Saint Justin Popović

Saint Justin Popović was born Blagoje Popović on April 6, 1894 (March 25 Old Calendar), in the village of Vranje in southern Serbia. From his youth, he displayed an extraordinary hunger for God and a brilliant intellect devoted entirely to Christ and His Church.

He entered the Theological Seminary in Belgrade and later the Seminary of the Trinity-Saint Sergius Monastery in Sremski Karlovci. His theological education continued at the St. Petersburg Theological Academy in Russia, where he witnessed the Russian Revolution and the persecution of the Church. This experience profoundly shaped his understanding of the spiritual warfare between God-centered and man-centered philosophies.

In 1916, Blagoje was tonsured a monk and given the name Justin in honor of the early Christian apologist and martyr, Saint Justin the Philosopher. He continued his studies at Oxford University and the University of Athens, earning his doctorate with a dissertation on "The Philosophy and Religion of Dostoevsky." Throughout his studies in the West, he witnessed firsthand the spiritual crisis of Western Christianity and became a prophetic voice warning against ecumenism, humanism, and apostasy from the Orthodox Faith.

Father Justin was ordained to the priesthood and soon became renowned as a preacher, theologian, and confessor. His sermons in Belgrade drew thousands. However, his uncompromising defense of Orthodox truth brought him into conflict with those who sought to modernize or secularize the Church. In 1948, the Communist authorities of Yugoslavia, viewing him as a threat, exiled him to the remote Ćelije Monastery near Valjevo, where he would spend the next thirty-one years of his life.

This forced exile became his greatest blessing. At Ćelije, Father Justin devoted himself entirely to prayer, asceticism, and theological writing. He kept a rigorous prayer rule, often rising before dawn and praying through the night. He lived in simplicity with few personal possessions. His holiness attracted spiritual children from across Serbia and beyond, who came seeking his wisdom, prayers, and blessing.

During these years, Father Justin produced his magnum opus: the monumental "Lives of the Saints" (Žitija Svetih) in twelve volumes, covering the entire liturgical year. This work is not merely biography but theology written with the heart—a profound meditation on how the saints reveal Christ and how their lives provide a path for contemporary Christians to follow. He also wrote extensively on dogmatic theology, philosophy, and spirituality, producing works of timeless depth and clarity.

His other major works include "Dostoevsky on Europe and the Slavs," "The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism," "Man and the God-Man," and countless homilies and letters. In all his writings, Saint Justin emphasized theosis (deification)—the purpose of human life is to become united with God through Christ in the Holy Spirit, to become "partakers of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4).

Father Justin reposed in the Lord on March 25 (April 7), 1979, at Ćelije Monastery. His funeral was attended by tens of thousands of faithful. His relics now rest in the monastery church, where the faithful venerate him and seek his intercessions.

He was glorified (officially recognized as a saint) by the Serbian Orthodox Church on May 2, 2010, barely thirty years after his repose—a testament to the overwhelming witness of his holiness and the miracles worked through his prayers.