This article lists the Metropolitans of Montenegro, primates of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro, heads of the current Serbian Orthodox metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral, and their predecessors (bishops and metropolitans of Zeta, and Cetinje), from 1219 to the present day. [1]
| Primate | Portrait | Reign | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Danilo I Данило I |  | 1697–1735 | Founder of the Petrović-Njegoš dynasty. |
| Sava II Сава II |  | 1735–1781 | Co-ruled with Vasilije III from 1750 until 1766. |
| Vasilije III Василије III |  | 1750–1766 | Co-ruled with Sava II. |
| Arsenije II Арсеније II |  | 1781–1784 | |
| Petar I Петар I |  | 1784–1830 | Canonized by the Serbian Orthodox Church as St. Petar of Cetinje. |
| Petar II Петар II |  | 1830–1851 | |
| Danilo II Данило II |  | 1852 | Never consecrated. Secularization; Danilo II proclaimed Prince of Montenegro on 13 March 1852. |
| Primate | Portrait | Reign | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nikanor II Никанор II | | 1858–1860 | The first Vladika after centuries to only serve religious function. Banished to the Russian Empire by Prince Nikola; died in 1894. Born in Drniš as Nikola Ivanović / Никола Ивановић. |
| Ilarion II Иларион II |  | 1860–1882 | Born in Podgorica as Ilija Roganović / Илија Рогановић. |
| Visarion III Висарион III |  | 1882–1884 | Born in Sveti Stefan as Vasilije Ljubiša / Василије Љубиша. |
| Mitrofan Митрофан |  | 1884–1920 | Born in Glavati as Marko Ban / Марко Бан. |
| Gavrilo Гаврило |  | 1920–1938 | First Metropolitan under the reunified Serbian Orthodox Church. Served as the 41st Serbian Patriarch from 1938 to 1950. Born in Vrujci as Gavrilo Dožić / Гaврилo Дoжић. |
| Joanikije I Јоаникије |  | 1940–1945 | Executed by the Yugoslav Partisans at the end of World War II for collaboration with the occupying Axis powers. Canonized as a Serbian Orthodox saint in 1999. [2] Born in Stoliv as Jovan Lipovac / Јован Липовац. |
| Arsenije III Арсеније III | | 1947–1961 | Imprisoned by the Yugoslav Communist authorities from 1954 to 1960. Born in Banatska Palanka as Svetislav Bradvarević / Светислав Брадваревић. |
| Danilo III Данило III |  | 1961–1990 | Retired at his own request; died in 1993. Born in Drušići as Tomo Dajković / Томо Дајковић. |
| Amfilohije Амфилохије |  | 1990–2020 | Born in Bare (Kolašin) as Risto Radović / Ристо Радовић. |
| Joanikije II Јоаникије |  | 2020–present | Served as the administrator of the Metropolitanate from October 2020, [3] prior he was officially elected Metropolitan by the Bishops' Council in May 2021. [4] [a] Born in Velimlje as Jovan Mićović / Јован Мићовић. |
The Eparchy of Zahumlje, Herzegovina and the Littoral is an eparchy (diocese) of the Serbian Orthodox Church with its seat in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It has jurisdiction over the region of Herzegovina, the littoral region of southern Dalmatia in Croatia and a small part of Montenegro. Since 2018, the bishop of Zahumlje and Herzegovina has been Dimitrije Rađenović.
The Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral of the Serbian Orthodox Church is the largest eparchy (diocese) of the Serbian Orthodox Church in modern Montenegro. Founded in 1219 by Saint Sava as the Eparchy of Zeta, it has continued to exist, without interruption, up to the present time, and has remained one of the most prominent dioceses of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The current Metropolitan bishop is Joanikije II. His official title is "Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral".
Amfilohije was a bishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church, theologian, university professor, author and translator. He was first the Bishop of Banat between 1985 and 1990, and then the Metropolitan Bishop of Montenegro and the Littoral from 1990, until his death. As the metropolitan bishop, he was the primate of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro. He was one of the most influential leaders of the Serbian Church, and was among the three candidates for the Serbian patriarchate both in 1990 and 2010.
The Eparchy of Budimlja and Nikšić or Budimlja–Nikšić is an eparchy (diocese) of the Serbian Orthodox Church, covering eastern, central, and western parts of modern Montenegro. The ecclesiastical seat of the eparchy is the Monastery of Đurđevi Stupovi in Berane. Since 2021 it has been headed by Metodije, bishop of Budimlja and Nikšić.
Eastern Orthodoxy in Montenegro refers to adherents, religious communities, institutions and organizations of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Montenegro. It is the largest Christian denomination in the country. According to the latest 2023 Census of Montenegro, 443,394 citizens of Montenegro (71.10%) registered as Eastern Orthodox Christians. The majority of Eastern Orthodox people in Montenegro are adherents of the Serbian Orthodox Church. A minor percentage supports the canonically unrecognized Montenegrin Orthodox Church, which has the status of a religious non-governmental organization since its founding in 1993.
The Cetinje Monastery is a monastery of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro. It is located in Cetinje and is the seat of the Metropolitanate of Montenegro. A center of historical and cultural importance, it was founded c. 1484 by Prince Ivan Crnojević of Zeta, and designated as the cathedral monastery of the Eparchy of Zeta. It was devastated in 1692, during the Morean War, and rebuilt between 1701 and 1704 by Metropolitan Danilo Petrović-Njegoš on the site of the former court of Ivan Crnojević.
Kalinik II was Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch from 1765 to 1766. He was the last holder of that office before the Ottoman Empire abolished the Serbian Patriarchate of Peć in 1766. As an ethnic Greek, he was seen as a foreigner among Serbs, who favored the deposed patriarch Vasilije I. Since his tenure was marked by various internal conflicts, Kalinik decided to resign his post, and even went a step further: he sent a pre-agreed petition to the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople asking for the abolition of the Serbian Patriarchate of Peć, citing accumulated debts as the main reason for this motion, signed by him and 5 other bishops. On 11 September 1766, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople convinced the Sultan to abolish the Serbian Patriarchate of Peć and place its dioceses under the jurisdiction of Constantinople. That decision affected only Serbian dioceses under Ottoman rule, since Serbian Autonomous Metropolitanate of Karlovci in Habsburg monarchy remained out of reach of Constantinopolitan Phanariotes.
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The Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro was a Serbian Orthodox ecclesiastical principality that existed from 1516 until 1852. The principality was located around modern-day Montenegro. It emerged from the Eparchy of Cetinje, later known as the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral, whose bishops defied the Ottoman Empire overlordship and transformed the parish of Cetinje into a de facto theocracy, ruling it as Metropolitans.
The Archdiocese or Archbishopric of Arad, formerly the Bishopric of Arad is an episcopal see of the Romanian Orthodox Church, under the administration of the Metropolis of Banat, with jurisdiction over Arad County in Romania. The current head is bishop Timotei Seviciu.
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The Metropolitanate of Dabar-Bosnia is a metropolis of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Bosnia and Herzegovina, seated in Sarajevo. Since 2017, Metropolitan of Dabar and Bosnia is Hrizostom Jević.
Sava Očinić was a Serbian Orthodox bishop, serving as the Metropolitan of Cetinje from 1694 to 1697. He was born in Očinići, a small village near Cetinje. He succeeded Visarion Borilović. Sava was ordinated a bishop in November 1694 by Hadži-Simeon, Savatije Ljubibratić and Gerasim in Herceg Novi. Due to the destruction of the Old Cetinje Monastery by the forces of Süleyman Bushati in 1692 he lived in the Dobrska Ćelija monastery in Dobrsko Selo, where the seat of the Metropolitanate was temporary moved. He was succeeded by Danilo Šćepčević.
Vasilije born Vasilije Jovanović-Brkić was a Serbian metropolitan of Dabar and Bosnia who managed to depose and succeed Patriarch Kirilo II in 1763, and become the new Serbian Patriarch.
Joanikije II is a Serbian Orthodox metropolitan bishop serving as the Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral and the primate of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro since May 2021, previously he served as the administrator of the same diocese from October 2020, and death of his predecessor Amfilohije (Radović). Bishop Joanikije was the head of the Eparchy of Budimlja and Nikšić from 2002 until 2021 and titular bishop of Budimlja betweein 1999 and 2002.
The Court Church in Ćipur is a Serbian Orthodox church located in the Ćipur neighborhood of Cetinje, Montenegro.
The Theological Seminary of St. Peter of Cetinje is a secondary Orthodox theological school of Serbian Orthodox Church in Cetinje, Montenegro. The rector of the seminary is archpriest-staurophore Gojko Perović.
A series of violent protests against the enthronement of Joanikije Mićović of the Serbian Orthodox Church as the Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Littoral took place at the historic Cetinje Monastery in September 2021.
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