Saint Justin of Celije

Blagoje Popovic, the latter Justin's father, was born in Vranje on April 6 (March 25, according to the old calendar) in 1894 to father Spiridon and mother Anastasia. Popovic's family has been priestly for generations, only Blagoi's father Spiridon was only a churchman. Blagoje was the youngest child, and he had an older brother Stojadin and a sister Stojna.In the nine-class Belgrade Theology he made many friends and gathered with them into various theological, prayer fraternities. One of his friends was Milan Djordjevic, the latter vladika of Dalmatian Irinej. As a young theologian, Blagoje read most of Dostoyevsky's writings besides sacrilegious works.Brother Stojadin, as a law student, accidentally lost his life when he fell off the train on his return home from his studies. Blagoje then tells everyone openly that he wants to devote his whole life to God in order to be as close as possible to him and his brother. His parents oppose this desire and try in every way to prevent their child from going to monks.Blagoje was mobilized in a "student company" at a military hospital in Niš during World War I, and later they, along with the army and clergy, retired across Albania. Arriving in Shkoder, Blagoje prays for Patriarch Dimitri for monastic fasting, Patriarch of Blessing and Blagoje theologian becomes monk Justin.The authorities then transferred the theologians to the Bari with an old ship, and then via Paris, the theologians arrived in London where they were received by the monk Nikolaj Velimirovic. From England, where he is temporarily housed with a group of theologians, with the blessing of Serbian Patriarch Dimitri, Justin transferred to the Theological Academy in Petrograd.Due to the unrest that ensued, the theologians were pulled back to England in 1916. In England, Justin studies theology at Oxford and stands alone, not from scholarships from the English government. He criticized the Western world in his doctoral thesis, "Dostoyevsky's Religion and Philosophy," which was not accepted.He returned to Serbia without a diploma in 1919. Patriarch Dimitrije sent him to Greece shortly after his return. He became a Fellowship of the Holy Synod. During one short stay at home, he was promoted to the rank of deacon. In Greece, as in Russia and England, he meets the world there.He was particularly impressed by an older grandmother, a Greek woman, with whom he resided. He said that he had learned more from her than at the entire University. He often served as a deacon in Greek temples.He is attending a PhD in Athens in Athens. The Holy Synod suddenly denies him a scholarship, before his Ph.D. In 1921 he had to retire to Serbia and become a teacher of Karlovac theology. He taught New Testament Scripture, Dogmatics, and Patrology.There he receives a derogatory act. In time, he became editor of the Orthodox Christian Life Magazine. He is famous for his articles "From the Editor's Table". At times, his pen was "sharper" and touched upon some of the irregularities in the SOC clergy and theological schools of the time.In Karlovac's seminary (to which he was transferred in the meantime), someone steals a doctoral dissertation on the gnoseology of Sv. Isaac of Syria and St. Makaria of Egypt. But in a few days he wrote roughly the same dissertation "The Problem of Personality and Knowledge in the Learning of St. Macarius of Egypt "and his doctorate in Athens, 1926.Shortly afterwards, he was expelled from the Karlovac Theology to Prizren, where he spent about a year, exactly as long as it took for the Christian Life magazine to shut down.At that time in the West, there was a movement in the Czech Republic that wanted to return to the Orthodox faith. Justin is elected Assistant to Gov. Joseph Cvijovic on a mission in Precarpathian Russia. Soon the Holy Synod decided to make him a episkop.He denied it on the grounds that he was unworthy of the act. After that, no one was elected or proposed to the bishop. After that he was appointed professor of the Theology of Bitola. He was involved in theology with Bishop Nicholas and John Shanghai. Together with the Bishops of the SOC, he fought against the introduction of the Concordat in Serbia in 1936.He often assisted and wrote praise for the blasphemy movement led by St. vladika Nikolai and was a missionary on the missionary field with the refugee Orthodox Russians, ahead of the Red Revolution.Since 1934 he has been a professor at the Faculty of Theology, University of Belgrade. In 1938, together with Branislav Petronijevic, he founded the Serbian Philosophical Society in Belgrade. He was engaged in translating theological-ascetic and sacrilegious literature.After the outbreak of World War II, Father Justin resides in many monasteries. He spent most of his time in sheep-cabaret monasteries, in which he was arrested after the war by communist authorities. After his detention, he moved to the Celije Monastery near Valjevo.He came to Cells in 1948, after the blessing of vladika Shabo-Valjevo Simeon and mother of Abbot Sarah, who had come with several of his sisters from the Ljubostinja Monastery to Cells, several years earlier.There is much to say about Father Justin's life in Cells. He was constantly persecuted, questioned, brought to power. Few stood in his defense. These were the cell sisters with Mother Abbot Glyceria at the helm, the proto Zivko Todorovic - the parish priest, Avini's students and other worshipers ...Father Justin, retired the day after his birthday - on the feast of the Annunciation on April 7 (March 25), 1979.On May 2, 2010, by the decision of the Holy Council of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Justin Popovic was canonized to the rank of Holy Spirit of the Serbian Orthodox Church, together with Simeon Dajbapski at the St. Sava Temple in Vracar. His relics were transferred to the cell of Celje Monastery on June 14, 2014.