The demotion of the closest associates of the late Metropolitan Amfilohi of the Montenegrin littoral can be seen as revenge, which leaves room for speculation that it is politically motivated," said Vladimir Veljković, a religious analyst from Belgrade.
He told "Vijesta" that the dismissals and new appointments of Amfilohi's personnel are not a surprise, if one takes into account the negative company to which the late metropolitan and people close to him in the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral (MCP) were exposed.
"The campaign - and that from certain church circles - included accusations against Metropolitan Amfilohi for church separatism. When we keep that in mind, the removal of his closest associates can also be seen as revenge. The whole case leads to speculation that there is some political background behind these decisions Veljković pointed out.
The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) dismissed Gojko Perović from the post of rector of the Cetinje Seminary yesterday. In the decision signed by Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, it is stated that the SPC is dissatisfied with the work of the administration of the Cetinje Theological Seminary.
"Given the current situation in the Seminary of St. Peter of Cetinje in Cetinje, as well as certain negative actions of its administration, which were pointed out in his report by His Eminence Metropolitan Chrysostom of Dabrobosna, a member of the Holy Synod of Bishops for the management of educational affairs, after a visit to this school (22 . April), and in accordance with the agreement reached in one of the earlier sessions of the Holy Synod of Archbishops, and based on Article 231 of the Constitution of the SPC, Archpriest-Stavrophor Gojko Perović, rector of the Theological Seminary of St. school and make it available to the competent diocesan bishop," the decision reads, without clarifying what kind of negative actions are involved.
"Vijesti" did not receive a comment from Perović after the dismissal.
Perović, who until recently was the parish priest of Cetinje, was transferred to Podgorica, where he will perform his priestly duties in the Church of St. George.
According to the unofficial information of "Vijesti" from MCP, Perović - since the speculations about his dismissal started - met twice with Porfiri, who proposed to him to resign. The Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral, Joanikije, suggested the same to him.
The MCP unofficially told "Vijesti" that the decision on Perović's dismissal was politically motivated.
"In his speeches during last year's litias, he also referred to the leading politicians in Serbia. Although his speeches were not outside the official course of the MCP and Metropolitan Amfilohi, it was obviously not forgotten by him in Belgrade," it was said unofficially to "Vijesti".
After the Assembly of the Serbian Orthodox Church, held at the end of May in Belgrade, at which the new head of the Serbian Orthodox Church was elected, the media and individuals close to the top of the Serbian Orthodox Church only intensified the rumors about the "cleansing" of Amfilohi's associates. The most brutal campaign against the metropolitan and his people was led by the portal "Vidovdan" - allegedly close to the bishop of Bačka Irinej - which accused them of wanting to separate the Metropolitan from the SPC, calling them "autonomists" and "separatists".
One of those who, according to the knowledge of "Vijesti", advanced in the SPC due to criticizing Amfilohi and MCP, is the priest Zoran Đurović, who was recently rewarded with an appointment in the Ružica Church in Belgrade and a position in the Information Service of the SPC.
In addition to Gojko Perović, several other close associates of Amfilohi were transferred to new positions. The recent secretary of the MCP, Obren Jovanović, is the new archbishop of Herzegovina. Cetinje priest Anđelko Boričić will be in priestly service in the Gornjo-Grbalj parish in the future. The former longtime secretary of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ in Podgorica, Mirčeta Šljivančanin, was appointed elder of the Church of St. George in Podgorica, while the former parish priest in Grblje, Mijajlo Backović, will continue his priestly service in Nikšić.
Vladimir Veljković says that the church policy led by Amfilohije and his collaborators did not correspond to official Belgrade.
"The people from the MCP adopted a completely new vocabulary with which they addressed the public. It was not a vocabulary of political polarization. Of course, all this was noticed in Belgrade, and we know that the policy of the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, insists on divisions, fears, and mutual distrust ...", he explains.
After Porfirius was elected patriarch in February, the media close to the Serbian Orthodox Church started fueling rumors that the new head of the church would cross paths with Amfilochius' legacy.
Thus, in May, the Assembly of the Serbian Orthodox Church abolished all episcopal councils, including the Episcopal Council in Montenegro. They then announced that the aforementioned councils were established as temporary advisory church bodies, "while extraordinary circumstances persist and the impossibility of our bishops meeting each other in the then wartime conditions". The Episcopal Council in Montenegro was established by the decision of the Council of Bishops on May 26, 2006. During that period, there were no war or other emergency situations in the country.
Speculations about the showdown with Amfilochius' men continued during the election of the new bishop of Budimlja-Nikšić. According to "Vijesti" at the end of May, Bishop Stefan (Šarić) was almost chosen as Joaniki's successor - who is linked to a series of affairs and who is considered a bishop close to the ruling party in Serbia - but, while a group of bishops around Patriarch Porfiri went to the Parliament to congratulate him on his election, Bishop Grigorije of Dusseldorf insisted on voting in the second round between Stefan and Methodius, after which Methodius was elected bishop of Budimljansko-Niššić with two more votes.
Veljković reminds that the dismissals in the MCP were preceded by dismissals at the Faculty of Theology in Belgrade, as well as dismissals of some more prominent priests who criticized Vučić's policy.
"All of them were punished, expelled, moved to new positions, while some others were promoted," he notes.
"You practically can't and won't go further than this," concludes Veljković.
Veljković: The changes do not mean moving away from the MCA
The interlocutor of "Vijesti" explains that the removal of Perović and other priests does not imply their removal from the MCP.
"As far as I have seen, all of them have made themselves available to the new Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral. These changes do not have to mean their complete removal from the life and work of the Metropolis. They will have a place of their own. These are priests, people of the church, and I believe that will accept the new decisions in their own way," emphasizes Veljković.
Perović did not want Vučić to come to Montenegro on Christmas
At the beginning of January last year, Perović, commenting on Vučić's then-announced visit to Montenegro - which was planned for Christmas, but which ultimately did not happen - said "everyone has the right to come whenever they want".
"What they say - all roads are open to everyone. But I'm afraid that such a visit by a statesman to another country will put the media and in general, as far as people's attention is concerned, the Christmas holiday itself in the background, which would not be good," said Perović at the time. .
He said that their main theme is to celebrate Christmas and for the faithful to gather in churches on that occasion.
"Let Vučić come as a statesman to visit the state. Seriously, for several days, planned and announced. Religious holidays are not an opportunity for that. Especially not in a situation when we are fighting for the rights of the Church, not any nation or ethnic group," said Perović.
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