Bishop Firmilian (Ocokoljic)
Bishop Firmilian (Ocokoljić) (1910-1992)
Firmilian may be spelt Firmilijan, Fermilian.
Ocokoljic may be spelt Ocokoljić, Ocokoljich, Otsokoljich.
Early life of Stanko Ocokoljić
On 7 January, 1910 (the Feast of the Nativity of Christ), Stanko Ocokoljić was born in Kaona, Serbia (100 km/62 mi south-west from Belgrade), along with his twin brother Ranko. They were born into a family of clergy, who descended from many generations of priests. His father was Archpriest Uroš Ocokoljić, the rector of the Kaona parish. He was also involved in politics, and he served (amongst other activities) as the president of the Kaon Agricultural Cooperative. His mother, Darinka (born Plazinić), was the daughter of a priest.
Stanko, the tenth child in the family, was raised with the other children in the Orthodox Christian Faith in the bosom of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Stanko received his elementary education in Kaona, and his secondary education (gymnasium) in Čačak. As he was growing up, he was perceived as being remarkable for his intellectual clarity and his almost innate wisdom.
Higher education
After completing his elementary and secondary education, Stanko was admitted into the Orthodox Theological Seminary in Sarajevo, Bosnia, from which he graduated in 1930.
Military service
Stanko fulfilled the required period of service with the Armed Forces of Yugoslavia.
Marriage
In 1930, after he had completed the required military service, Stanko Ocokoljić was married to Nadezda Popović.
Ordinations
In January, 1931, Stanko was ordained to the Holy Diaconate, and then to the Holy Priesthood by Bishop Efrem (Bojović), brother of Duke Petar Bojović.
Pastoral service
The first assignment of Priest Stanko Ocokoljić was as assistant priest to his father, the Archpriest Uroš Ocokoljić, in the village of Kaona.
Bereavement
Painfully, within the first year of marriage, Father Stanko lost both his wife and their son as a consequence of complications during childbirth.
The unexpected loss of his wife changed the direction of the life of the now-widowed Priest Stanko. Thereafter, he strove to engage in study.
Further study ; teaching
Father Stanko returned to theological studies at the University of Belgrade. At the same time, he took up a position in the Belgrade Public School System, and he taught religion in the schools.
In 1938, after having received a Licentiate in Theology from the University of Belgrade, Father Stanko was assigned to serve as a professor of Patrology and Greek at the then-existing Theological Seminary in Cetinje, Montenegro ("Crna Gora").
Monastic tonsure
In 1939, Priest Stanko Ocokoljić was tonsured to be a monk and he received the name Firmilian at the Monastery of Saint Joachim of Osogovo in what is now called North Macedonia, within the diocese of Metropolitan Josif (Cvijović) of Skopje. (Another article indicates that the tonsure took place at the Monastery of Saint Basil of Ostrog in Montenegro.)
Monastic-pastoral service
Service in the USA and in the UK
In 1940, when World War II came to Yugoslavia, Hieromonk Firmilian (Ocokoljić) travelled to the USA together with Bishop Dionisije (Milivojević). They had been sent to serve there in the Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of America and Canada in the USA.
As the administrative secretary of Bishop Dionisije, during the following years, Hieromonk Firmilian served as the pastor of many of the largest Serbian Orthodox communities in the USA : Saint Lazarus Serbian Orthodox Cathedral, “Ravanica” in Detroit, Michigan (from October, 1941) ; Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago, Illinois ; Saint George and Saint Sava Temple in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Saint Sava Pro-Cathedral in New York City, New York.
Service in the UK, 1945
In addition to these responsibilities, during World War II, Father Firmilian served as the personal chaplain to the Karađorđević royal family, and specifically to King Peter II Karađorđević (Karageorgevich), the exiled king of Yugoslavia (who was living at that time in the United Kingdom). While he was there, in 1945, he studied history and philosophy at Oxford University.
Return to the USA
After his return to the United States, the "singelos" (chancellor) Firmilian was elevated to the dignity of archimandrite at the Monastery of Saint Sava in Libertyville, Illinois.
Saint Sava Serbian Orthodox Monastery
In 1945, Archimandrite Firmilian was instrumental in the formation of the National Federation of the Circles of Serbian Sisters to which he was appointed to serve as its spiritual advisor. The original society in Serbia had been closed during the war in 1942.
During his service at the monastery, in addition to using his administrative skills, Archimandrite Firmilian participated in many activities, including teaching at the seminary on the monastery grounds, and promoting the publication of many of the literary works of Bishop Nikolaj (Velimirović).
While he resided at the monastery, Archimandrite Firmilian earned his Doctorate in Philosophy degree from the Department of History of the University of Chicago after defending his doctoral dissertation about the “Legal Codex of the Serbian Emperor Dushan”.
Archimandrite Firmilian was assigned to serve as the director of the Shadeland Diocesan Estate in Springboro, Pennsylvania. He sponsored its establishment as a charity home, a children’s summer camp, and a fully operative farm.
While he served as dean of the New York City Pro-Cathedral of Saint Sava, he nurtured it such that it became the largest Serbian community in the USA. At the same time, Archimandrite Firmilian took up (that is, he was given) many other responsibilities.
Saint Sava Serbian Cathedral, New York City
Teaching at Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, New York
As an educator, Archimandrite Dr. Firmilian (Ocokoljić) resumed teaching, this time at Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York City where, as a professor at the graduate school of theology, he taught hagiology, and both Western and Serbian ecclesiastical histories. There, he was also given the responsibility of serving as the dean of Serbian students.
Archimandrite Firmilian was instrumental in the formation of the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) together with Archbishop Iakovos (Coucouzis) of the Greek Archdiocese. He was named its first administrative secretary.
Archimandrite Firmilian also represented the diocesan bishop at certain meetings of the World Council of Churches (WCC).
Saint Vladimir's Seminary 1962 yearbook photo
1962 seminary brief biography
By an official act of Bishop Dionisije (Milivojević) dated 8 January, 1963, Archimandrite Firmilian, the vicar to Bishop Dionisije, was appointed to be the educational head of the diocese.
Schism of Bishop Dionisije (Milivojević), 1963
Later, on 10 May, 1963, Bishop Dionisije (Milivojević) began a schism from the Church of Serbia because of a perception of communist influence and/or control in the Serbian Orthodox Church. The beginning of this schism (in which Archimandrite Firmilian did not participate) changed the direction of his own life.
At its special meeting of 27 July, 1963, the Holy Episcopal Assembly of the Serbian Orthodox Church elected Archimandrite Firmilian (Ocokoljić) to be the bishop of the newly-created Diocese of Midwestern America.
Episcopal ordination, 1963
Preparation for the ordination took place at Vespers on 31 July, 1963, in the Cathedral Church of Saint Sava in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Vespers was served by Bishop-designate Firmilian, together with 4 priests and a deacon. The local choir sang the responses, and the Temple was filled with people.
Saint Sava Cathedral, Milwaukee
On 1 August, 1963, the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy was served by Bishops Chrysostom (Vojinović) of Branicevo and Stefan (Lastivica) of Eastern America and Canada, together with 25 priests and a deacon. During the Divine Liturgy, Bishop-elect Firmilian (Ocokoljić) was ordained to the Holy Episcopate.
Bishop Firmilian (Ocokoljić)
Episcopal service
The election of Bishop Firmilian (Ocokoljić) by the bishops of the Serbian Eastern Orthodox Church in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, led to a long controversy, because Bishop Firmilian`s predecessor, Bishop Dionisije, refused to relinquish his office. He believed that the American diocese was being subjected to communist control.
In 1963, Bishop Dionisije formed the "Free Serbian Eastern Orthodox Church", which led the American diocese into a schism. As a consequence, he was removed from his responsibilities and from the Holy Episcopate by the Serbian Church.
Bishop Firmilian with parishioners
Court cases
Bishop Firmilian led the canonical diocese during this period of controversy, which lasted more than 16 years. Despite the very difficult circumstances, the diocese was organised, and it continued to grow.
Bishop Dionisije brought his dismissal before the civil court while the 2 groups contended for control of church property in the USA, until the Supreme Court of the USA ruled in favour of Bishop Firmilian and his followers.
40 years of priestly service, 1971
On 25 January, 1971, the 40th anniversary of Bishop Firmilian's ordination to the Holy Priesthood was marked in Chicago. At that time, it was written in the periodical "Orthodoxy" that "Bishop Dr. Firmilian is one of the most prominent figures in Serbian church circles in America and one of the few people who know the opportunities, history and life of Serbs in the United States".
Settlement of legal processes, 1976
In 1976, the American Supreme court recognised all the decisions of the Holy Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church in connexion with the case involving the leaders of the schism and the deposition of Bishop Dionisije. It reversed all the previous decisions of the courts in the state of Illinois, and it ordered that the decisions of the American Supreme Court be carried out. Their finding was :
The reorganisation of the Diocese involves solely a matter of internal Church government, an issue at the core of ecclesiastical affairs. Religious freedom encompasses the power [of religious bodies] to decide for themselves, free from state interference, matters of Church government as well as those of faith and doctrine.
In 1979, after the repose of Bishop Dionisije (Milivojević), the Diocesan See once again was established at the Saint Sava Monastery in Libertyville, Illinois.
After his return to the Monastery in 1979, Bishop Firmilian laboured to restore the memory of the forgotten Bishop Mardarije (Uskoković), founder of the Monastery and first Serbian Orthodox Bishop of America and Canada. He also strove to complete his “Mardarije's Dream” by renovating and enlarging the Monastery Temple.
Bishop Firmilian after a memorial service
Illness, 1984
In 1984, after celebrating both the Nativity of the Lord and his own birthday, Bishop Firmilian suffered a series of heart attacks and several strokes. He was hospitalised immediately in Chicago. Nevertheless, supported by his faith and the outpouring love and prayers of the Faithful from all jurisdictions, Bishop Firmilian came out of a coma. Once again, he was able to delight in the monastery that he loved so well.
Retirement, 1987
On 14 June, 1987, Bishop Firmilian was relieved of episcopal duties because of illness.
In 1988, Bishop Firmilian was awarded the Order of Saint Sava of the 1st Degree, the highest award of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Healing of the schism, 1991
The schism between the Free Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serbian Orthodox Patriarchate lasted until 24 April, 1991, when there was a reconciliation between the two. This was the result of the invitation extended by Patriarch Pavle (Stojčević) to work towards reconciliation.
In 1992, Eucharistic Communion was restored during a celebration of the Divine Liturgy in the Holy Visitation of the Virgin Cathedral in Belgrade.
Repose, 1992
On Monday, 2 November, 1992, Bishop Firmilian (Ocokoljić), who had presided over the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Midwestern America since 1963, fell asleep in the Lord in the Condell Memorial Hospital, Libertyville, Illinois, at the age of 82.
On Wednesday, 4 November, 1992, at 10:00 a.m., a Memorial Divine Liturgy was served in the Monastery of Saint Sava. His body was present in the midst of the Temple. At 7:30 p.m., a Panikhida (Memorial Service) was offered for Bishop Firmilian in the Monastery Temple.
On Thursday, 5 November, 1992, the Funeral Service for the Burial of a Hierarch was offered in the Monastery Temple of Saint Sava at Libertyville.
After the funeral services, his body was interred in Saint Sava's Cemetery.
Bishop Firmilian’s successor was Metropolitan Christopher (Kovačević), who later, in 1992, was elevated to the rank of Metropolitan and the Diocese to the rank of Metropolitanate.
Grave-marker for Bishop Firmilian (Ocokoljić)
— Bishop of Chicago and Midwestern America 1963-1992. Preceded by : Bishop Dionisije (Milivojević. Succeeded by : Metropolitan Christopher (Kovačević).
Reflections
Awards
Order of Saint Sava, 1st Degree, 1988 (the highest award of the Serbian Orthodox Church)
References
Additional information :
Hockenos, Paul, “Homeland Calling : Exile, Patriotism & the Balkan Wars” (Ithaca, NY : Cornell University Press, 2003). ISBN 0-8014-4158-7.
Puzovic, Predrag, Article about Serbian Orthodox Church Eparchies Abroad (PDF) in “Journal of the Orthodox Theological Faculty, Belgrade” (in Serbian), vol. 40, nos. 1-2 (1996), pp. 87–96 : PDF article in English ; PDF article in Serbian
Spasović, Stanimir, Miletić, Srboljub, “History of the Serbian Orthodox Church : Schism on the North American Continent”
Tarasar, Constance J, ed., "Orthodox America 1794-1976 : Development of The Orthodox Church in America" (Syosset, NY : The Orthodox Church in America Department of History and Archives, 1975). ASIN : B000ZLZAUE.
Vuković, Sava, “History of the Serbian Orthodox Church in America and Canada 1891–1941” (Kragujevac, Serbia : Kalenić, 1998).
Wyrwoll, Nikolaus ed., “Orthodoxia 2014-2015" (Regensburg : Ostkirchliches Institut, 2015). ISBN 978-7245-1959-1.
Saint Sava Cathedral Milwaukee history notes 1960-1990
Serbica Americana history notes
Orthodoxwiki article about the Serbian Orthodox Church
Serbian Orthodox Church of North and South America web-site
History of the Serbian Orthodox Church in North and South America
Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Midwestern America web-site
Wikipedia article about the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Midwestern America
Bishop Dionisije (Milivojevic)
Metropolitan Christopher (Kovacevic)
Wikipedia article about Saint Sava’s Serbian Orthodox Monastery and Seminary
“Firmilijan Ocokoljić, the only Bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church born in Dragacevo” (18 July, 2019)
“Firmilijan Ocokoljić, the only Bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church born in Dragacevo” (18 July, 2019) (in Serbian)