Jefrem ( sr-cyr, Јефрем; ''Ephraem''; c. 1312 – died 1400), also known as Elder Jefrem (старац Јефрем) and Jefrem of Serbia, was the Patriarch of the

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodox Church#Constit ...

twice, in 1375–1379 and 1389–1392, and also a renowned

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

Biography

Born into a priestly family, of Bulgarian origin, he became a monk around 1335 at the age of 23. He moved to

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; ) is a mountain on the Athos peninsula in northeastern Greece directly on the Aegean Sea. It is an important center of Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox monasticism. The mountain and most of the Athos peninsula are governed ...

, where he stayed at

Hilandar The Hilandar Monastery (, , , ) is one of the twenty Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Mount Athos in Greece and the only Serbian Orthodox monastery there. It was founded in 1198 by two Serbs from the Grand Principality of Serbia, Stefan Neman ...

, then Zograf, and later lived as a hesychastic

ascetic Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures through self-discipline, self-imposed poverty, and simple living, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their pra ...

in the mountains of Athos. In around 1347, he left Athos on a river island of the

Maritsa Maritsa or Maritza ( ), also known as Evros ( ) and Meriç ( ), is a river that runs through the Balkans in Southeast Europe. With a length of ,

near

Plovdiv Plovdiv (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, second-largest city in Bulgaria, 144 km (93 miles) southeast of the capital Sofia. It had a population of 490,983 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is a cultural hub ...

where he became a ''

hegumen Hegumen, hegumenos, or igumen (, trans. ), is the title for the head of a monastery in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, or an archpriest in the Coptic Orthodox Church, similar to the title of abbot. The head of a convent of ...

''. He then moved to Serbia, and stayed in the

Patriarchal Monastery of Peć Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of authority are primarily held by men. The term ''patriarchy'' is used both in anthropology to describe a family or clan controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males, and in fem ...

. He lived in a cave-church near

Visoki Dečani The Visoki Dečani Monastery is a medieval Serbian Orthodox Christian monastery located near Deçan, Kosovo. It was founded in the first half of the 14th century by Stefan Dečanski, List of Serbian monarchs, King of Serbia. Dečani is by far t ...

, and Patriarch Sava IV built an ascetic cell for him in Ždrelo near the

. When unrest broke out in the state and Church, the Synod chose Jefrem to succeed as patriarch on 3 October 3, 1375. To protect the Church from interference from feudal lords, he renounced his throne and turned it over to Spiridon, becoming an ascetic. Following the death of Spiridon in 1389, Jefrem again took office. However, he once again renounced the throne in 1392, and then retired to Ždrelo. He died in the evening of 14 June 1400, and was buried the next day at the

. According to the hagiography of Jefrem, Sava V was present at the burial. Jefrem left a large original poetry work, preserved in a 14th-century manuscript from Hilandar. In 1406 or 1407 ("seven summers after ascendance") he was proclaimed a saint by Sava V after showing signs of sainthood. Bishop Marko wrote the ''Service to St. Jefrem'' and ''Life of St. Jefrem''. His feast day is celebrated on June 15/28, together with St. Lazar and St. Spyridon.

Annotations

Historiography treat him as being of Bulgarian origin. Another source claim that he was from

Thessaly Thessaly ( ; ; ancient Aeolic Greek#Thessalian, Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic regions of Greece, geographic and modern administrative regions of Greece, administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient Thessaly, a ...

References

Sources

;Books * * ;Journals * * {{authority control Patriarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church 14th-century Serbian people 14th-century Bulgarian people 1322 births 1400 deaths 14th-century Eastern Orthodox bishops Serbian monks Serbian people of Bulgarian descent Burials at the Patriarchate of Peć (monastery) Serbian saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church Hesychasts People associated with Mount Athos People associated with Hilandar Monastery People associated with Zograf Monastery

Biography

Annotations

See also

References

Sources