Atanasije II Gavrilović
| Serbian Patriarch Atanasije II Српски патријарх Атанасије II | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch | |
| Church | Serbian Orthodox Church |
| See | Patriarchal Monastery of Peć |
| Installed | 1747 |
| Term ended | 1752 |
| Predecessor | Joanikije III |
| Successor | Gavrilo II |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
late 17th century Skopje |
| Died |
1752 Peć |
| Nationality | Rum Millet (Serbian) |
| Denomination | Eastern Orthodox Christian |
| Occupation | Spiritual leader of the Serbian Orthodox Church |
Atanasije II Gavrilović (Serbian Cyrillic: Атанасије II Гавриловић; Skopje, late 17th century – Peć, 1752) was Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch from 1747 to 1752.
He was first mentioned in 1741 as the Metropolitan of Skopje. At that time, the throne of Serbian Patriarchate was contested between the Serbs, who were seen as rebels by the Ottomans, and Phanariote Greeks, who were very much loyal to the authorities. In the last Habsburg-Ottoman war of 1737-39, in which Serbs supported Vienna, a major migration northwards into Habsburg territory was led by Serbian Patriarch Arsenije IV. The Ottomans brought Joanikije III, a Greek, to the throne in Peć. During his days all connections with Serbs in the Habsburg Empire were cut. Thus, the election – an Ottoman approval – of a Serb as the head of the Serbian Patriarchate delighted all the Serbs.
Immediately after his election Atanasije II made a canonical visit to Sarajevo. In 1748 we find him in Niš. In 1749 he visited Rila monastery, at the time a part of his patriarchate.[1]
That same year Atanasije II visited Montenegro and then continued to the Adriatic littoral to visit his flock. He was accompanied by metropolitan of Cetinje Sava Petrović. The worried Venetian authorities tried to prevent their movement by increasing the sanitary measures for all people coming from the Ottoman Empire, thus also to the patriarch and his entourage.[2] Next year (1750) Atanasije was in Belgrade where he installed Vasilije Petrović as the new metropolitan of Cetinje, giving him also the title of the „exarch of the Peć throne“.[3]
Atanasije II worked hard to reestablish the broken connections with Serbs in the Habsburg Empire whose church was now organized under the Metropolitan of Karlovci. As one of tokens of this renewed collaboration copper plates from book printing were sent from Sremski Karlovci to Atanasije II.[4]
Since the treasury of the Serbian Patriarchate was all but emptied during the irresponsible rule of his predecessor, in 1750 Atanasije II sent his exarch, abbot of Studenica Vasilije Petrović to collect donations in the regions of the Metropolitan of Karlovci. Same was done in 1751 in the diocese of Valjevo.[5] Atanasije II died in 1752.
References
- ↑ Eпископ шумадијски Сава, Српски јерарски од IX до XX века, Београд-Подгорица-Крагујевац 1996, стр. 41-42, http://www.pouke.org/upload/fajlovi/agapije/srpskijerarsi.pdf
- ↑ http://forum.burek.com/svi-srpski-patrijarsi-t342338.10.imode.html
- ↑ Eпископ шумадијски Сава, Српски јерарски од IX до XX века, Београд-Подгорица-Крагујевац 1996, стр. 60, http://www.pouke.org/upload/fajlovi/agapije/srpskijerarsi.pdf
- ↑ "Атанасије II Гавриловић", Народна енциклопедија, Загреб, 1927.
- ↑ Eпископ шумадијски Сава, Српски јерарски од IX до XX века, Београд-Подгорица-Крагујевац 1996, стр. 41-42, http://www.pouke.org/upload/fajlovi/agapije/srpskijerarsi.pdf
Sources
- "Атанасије II Гавриловић", Народна енциклопедија, Загреб, 1927.
| Eastern Orthodox Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Joanikije III |
Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch 1746–1752 |
Succeeded by Gavrilo II |