Đorđe Bogić (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, th ...

: Ђорђе Богић; 6 February 1911 – 17 June 1941) was a

protopresbyter A ''protoiereus'' (from grc, πρωτοϊερεύς, "first priest", Modern Greek: πρωθιερέας) or protopriest in the Eastern Orthodox Church is a priest usually coordinating the activity of other subordinate priests in a bigger church. T ...

in the

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches. The majori ...

and the

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

of the Orthodox church in

Našice Našice () is a town in eastern Croatia, located on the northern slopes of the Krndija mountain in eastern Slavonia, 51 km southwest of regional hub Osijek. Administratively it belongs to Osijek-Baranja County. Geography Našice is located ...

. He was canonized by the Serbian Orthodox Church as Saint Hieromartyr Georgije Bogić due to his brutal murder by Croatian fascists in 1941.

Life

Đorđe was born in Pakrac on 6 February 1911. He completed grammar school in

Nova Gradiška Nova Gradiška is a town located in the Brod-Posavina County of Croatia, population 14,229 (2011). It is located in the historic region of Slavonia, near the border to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The first word in the name means ''New'', and there ...

and

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

. On 25 May 1934, Đorđe was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

a priest in Pakrac. Đorđe then performed his duties in the parishes of Majar and Bolmače, after which he was moved to Našice, where he happened to be at the beginning of World War II.

Torture and death

His afflictions were witnessed by Proko Prejnović, a Serb who hid from the Ustashe in a tree:

The Ustashas tied the priest to a tree before they began their atrocities. They cut offthe priest's ears, his nose, and then his tongue. With relish and entirely senselessly, they pulled out his beard and the underlying skin. The poor, exhausted priest cried out of sheer pain. He was still a young man of thirty, healthy and well built. The whole time the priest was resolute and stood upright so that the Ustashas could give free reign to their crudeness. After gouging out his eyes the priest still did not stir so they cut open his stomach and chest so that Bogić collapsed. One could see his heart beating. One of the Ustashas yelled: "Cursed be your Serb mother whose heart is still beating." After this sentence the Ustashas set the priest on fire and shortened his pain and suffering.

According to another witness, the person guilty of these martyr afflictions was a Roman Catholic priest from Našice, Sidonije Šolc: "He (Fra Šolc) had our parish priest Đorđe Bogić killed in the most monstrous manner. They took him out of his apartment in the middle of the night and butchered him. Đorđe's body remained in the same place the whole night, until the afternoon of the next day. Around 4 PM, the local Romani were ordered to take the corpse to

Brezik Našički Brezik Našički is a small village 3 kilometers from Našice, Osijek-Baranja County, Croatia. Population is 352 (2011). History It grew on the wilderness of Count Pejačević's estate, and was first mentioned in 1896. Brezik is named after the ...

and to bury it in the graveyard.

Canonization

At the regular session of the Holy Assembly of

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

s of the Serbian Orthodox Church in 1998, Protopresbyter Đorđe was canonized, and his name was entered in the list of names of the Serbian Church Saints.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bogic, Djordje 1911 births 1941 deaths People from Pakrac Serbs of Croatia Persecution of Serbs Serbian saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church 20th-century Eastern Orthodox martyrs 20th-century Christian saints Serbian Orthodox clergy Serb priests New Martyrs Hieromartyrs People executed by the Independent State of Croatia Serb people who died in the Holocaust Serbian civilians killed in World War II

Life

Torture and death

Canonization

See also

References