Tuesday, January 14, 2025
Today on the Christian History Almanac, we remember the founder and patron saint of Serbia: St. Sava.
*** This is a rough transcript of today’s show ***
It is the 14th of January 2025. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.
Today is a good day to celebrate a Serbian; after all, today is the day of days for Serbians who recognize today as the feast of St. Sava, who died on this, the 14th of January in 1236. It would be hard to overestimate his significance for the birth of the Serbian country and church- he is a George Washington meets Martin Luther, who was also a runaway prince who became a monk.
But first- it’s ok if you get a little confused when it comes to Serbia and her place on the globe. When I was a kid, the maps just had a blob called “Yugoslavia,” and that was good enough- but there’s a reason that to “Balkanize” is to break down into little bits. And Serbia is in the heart of the Balkan Peninsula- so, find the boot (Italy) in the Mediterranean, jump over that bit of water to the East and you are in the land mass north of Greece.
In the Middle Ages, this Eastern European region saw an influx of Slavs who would graft themselves onto the Eastern Orthodox Church. But that church, headquartered in Constantinople, was often under attack and eventually succumbed to Turkish and Ottoman control (why did Constantinople get the Works? That’s nobody’s business but the Turks!). Various Slavic groups began to segment; amongst these were the Serbs who settled in the heart of the Peninsula bordering modern-day Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary.
The Vlastimirovic dynasty was the first to establish a Serbian kingdom in the 700s, but they would fall into Byzantine control. The first national hero (of sorts) was Stefan Nemanja- from him begins the Nemanjic dynasty- but Stefan isn’t the name to remember. Rather, it was his 3rd son Ratsko. Ratsko was seen as an answer to prayer and was offered up in service to God, but they were initially surprised when their son- a prince- ran away to the famous Mt. Athos to become a monk. He was tonsured (that is, given the monk's haircut) and took the name St. Savas- the number one name in Serbian history and legend. He helped establish the monastery of Hilander at Athos- still a center of Serbian Orthodox today.
His parents, the King and Queen, would follow their son's example and take Holy Orders as a monk and nun. He helped secure the crown for his older brother, who would rule as the others tended to monastic life.
But it was not so simple. There was a fear that the king was drifting too far towards the Roman Catholic Church (with the fear that they would lose national autonomy if they joined that communion). Sava would not remain in the monastery but instead became a statesman as well- he would write the nation's first law code, his biography of his father was a key text in the development of Serbian literature, and he would most significantly reject Roman overtures, and recognize the Patriarch of Constantinople as the “first among equals” and for this the Serbian church Would be recognized as its own entity in the Orthodox community- this would allow them to see their liturgies and traditions- such that the Serbian state and church would be bound together with St. Sava as the head of a unified front. St. Sava would become the symbol of Serbian identity, with his image on flags symbolizing resistance to the Ottomans in the 16th century.
St. Sava church in Belgrade is arguably second only to the Hagia Sophia in terms of grandeur- the project began in the early 1900s and was put on hold during World War II. With the fall of the Iron Curtain and the birth of Yugoslavia, the traditional religion was suppressed as a satellite of the USSR. But it was the beloved national saint who became prominent again in the 1990s when it gained independence again.
So, get your Slavski Kolač and raise your Rakija for St. Sava- the prince who became a monk and became the founder of a nation and her literature and independent church who died on this, the 14th of January 1236. He was said to be 61 years old.
The last word for today comes from the daily lectionary from 1 John 5.
19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 20 We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.
This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 14th of January 2025 brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.
The show is produced by one-time Teen Idol, Christopher Gillespie.
The show is written and read by a man who knows Serbia's most famous son is Nikolas Tesla- unless you’re from Croatia… they tell another story- I’m Dan van Voorhis.
You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.
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