The Serbian Orthodox Church
St Sava, the Slava, and a Church that still keeps the Old Calendar.
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous local Churches of Eastern Orthodoxy, led by the Patriarch of Serbia from Belgrade. It traces its independence to St Sava, who in 1219 obtained autocephaly for the Serbian Church and gave it the shape it still carries: monastic, deeply liturgical, and bound to family life through the Slava.
History in brief
Christianity reached the Serbs in the ninth century through the mission of Ss Cyril and Methodius and their disciples. In 1219 St Sava, son of the Grand Prince Stefan Nemanja, was consecrated first Archbishop of the Serbs, and in 1346 the Church was raised to a Patriarchate at Peć. Under Ottoman rule the Patriarchate was twice abolished and twice restored; the modern unified Patriarchate dates from 1920.
The Slava — the Serbian family feast
The Slava is the distinctive practice of Serbian Orthodoxy: each household venerates one patron saint, inherited from father to son, on that saint's feast day. The priest blesses the Slava kolač (bread) and koljivo (boiled wheat), the bread is cut crosswise and turned, and the house keeps open table. The most common Slavas are St Nicholas (December 19 / December 6 O.S.), St George, the Archangel Michael and St John the Baptist.
The calendar
- The Serbian Church follows the Julian (Old) Calendar for fixed feasts, so Christmas falls on January 7 by the civil calendar.
- Pascha is calculated with the traditional Julian paschalion, the same date as all other Orthodox Churches.
- Badnje Veče (Christmas Eve, January 6) includes the burning of the badnjak, an oak branch, outside the church.
- The four great fasts are kept as in the rest of Orthodoxy: Great Lent, the Apostles' Fast, the Dormition Fast and the Nativity Fast.
Serbian Orthodoxy in Australia
Serbian communities were established across Australia after the Second World War and again in the 1990s. Parishes of the Diocese of Australia and New Zealand serve Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, usually serving in Church Slavonic and Serbian with English readings.
Frequently asked
- Is the Serbian Orthodox Church the same as the Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches?
- Yes, in faith and sacraments. Serbian, Greek, Russian, Antiochian and the other local Churches are one communion, differing only in language, administration and some customs such as the Slava.
- When do Serbian Orthodox celebrate Christmas?
- On December 25 of the Julian calendar, which corresponds to January 7 on the civil (Gregorian) calendar.
- What is the Slava kolač?
- A round loaf stamped with the seal IC XC NIKA, blessed by the priest, cut crosswise, anointed with wine and rotated as the family sings the troparion of their patron saint.