Eastern Orthodoxy in Croatia

Aspect of religious life in Croatia

Gomirje Monastery

Eastern Orthodoxy in Croatia refers to adherents, religious communities, institutions and organizations of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Croatia. It is the second-largest religious denomination in Croatia, behind the Roman Catholic Church. Over 128 000 people, forming 3.32% of the total Croatian population, are Eastern Orthodox Christians (2021).

Eastern Orthodoxy in Croatia is represented foremost by the Serbian Orthodox Church, which claims most of the Eastern Orthodox Christian faithful. Other major jurisdictions are the Bulgarian Orthodox and Macedonian Orthodox Churches. These three churches are recognized by the state.[1][2] In Croatia there are also adherents to the Montenegrin Orthodox Church. In the past, there was a Croatian Orthodox Church, although it was unrecognized by the Serbian Orthodox Church.

## Statistics

[edit]

Religious map of Croatia (2001)

The published data from the 2021 Croatian census included a crosstab of ethnicity and religion,[3] which showed that a total of 128,395 Eastern Orthodox believers (3.32% of the total population) was divided between the following ethnic groups:

* 101,250 Serbs (78.86%)
* 15,980 Croats (12.45%)
* 2,406 Romani (1.87%)
* 1,266 Macedonians (1.47%)
* 7,493 others, undeclared or unknown (5.84%)

| Eastern Orthodox Population by ethnicity

Ethnicity |  |
Serbs |

| 101,250
Croats |

| 15,980
Romani |

| 2,406
Macedonians |

| 1,266

## Serbian Orthodox Church in Croatia

[edit]

Krka monastery

Main article: Serbian Orthodox Church

This church gathers its faithful among the Serbs of Croatia. Five eparchies (dioceses) of the Serbian Orthodox Church cover the territory of Croatia:[1]

* Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana, vacant since 2021
* Eparchy of Dalmatia, headed by bishop Nikodim Kosović, since 2017.[4]
* Eparchy of Gornji Karlovac, headed by bishop Gerasim Popović, since 2004.
* Eparchy of Osječko polje and Baranja, administered by bishop Irinej Bulović of Bačka, since 2017.
* Eparchy of Slavonia, headed by bishop Jovan Ćulibrk, since 2014.[5]

Regional Council of Serbian Orthodox Church in Croatia consists of all five diocesan bishops. The council is presided by the Metropolitan of Zagreb and Ljubljana.

There are over 600 Serbian Orthodox churches and other religious buildings in Croatia.[6] During the Croatian War of Independence, 84 of these churches were damaged or destroyed.[6] Of that number, 21 were completely demolished by explosives, 4 wooden churches were burned, 56 masonry churches were damaged or burned during and after the war and 3 churches were removed during or shortly after the conflict.[6] By 2025, 42 of the 84 affected buildings had been reconstructed or rebuilt.[6]

Major Serbian Orthodox sites include the monasteries:

* Dragović
* Gomirje
* Komogovina
* Krka
* Krupa
* Lepavina
* Sv. Lazarica
* Sv. Nedjelje
* Sv. Petke
* Sv. Vasilija Ostroškog

and the churches:

* Zagreb Orthodox Cathedral

* Church of St. Demetrius, Dalj

* Church of St. Nicholas, Karlovac

* Church of the Holy Annunciation, Dubrovnik

* Church of St. Nicholas, Vukovar

* Church of Pentecost, Vinkovci

## See also

[edit]

* Religion in Croatia
* Croatian Orthodox Church, a World War II organization
* List of Serbian Orthodox churches in Croatia

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Ugovor između Vlade Republike Hrvatske i Srpske pravoslavne crkve u Hrvatskoj o pitanjima od zajedničkog interesa". Narodne novine - Službeni list Republike Hrvatske NN196/03 (in Croatian). Narodne novine. December 15, 2003. Retrieved February 16, 2010.
2. ^ "Ugovor između Vlade Republike Hrvatske i Bugarske pravoslavne crkve u Hrvatskoj, Hrvatske starokatoličke crkve i Makedonske pravoslavne crkve u Hrvatskoj". Narodne novine - Službeni list Republike Hrvatske NN196/03 (in Croatian). Narodne novine. December 15, 2003. Retrieved February 16, 2010.
3. ^ "Population by Ethnicity/Citizenship/Mother tongue/Religion" (xlsx). Census of Population, Households and Dwellings in 2021. Zagreb: Croatian Bureau of Statistics. 2022. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
4. ^ "Communique of the Holy Assembly of Bishops (2017)". Archived from the original on 2018-01-15. Retrieved 2017-07-28.
5. ^ "Enthronement of Bishop John (Ćulibrk) of Slavonia". Archived from the original on 2018-12-17. Retrieved 2017-07-28.
6. ^ a b c d Filip Škiljan (2025). "Stradanje hramova Srpske pravoslavne crkve u ratu u Hrvatskoj 1991. - 1995. i poraću (1996. - 1997.)" [Destruction of Serb orthodox churches in the war in Croatia 1991 - 1995 and the immediate post-war period (1996 - 1997)]. Tragovi: Journal for Serbian and Croatian Topics (in Croatian). 8 (1): 7–46.

## Sources

[edit]

* Bataković, Dušan T., ed. (2005). Histoire du peuple serbe [History of the Serbian People] (in French). Lausanne: L’Age d’Homme.
* Ćirković, Sima (2004). The Serbs. Malden: Blackwell Publishing.
* Krestić, Vasilije (1997). History of the Serbs in Croatia and Slavonia 1848-1914. Belgrade: BIGZ.
* Mileusnić, Slobodan (1997). Spiritual Genocide: A survey of destroyed, damaged and desecrated churches, monasteries and other church buildings during the war 1991-1995 (1997). Belgrade: Museum of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
* Miller, Nicholas J. (1997). Between Nation and State: Serbian Politics in Croatia Before the First World War. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.
* Raković, Aleksandar (2013). "Short Existence of the Faculty of Eastern Orthodox Theology at the University of Zagreb 1920-1924" (PDF). Теолошки погледи. 46 (3): 951–956.

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Eastern Orthodox Church

Autocephalous and autonomous churches of Eastern Orthodoxy

Autocephalous churches|

| Four ancient patriarchates|

* Constantinople
* Bartholomew I
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|

Junior patriarchates|

* Russia[a]
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* Stefan

Autonomous churches|

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Semi-autonomous churches
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History|

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Liturgy|

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Other|

* Unrecognized Eastern Orthodox churches
* Eastern Orthodoxy by country
* Canon law of the Eastern Orthodox Church

Christianity portal

1. ^ The ROC severed full communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate in 2018, and later severed full communion with the primates of the Church of Greece, the Patriarchate of Alexandria, and the Church of Cyprus in 2020.
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Autocephaly or autonomy is not universally recognized.
3. ^ UOC-MP was moved to formally cut ties with the ROC as of May 27th 2022.
4. ^ Semi-autonomous part of the Russian Orthodox Church whose autonomy is not universally recognized.

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Eastern Orthodoxy in Europe

Sovereign states|

* Albania
* Andorra
* Armenia
* Austria
* Azerbaijan
* Belarus
* Belgium
* Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Bulgaria
* Croatia
* Cyprus
* Czech Republic
* Denmark
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* Germany
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*   * Italy
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* Norway
* Poland
* Portugal
* Romania
* Russia
* San Marino
* Serbia
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* Spain
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Turkey
* Ukraine
* United Kingdom

States with limited
recognition|

* Abkhazia
* Kosovo
* Northern Cyprus
* South Ossetia
* Transnistria

* v
* t
* e

Serbian Orthodox Church in Croatia

History|

* Varaždin Apostol (1454)
* Statuta Valachorum (1630)
* Declaratory Rescript of the Illyrian Nation (1779)
* Vukovar resolution (1939)
* Genocide of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia (1941–1945)
* Religious persecution
* Catholic clergy involvement with the Ustaše
* Croatian Orthodox Church

Eparchies|

* Metropolitanate of Zagreb and Ljubljana
* Dalmatia
* Gordnji Karlovac
* Osječko polje and Baranja
* Slavonia
* Srem (partly in Croatia)
* Zahumlje and Herzegovina (partly in Croatia)

Monasteries|

* Dragović
* Gomirje
* Komogovina (Komogovina School)
* Krka
* Krupa
* Lepavina
* Sv. Lazarica
* Orahovica
* Sv. Nedjelje
* Sv. Petke
* St. Basil of Ostrog

Churches|

| Cathedrals|

* Dalj Cathedral (Dalj)
* Jasenovac Monastery de jure (Jasenovac)
* Holy Trinity de facto (Pakrac)
* St. Nicholas (Karlovac)
* Dormition of the Theotokos (Šibenik)
* Zagreb Orthodox Cathedral (Zagreb)

|

Eastern Croatia|

* Holy Venerable Mother Parascheva (Banovci)
* Transfer of the relics of the Holy Father Nicholas (Bijelo Brdo)
* St. George (Bobota)
* St. Peter and Paul (Bolman)
* St. Stephen (Borovo)
* Presentation of Mary (Čakovci)
* Saint Archangel Michael (Darda)
* Nativity of the Theotokos (Gaboš)
* St. Michael the Archangel (Ilok)
* St. Nicholas (Jagodnjak)
* St. Stefan Štiljanović (Karanac)
* St. George (Kneževo)
* Pentecost (Markušica)
* St. Nicholas (Mikluševci)
* St. Nicholas (Mirkovci)
* St. Panteleimon (Mirkovci)
* Transfiguration of the Lord (Mohovo)
* Dormition of the Theotokos (Negoslavci)
* St. Elijah (Novi Jankovci)
* St. George (Opatovac)
* St. Peter and Paul (Orolik)
* Dormition of the Mother of God (Osijek)
* Nativity of Saint John the Baptist (Ostrovo)
* St. Nicholas (Pačetin)
* Presentation of Mary (Popovac)
* Nativity of the Theotokos (Srijemske Laze)
* Transfiguration of the Lord (Šarengrad)
* St. George (Tovarnik)
* Transfiguration of the Lord (Trpinja)
* Pentecost (Vinkovci)
* St. Nicholas (Vukovar)

Central Croatia|

* St. George (Grubišno Polje)
* Saint Parascheva (Slabinja)
* St. George (Varaždin)

Dalmatia
North Adriatic|

* Ascension of the Lord (Cetina)
* Nativity of the Theotokos (Drežnica)
* Holy Annunciation (Dubrovnik)
* Intercession of the Theotokos (Knin)
* St. Spyridon (Peroj)
* St. Nicholas (Rijeka)
* Holy Apostles Peter and Paul (Štikada)
* St. Peter and Paul (Tepljuh)
* St. Nicholas (Vrlika)

Education|

* Kantakuzina Katarina Branković Serbian Orthodox Secondary School (Zagreb)
* Seminary of Three Holy Hierarchs (Krka monastery)

Other|

* Library of the Eparchy of Slavonia
* Order of Kantakuzina Katarina Branković

Orthodox Clergy|

* Atanasije Ljubojević (c. 1635–1712)
* Nikodim Busović (1657–1707)
* Savatije Ljubibratić (1660—1716)
* Stevan Ljubibratić (1661–1737)
* Sofronije Podgoričanin (1668–1711)
* Simeon Končarević (1690–1769)
* Pavle Nenadović (1703–1768)
* Vićentije Jovanović Vidak (1730–1780)
* Kiril Živković (1730–1807)
* Josif Putnik (1777–1830)
* Lukijan Mušicki (1777—1837)
* Petar Jovanović (1800—1864)
* Nikanor Grujić (1810–1887)
* Teofan Živković (1825—1890)
* Nikodim Milaš (1845–1915)
* Miron Nikolić (1846–1941)
* Dositej Vasić (1878–1945)
* Sava Trlajić (1884–1941)
* Pavle, Serbian Patriarch (1914–2009)
* Jovan Pavlović (1936–2014)
* Longin Krčo (born 1955)
* Porfirije, Serbian Patriarch (born 1961)
* Jovan Ćulibrk (born 1965)
* Kirilo Bojović (born 1969)

Category

* Main:
* Eastern Orthodoxy in Croatia

* See also:
* Religion in Croatia
* Serbs of Croatia
* Catholic–Eastern Orthodox relations
* Vlachs in the history of Croatia
* Eastern Orthodoxy in Hungary
* Eastern Orthodoxy in Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Religion in Vojvodina

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