Joanikije II (Serbian Cyrillic: Јоаникије II; fl. 1337– d. 1354) was the Serbian Archbishop (1338–1346) and first Serbian Patriarch (1346–1354). He was elected Serbian Archbishop on January 3, 1338. Prior to his election, he served as a logotet, royal chancellor, to the Kingdom of Serbia. He was elevated to Patriarch on Palm Sunday, April 6, 1346, done in order for Joanikije to crown King Stefan Uroš IV Dušan as Emperor on Easter of 1346 with the approval of the Patriarch of Trnovo, Archbishop of Ohrid, and community of Mount Athos. Joanikije continued a tradition of church building, and built, among others, two churches in the Holy Land: the Church of St. Elias on Mount Carmel and the Church of St. Nicholas on Mount Tabor. Joanikije died on September 3, 1354, which is his feast day. He was buried in the Patriarchal Monastery of Peć.


Joanikije II
Јоаникије II
Joanikije II, fresco from the Church of St. Demetrius
Archbishop of All Serbian and Maritime Lands
Venerated inEastern Orthodox Church
ChurchSerbian Orthodox Church
MetropolisSerbian Patriarchate of Peć
SeePatriarchal Monastery of Peć
InstalledJanuary 3, 1338
Term endedSeptember 3, 1354
PredecessorDanilo II
SuccessorSava IV
Other post(s)logotet
Orders
RankMetropolitan, Archbishop, Patriarch
Personal details
DiedSeptember 3, 1354
BuriedPatriarchal Monastery of Peć
NationalitySerb
DenominationEastern Orthodoxy
ResidencePrizren, Peć
Alma materHilandar
Sainthood
Feast day? [O.S. September 3]
Canonizedby Serbian Orthodox Church

Life

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Joanikije was born in the vicinity of Prizren, an important town in the Kingdom of Serbia. His family was Christian.

Joanikije served as a logotet, royal chancellor, to the Serbian King Stefan Uroš IV Dušan (r. 1331–1346; afterwards as Emperor until 1355).

Archbishop Danilo II died on December 19, 1337.[1] Joanikije was elected Serbian Archbishop on January 3, 1338.[1] He continued the Christian work of his predecessors, and had the Monastery of Peć, which was the seat of the Archbishop built by Nikodim and Danilo I, further worked on, adding icons and frescoes and other things.

King Dušan had expanded his territory into the deep Greek (Byzantine) south in the 1340s. In 1346, the king convened a regional assembly of church leaders, which declared the independence of the Serbian Church and elevated it to a Patriarchate.[2] Joanikije was designated Patriarch on Palm Sunday, April 6, 1346, done in order for Joanikije to crown King Stefan Uroš IV Dušan as Emperor on Easter of 1346 with the approval of the Patriarch of Trnovo, Archbishop of Ohrid, and community of Mount Athos.

Joanikije II continued a tradition of church building, and built, among others, two churches in the Holy Land: the Church of St. Elias on Mount Carmel and the Church of St. Nicholas on Mount Tabor.

 
Tomb of Joanikije II in the Patriarchal Monastery of Peć.

Joanikije II died on September 3, 1354, which is his feast day. He was buried in the Patriarchal Monastery of Peć.

Annotations

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  • Name: His name was Joanikije (Greek: Joanikios, Latin: Joanicius). His family surname is unknown.

References

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  1. ^ a b Miodrag Al Purković; Miodrag M. Purković (1976). Srpski patrijarsi Srednjega veka. Srpska pravoslavna eparhija zapadnoevropska. p. 27.
  2. ^ Melton, J. Gordon. Faiths Across Time: 5,000 Years of Religious History, ABC-CLIO, 2014 ISBN 9781610690263, p. 912

Sources

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This article incorporates text from Joanikije II at OrthodoxWiki which is licensed under the CC-BY-SA and GFDL.
  • Л. Мирковић. Архиепископ Данило (и његови настављачи): Животи краљева и архиепископа Српских. СКЗ.
Eastern Orthodox Church titles
Preceded by Archbishop of Serbs
January 3, 1338 – April 6, 1346
Succeeded by
None
Preceded by
None
Patriarch of Serbs and Greeks
April 6, 1346 – September 3, 1354
Succeeded by