On October 22, we visited the Gradac women’s monastery that had been founded in the 13th century by Queen Elena Anjou, who was of French royal ancestry. She married Serbian Tsar Urosh I. She fell deeply in love with the Serbian people and did much for Serbian education. Glorified among the saints, Elena rests in the monastery church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. We venerated her sarcophagus and the hand of Holy Tsar Miliutin, which had been brought out of the Altar for veneration.
Under the Turkish yoke, the monastery church had been used as an armory. A series of explosions destroyed the roof, and the church remained without a roof over the course of 200 years. Remarkably, some of its unique ancient frescoes have survived!
In Gradac, an unfortunate event took place: a mad dog bit one of our pilgrims. Glory be to God, everything turned out all right. We took the sick woman to the town of Raska, where she was prescribed the course of treatment. Our group included both a physician and a nurse, who administered the necessary injections.
Not far from the Kosovo border, next to the town of Novi Pazar, we visited the Church of the Holy Apostle Peter, one of the most ancient churches in the Balkans (6th -7th C.). There St. Symeon the Myrrh-gusher and his son, the Great Holy Hierarch Sava had been baptized. In the 12th century it was the diocesan headquarters, and important church councils took place there. At one of them, Tsar Stefan Nemanje abdicated the throne in favor of his son. The church underwent reconstruction on several occasions. In the 19th century, the Turks converted it into a warehouse. It was last renovated after World War II. An ancient cemetery with extremely interesting grave crosses lies next to the church. Blessed Eldress Stojna (1815-1895), whom Serbs greatly venerate, is buried in this cemetery. Services are performed only on Sundays.
We would have been happy to stay longer at that holy place, but it was getting dark and we had to hurry to get to the next holy site, the renascent monastery of Djordjevi Stupovi. It is on a high hill not far from Novi Pazar. The main church, dedicated to Great Martyr St. George, was erected in the second half of the 12th century by Stefan Nemanje, soon after he became Great Zupan. The church fell into neglect and suffered greatly during the two World Wars. Currently, Djordjevi Stupovi is being renovated by a small brotherhood of young monks. Our time together instilled in our group of pilgrims the hope that on our next visit we would find the monastery firmly established. We still had to go several more kilometers up the hill. We arrived at the monastery toward the end of the evening services, on the eve of the Feast of the Optina Elders; their icon lay on the central analogion. This presented yet another evidence of the veneration Serbians have for Russian saints, and of our spiritual kinship.
That same evening we accompanied my Serbian parishioner Veljko Sikirica to the ancient monastery of Crna Reka. The monastery was renovated through the efforts of Bishop Artemije of the diocese of Raska-Prizren. I had the honor of first meeting Vladyka in Washington, where he would come on occasions to consult with government officials about matters related to Kosovo, a significant part of his diocese.
In his youth, Marko Radoslavlevic, the future Vladyka, met the famous Serbian theologian and confessor Justin Popovic, and became his spiritual child. At that time, Fr. Justin was living in the monastery of Celije, in the region of Valjevo, not far from Vl. Artemije’s ancestral home. After Marko Radoslavlevic graduated from seminary, Fr. Justin tonsured him a monk with the name Artemije. This happened on November 20, 1960 in Celije. In the late 1960s, Fr. Artemije went into seclusion in the monastery of Crna Reka.
For 13 years, Archimandrite Artemije served as father superior of that monastery, and during that time he gathered around him about 20 young monks. The monastery put in his charge enjoyed a true spiritual renaissance. Some of the residents of Crna Reka went on to become superiors of monasteries in the Raska-Prizren Diocese.
Under the direction of the then-already Bishop Artemije, the Raska-Prizren Diocese, one of the oldest dioceses in Serbia, is undergoing an active spiritual renaissance. Its publishing activities are thriving, with publication of the diocesan journal Holy Prince Lazar. During his scant free time, Bishop Artemije is occupied with theological research and with translating of patristic literature. Vladyka’s theological views are founded on the hesychast tradition of the holy fathers and the spiritual heritage of Holy Hierarch Nikolaj Velimirovic and Venerable St. Justin Popovic.
His Grace the Most-reverend Artemije was given a difficult cross, direction of the Raska-Prizren Diocese during the most difficult years of trial for the Serbian people and for Orthodoxy. Prior to the beginning of NATO aggression in 1998, during the war and after the cessation of bombing, Vladyka Artemije expended every possible effort toward ensuring the safe existence and survival of his diocese and flock. In addition to directing the diocese, Vladyka chairs the Serbian national assembly of Kosovo and Metohija.
The ancient monastery of Crna Reka is high on a hillside in the Southern part of the country. Currently, 18 monks live in the monastery. In the small cave church of Archangel Michael rest the fragrant relics of Venerable St. Peter of Korisha, an ascetic of the 13th century.
On our way back to Novi Pazar, we stopped at the grave of New Martyr Hierodeacon Hilarion to serve a litya. During the military actions of 1999, he was kidnapped by Albanian terrorists. Several days later, his beheaded body was found.