Religion in Serbia
• Serbia is a multi-religious country. The dominant
religion is Orthodox Christianity (notably the
Serbian Orthodox Church), but there are also
some adherents of Islam (living mostly in the
southwestern part of Serbia in the region of
Sandžak or Raška, in the municipalities of
Preševo and Bujanovac in southern Serbia, as
well as in the disputed territory of Kosovo), and
Catholic Christianity (living mostly in northern
part of Vojvodina province), as well as adherents
of other religious groups such are Protestant
Christians, Jews, and others.
•
•
•
•
•
Yellow-Catholic
Green- Islam
Blue-Ortodox
Brown-Protestants
Gray-No data
Census
1921
Census
1991
3 321 090
6 347 026
Census
2002
6 371 584
751 429
496 226
410 976
97 672
224 120
239 658
Protestants No data
88 275
80 837
Jews
26 464
740
785
Greek
Catholics
Total
16 859
No data
No data
4 378 595
7 759 571
Orthodox
Cristians
Roman
Christians
Muslims
7 498 001
• The head of the Serbian Orthodox Church is the
patriarch. He is also the head (metropolitan) of the
Metropolitanate of Belgrade and Karlovci. The current
patriarch is Irinej since 22 January 2010. The Serbian
Orthodox patriarchs are styled His Holiness the
Archbishop of Peć, Metropolitan of Belgrade and
Karlovci, Serbian Patriarch. The highest body of the
Church is the Holy assembly of Bishops (Serbian: Sveti
arhijerejski sabor, Свети архијерејски сабор). It
consists of the Patriarch, the Metropolitans, Bishops,
Archbishop of Ohrid and Vicar Bishops. It meets twice a
year in spring and in autumn. Holy assembly of Bishops
makes important decisions for the church's life and
elects the patriarch. The executive body of the Serbian
Orthodox Church is the Holy Synod. It has five
members: four bishops and the patriarch. Holy Synod
takes care of everyday life of the Church. It meets on
regular basis.
• Icons are replete with symbolism meant to
convey far more meaning than simply the
identity of the person depicted, and it is for this
reason that Orthodox iconography has become
an exacting science of copying older icons rather
than an opportunity for artistic expression. The
Orthodox believe that the first icons of Christ
and the Virgin Mary were painted by Luke the
Evangelist. Orthodox regard their depiction of
Christ as accurate, with Christ having brown
semi-curly hair, brown eyes, and Semitic
features (the Virgin Mary being similar).
• Trojeručica
(three-handed)
icon of Virgin
Mary in
Hilandar, the
most important
icon of the
Serbian Church
• Fresco of the
White Angel in
Mileševa, the
most famous
Serbian fresco
• Miroslav
Gospels, one of
the oldest
surviving
documents
written in Old
Church Slavonic
from 12th
century (World
Documentary
Heritage)
Serbian Christmas traditions
• Serbian Christmas traditions are customs and practices
of the Serbs associated with Christmas and a period
encompassing it, between the third Sunday before
Christmas Day and Epiphany. There are many, complex
traditions connected with this period. They vary from
place to place, and in many areas have been updated or
watered down to suit modern living. The Serbian name
for Christmas is Božić (Cyrillic: Божић, pronounced
[bɔ̌ʒitɕ]), which is the diminutive form of the word bog
"god", and can be translated as "young god". Christmas
is celebrated for three consecutive days, starting with
Christmas Day, which the Serbs call the first day of
Christmas. On these days, one is to greet another
person with "Christ is Born," which should be responded
to with "Truly He is Born," or in Serbian: „Христос се
роди“ [xristɔs sɛ rɔdi] – „Ваистину се роди“ [ʋaistinu sɛ
rɔdi].
• The Serbian name for Christmas Eve
during the day is Badnji dan. After sunset
it becomes Badnje veče. On this day the
family makes preparations for the
oncoming celebration. The dinner on this
day is festive, copious and diverse in
foods, although it is prepared in
accordance with the rules of fasting.
• Early in the morning the head of each family, usually
accompanied by several male relatives, selects and fells
the tree from which the log will be cut for their
household. The group announces its departure by firing
guns or small celebratory mortars called prangija. The
Turkey oak is the most popular species of tree selected
in most regions, but other oaks, or less frequently other
kinds of tree, are also chosen.Generally, each household
prepares one badnjak, although more are cut in some
regions.
• When the head of household finds a suitable tree, he
stands in front of it facing east. After throwing grain at
the tree, he greets it with the words "Good morning and
happy Christmas Eve to you", makes the Sign of the
Cross, says a prayer, and kisses the tree.
• Upon entering the house the man approaches the
fireplace, called ognjište ([ˈɔɡɲiːʃtɛ])—the hearth of an
ognjište is similar to a campfire, in that it has no vertical
surround. He lays the badnjak down on the fire and
moves it a little forward, to summon prosperity for the
household. Any other logs are brought in by other males
and laid on the fire parallel or perpendicular to the first.
The head of the household takes a jug of wine and
pours some on the badnjak; in some regions, he may
strew wheat grains over the logs. He then proposes a
toast: "Grant, O God, that there be health and joy in this
home, that our grain and grapevines yield well, that
children be born healthy to us, that our property
increase in the field, pen, and barn!" or similar. The
head drinks a draught of wine from the jug, after which
it is passed to other members of household. When the
log has burnt through, some families let the fire go out,
while in others the men keep watch in shifts during the
night to keep the badnjak burning.
• On Christmas Day, the celebration is
announced at dawn by church bells, and
by shooting from guns and prangijas. The
head of household and some of the family
go to church to attend the Morning
Liturgy. No one is to eat anything before
tasting the prosphora, which the head of
household brings from church for those
who stay at home to do domestic tasks for
this morning.
• Christmas dinner is the most celebratory meal a family
has during a year. Аbout noon, or even earlier, the family
members sit down at the table. When the head of
household gives a sign, all rise. He lights a candle,
censes his family and house, and prays the Lord's
Prayer. After that, the family members kiss each other on
the cheek saying, "The peace of God among us, Christ is
Born." The head and another man of the family hold the
česnica between themselves, rotating it three times
counterclockwise. The česnica is then carefully broken
among the relatives, so that each of them gets his or her
own share of the loaf. The family member whose share
contains the coin hidden in the česnica, will supposedly
be exceptionally lucky in the coming year. The main
course of Christmas dinner is roast pork or pečenica.
During the dinner, the head of the household proposes a
toast to his family with a glass of wine, several times.
Serbian Patron Saint Day
• Of all Orthodox Christians, only Serbians have a slava -the custom of celebrating a family's patron saint's feast
day.
• The tradition dates back to the ninth century when Serbs
gave up their pagan beliefs and accepted Christianity.
• One theory is that each village or tribe adopted a
collective saint as its protector; another is that the saint
on whose day a man was baptized became his family's
patron.
• In commemoration of their conversion or spiritual
birthday, each family began a yearly celebration to
honor their saint, passing the tradition down from
generation to generation.
• The most common Slavas are St. John the Baptist on
Jan. 20, St. George on May 6, St. Michael the Archangel
on Nov. 21 and St. Nicholas on Dec. 19, but there are
many others.
• Serbian priests visit homes in their parish to bless slavski
kolac (a special slava bread), zito, also known as koljivo
(boiled wheat with honey and walnuts) and red wine,
and light a special beeswax candle before any feasting
can begin.
• Kolac represents Christ as the bread of life. Zito is
symbolic of Christ's resurrection and commemorates
departed family members. Red wine is symbolic of
Christ's blood, and the candle proclaims Christ as the
light of the world.
• Kolac is a round 6-inch-high yeast bread with braided
dough around its perimeter, a cross on the top and a
pecat or seal with the letters IC, XC, NI and KA, which
stand for "Jesus Christ the conqueror." A Cyrillic "C" in
each quadrant of the cross stands for samo, sloga,
Srbina, spasava, which mean "Only unity will save
Serbs."
The most famous Serbian
monasteries
• Visoki Dečani
monastery, major
Christian monastery
located in disputed
Kosovo, 12 km (7
mi) south of the
town of Peć. The
monastic katholikon
is the largest
medieval church in
the Balkans
containing the most
extensive preserved
fresco decoration
• Hilandar (Serbian
Cyrillic Хиландар,
Greek Chilandar)
is a Serbian
Orthodox
monastery on
Mount Athos in
Greece
• Church of the
Žiča
monastery in
Kraljevo, the
royal church
of the
medieval
Serbian kings
• Church of the
Mileševa monastery
near Prijepolje is
known for its
remarkable
frescoes
• The Virgin's
Church of the
Studenica
monastery
near Kraljevo,
World
Heritage site
• The (Orthodox) Temple of Saint Sava
(Serbian: Храм Светог Саве) in Belgrade, Serbia
is the largest Orthodox Church currently in use
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