The Archbishop of Cetinje, Metropolitan of Montenegro, and Exarch of the Holy Throne of Pec, Amfilohije passed away this morning at 8.20am, the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral announced.
The Metropolitan had been receiving treatment at the Clinical Hospital Center of Montenegro since the beginning of October, when he tested positive for coronavirus, the Metropolitanate announced earlier.
He passed away after having received the Holy Sacrament of Communion, reads today’s statement from the Metropolitanate.
Despite recently testing negative for COVID-19, some media reported yesterday that the Metropolitan Amfilohije was having difficulty breathing due to, as his doctors explained, pneumomediastinum – a common complication among the majority of elderly people who have been dealing with the infection for a longer period.
The Metropolitanate announced at the time that he was placed on non-invasive, and early this morning, invasive ventilation.
Last night, some media outlets published the information that the Metropolitan passed away yesterday, which the Metropolitanate soon denied.
The Metropolitan will be buried on Sunday in the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Podgorica
The Episcopal Council of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro has announced, the Metropolitan will be transferred to the Cetinje Monastery today, and a memorial service will be served there tomorrow at 9 am. On the same day, the Metropolitan will be transferred from Cetinje to the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Podgorica, where the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy will be served on Sunday, November 1st, led by Patriarch Irinej.
The requiem and funeral will be held after the liturgy.
Metropolitan
Metropolitan Amfilohije (Radovic, birth name Risto) was born on Christmas Day, January 7th, 1938, in Bara Radovica in Donja Moraca.
He was raised in a patriarchal devout family in post-war times of growing atheism under communist rule.
Amfilohije attended primary school in the Moraca monastery and the seminary of St. Sava in Rakovica in Belgrade. He graduated from the Faculty of Theology in Belgrade while also studying classical philology at the Faculty of Philosophy.
He obtained a Master’s degree from the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Bern and Rome. In Athens, he finished his doctorate on St. Gregory Palamas, which attracted the attention of the then European theological public. He also received the rank of a priest in Greece.
The Metropolitan was one of the last three remaining students of Justin Popovic, who, along with the old man Paisije from Mount Athos, had a great influence on the spiritual development of the Metropolitan.
He was a professor at the St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris, a tenured professor at the Faculty of Orthodox Theology of St. John the Theologian in Belgrade (later the Orthodox Theology Faculty of the University of Belgrade). He was also the dean of the faculty for two terms.
He received the Doctorate honoris causa from several other academies: the Moscow Theological Academy, the Institute of Theology at the Belarusian State University in Minsk, the St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris, and the St. Petersburg Theological Academy. He was elected an honorary member of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts.
The Metropolitan was also awarded the Order of Lomonosov.
He was the Bishop of Banat before he was elected Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral in 1990, with a seat in Cetinje.
Metropolitan Amfilohije held ancient titles – he was the Exarch of the Holy Throne of Pec, as well as Archbishop of Cetinje.
He was a member of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church on several convocations. He presided over that body and was the deputy of Patriarch Pavle during his illness up to his death, and until the Irinej was elected as the new patriarch.
He temporarily administrated the Diocese of Raska-Prizren from May 2010 until the enthronement of Bishop Teodosije of Raska-Prizren and Kosovo-Metohija at the end of December of the same year. He also administrated the Diocese of Buenos Aires and South-Central America (which was established at his suggestion) from its founding in May 2011 until today.
The Metropolitan was a key figure in the renewal of the Orthodox faith and the development of the church in Montenegro before and after the breakup of Yugoslavia.
He influenced generations of priests and bishops. During his time, the Cetinje seminary was renovated, new churches and temples were built, along with one of the largest cathedrals of the Resurrection of Christ in Podgorica, St. Jovan Vladimir in Bar, while old and abandoned monasteries were renovated.
As the Metropolitan pointed out earlier, 652 church buildings were reconstructed and built during his service on the Cetinje throne.
He founded the Publishing and Information Institution „Svetigora“. Amfilohije spoke Greek, Russian, Italian, German, and French. He used ancient Greek, Latin, and Church Slavonic in his scientific work.
Also, he left behind numerous volumes on theology, philosophy, essays, translation works, and poetry.
He played a special role in the years immediately after the war in Kosovo, when, as the Exarch of the Pec throne, he spent time and gave support to the local monks and nuns. He also collected and buried the remains of Serbs killed during that period.
Along with Patriarch Pavle, Amfilohije was the most popular and important Serbian bishop in recent history among the clergy and the faithful, known under the nickname „Djedo“.
At the same time, for the rest of the public and the region, he was the most disputed Serbian priest. He was accused of inciting nationalism and supporting convicted war criminals. Contrary to those who loved him and the metropolitan himself, this part of the public claimed that the metropolitan did not support the peace and reconciliation of the people.
According to analysts and public opinion, he played a key role in the unity of the people in Montenegro, which helped to establish marches extending for months held throughout cities in Montenegro and the elections held the following summer – where Djukanovic’s DPS party were ousted after 30 years of its rule.
In the last years of his life, the Metropolitan became known to the public as a fierce critic of Montenegrin President Milo Djukanovic, as well as Serbian Aleksandar Vucic; he criticized the latter over his politics on the issue of Kosovo.
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