vraniskoski). Macedonian officials, in response to the ecclesiastical dispute concerning the status of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, have over-reacted to Jovan's activities on behalf of the Serbian Orthodox Church. Authorities in January 2004 arrested Jovan for conducting a church service in a private apartment. Responding to complaints of neighbors about disturbing the peace is appropriate, but sentencing him to 18 months in jail for "causing national, racial or religious hate, discord and intolerance" is excessive and unjustified. Religious Freedom in Southeastern Europe Archived 6 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  20. ^ "Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric » Archbishop » Correspondence". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  21. ^ "Οἰκουμενικόν Πατριαρχεῖον". www.ec-patr.org (in Greek). Retrieved 19 April 2016. [dead link‍]
  22. ^ "Freedom in the World 2007 | Freedom House". freedomhouse.org. Archived from the original on 24 October 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  23. ^ "Will Macedonia's Orthodox Church Also Break Away?". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 18 October 2018.
  24. ^ "Supreme Court Verdict". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  25. ^ "Патриарх Московский и всея Руси Алексий II направил письмо Президенту Македонии в связи с арестом архиепископа Охридского Йована (Вранишковского) / Новости / Патриархия.ru". Патриархия.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  26. ^ "SCOBA Condemns Imprisonment of Archbishop Jovan By FYROM and Asks For His Release". Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas. 11 August 2005. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
  27. ^ "Macedonia | Country report | Freedom in the World | 2006". freedomhouse.org. Archived from the original on 1 February 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  28. ^ "Freedom in the World 2005 | Freedom House". freedomhouse.org. Archived from the original on 24 October 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  29. ^ "Rejection of Verdict". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  30. ^ "Appeals Court Decision". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  31. ^ "H ΕΚΚΛΗΣΙΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ : Κεντρική σελίδα". www.ecclesia.gr (in Greek). Archived from the original on 5 February 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  32. ^ "Judgement of Acquittal". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  33. ^ "Appeal of Acquittal". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  34. ^ "Third Verdict". poa-info.org. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  35. ^ "Metropolitan Herman calls for release of Archbishop Jovan of Ohrid". www.oca.org. December 2006. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  36. ^ Freedom House report on Macedonia, 2007 Archived 2011-10-24 at the Wayback Machine, freedomhouse.org. Accessed 3 September 2022.
  37. ^ "Macedonia 2008 Religious Freedom Report". U.S. Department of State. 19 September 2008. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  38. ^ "Macedonia Police Arrest Renegade Priest Vraniskovski". Balkan Insight. 12 December 2011.
  39. ^ "News European Churches Urge Macedonia to Free Priest". Balkan Insight. 10 July 2013.
  40. ^ "Macedonian Clerics Urge Pardoning Jailed Priest". Balkan Insight. 6 May 2014.
  41. ^ "Macedonia: Archbishop Jovan released on parole". B92. 4 February 2015.
  42. ^ "Union complete: Macedonian Holy Synod assigns dioceses to former Serbian Church hierarchs". OrthoChristian. 21 June 2023.
  43. ^ Баковић, Биљана. "Не брину о светињама, а траже аутокефалност". Politika Online. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  44. ^ A, I. (11 January 2021). "Arhiepiskop ohridski i mitropolit skopski Jovan PRIMIO VAKCINU: Važno je da sprečimo da se preko nas neko zarazi". Blic.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 12 January 2021.
Macedonian Orthodox Church titles
Preceded by Bishop of Veles and Povardarie
2000 – 2005
Broke away from the Macedonian Church and joined the Serbian Orthodox Church in 2002. 		Succeeded by
Serbian Orthodox Church titles
Vacant
Archbishopric reestablished
Title last held by
Dositej Stojković 		Archbishop of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje
2005 – 2023 		Office abolished
Macedonian Orthodox Church titles
New title Metropolitan Bishop of Kruševo and Demir Hisar
2023 – 		Incumbent
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