Archbishops of Ohrid … of all Bulgaria…” (15th – 18th centuries)
Saint Barlaam, who died as a martyr in 1598, is one of the bright but also mysterious Ohrid high priests
Contemporaries praise Archbishop Joasaf II as “… the dawn of Ohrid…”, “… a beautiful and quiet port of Bulgaria…”
The Ohrid archbishopric is the successor of the patriarchate of the First Bulgarian kingdom, preserved by Basil II the Bulgarian killer as a kind of concession to the Bulgarian boyars and people, its kind “gesture of reconciliation” after the Byzantine conquest in 1018. Regardless of the political vicissitudes over the centuries, the old capital Ohrid remains by definition, and also in terms of ethno-cultural content, the ecclesiastical throne “… of all Bulgaria…” And so it was until the end of this autocephalous (independent) Orthodox Church in 1767. Today’s Macedonian Orthodox Church claims to be the successor of the Ohrid Archbishopric, but the search for the inheritance is impossible without the truth.
The Ottoman conquest did not destroy the Bulgarian archdiocese centered on Ohrid. Although it is mainly with Greek senior clergy, it remains the highest Bulgarian spiritual institution during the centuries of Ottoman rule. After the conquest of Serbia in 1459, the Ohrid archdiocese included in its diocese the dioceses of the liquidated Pečka patriarchate, and in the first half of the 16th century it reached its largest scope with thirty-three dioceses: dominantly the Bulgarian ones of Ohrid, Grebena, Kostur, Strumica, Maglen, Prespa, Bitola, Kichevo, Debar, Polog, Skopje, Kratovo, Kyustendil and Nis, Korcha, Avlona, Berat, Spata, Muzaki and the traditionally Serbian Prizren (in that era also with a Bulgarian population), Pecs, inhabited by Albanians and Bulgarians. Novi Pazar, Cetinje, Bosnia, Belgrade, etc. The Orthodox communities in Dalmatia, Venice, Southern Italy and Sicily fall under the supremacy of Ohrid. Often, archbishops sign themselves with the title “patriarch”, and the Orthodox in Italy call their spiritual head in Bulgarian Ohrid “pope”!
From the middle of the 15th century onwards, the archbishop was sent from Constantinople with a decision of the sultan, which strengthened the role of the Greeks in the administration, as well as the practice of buying off (“peshkesh”) the high ecclesiastical post. And yet, archbishops of Bulgarian origin are not rare, and even the last one – Arseniy II. With the restoration of the Pečka Patriarchate in 1557, Ohrid lost part of its diocese, but retained its authority over most dioceses in Macedonia. Regardless of the Greek family in the higher clergy, the archdiocese supports literature and worship in the Bulgarian language. Let’s take a look at some prominent bishops from the centuries of Ottoman rule and their place in Bulgarian history – a topic that is little known to the general public.
Let me begin with Matthew, the first archbishop under the Ottoman rule, who headed the archdiocese; in the 90s of the 14th – the beginning of the 15th century. His ethnic origin is unknown, but Matthew’s exceptional merits for the Bulgarian church are indisputable. The archbishop managed to preserve the independence of the Ohrid throne and even expand its spiritual jurisdiction – Ohrid returned to the dioceses of Kyustendil, Sofia and Vidin, which belonged to it in the 11th-12th centuries. Academician Ivan Snegarov, the best connoisseur of the history of the Ohrid archdiocese , distinguishes Matthew as a wise and energetic leader. Dorothei, who headed the church in the sixties of the 15th century, was most likely a Bulgarian by origin, which is also evident from the correspondence he maintained with the notable Moldavian ruler Stefan the Great (1447-1504). The letters are in Bulgarian, which is not surprising considering the Bulgarian influence in medieval Moldova, and also at that time the Moldavian metropolitan was the Bulgarian Teoctist.
Among the Ohrid archbishops – patriarchs is the Bulgarian Prokhor, who ruled from about 1525 to 1550. According to Acad. Iv. Snegarov “… Prokhor is one of the famous Ohrid hierarchs and perhaps the last personification of the greatness of the Ohrid archdiocese…” He throws a lot of power to maintain supremacy over the Serbian dioceses that strive for the restoration of the Pečka Patriarchate. Prokhor is no less unyielding to the Catholic propaganda efforts.
The archbishop does not only write in Bulgarian, but he takes great care of the development of literature. His grave is in the church “St. Virgin Perivlepta” (also called “St. Clement”) in Ohrid, cathedral of the archdiocese after 1466.
Another prominent bishop was Athanasius I, who occupied the church throne three times – in 1592-1596, 1606 – before 1614 and in 1614-1615. At the beginning of 1596, the archbishop sent a letter to the Venetian governor of the island of Corfu, seeking an alliance with the strong Maritime Republic to prepare an anti-Ottoman uprising. Forced to leave his ecclesiastical throne, the bishop went to Naples, Rome and Prague. It was then that the organizers of the First Tarnów Uprising arrived in today’s Czech capital – the Nikopol boyar Teodor Ballina and the Dubrovnik merchant Pavel Djordić, who tried to support the Austrian emperor Rudolph II. As is known, two leaders are preparing the uprising together with the metropolitan of Turnovo, Dionysius Ralli. Although from a later time, we learn that Athanasius I was acquainted with Dionysius Raleigh, moreover, in 1603 the two were received together by the Russian Tsar Boris Godunov in Moscow. In any case, Athanasius clearly has something to do with the preparation of the project uprising in the Bulgarian lands, which remained in the history of the “First Tarnovsko” kata. As we shall see, this probably also applies to his successor Barlaam.
Barlaam, who headed the church in 1597-1598, is one of the brightest, but also mysterious Ohrid high priests. The only thing we know about him is his martyrdom… The Archbishop “…suffered for the truth in the city of Veles…” on May 28, 1598, when he was killed by Muslims, and his body was buried in Vardar. The murder of the spiritual head of an autocephalous church, recognized and even patronized by the ruling sultan, is a serious crime, and this is the only case in the otherwise dramatic history of the Ohrid archdiocese! As mentioned, probably Barlaam is associated with the preparation of the so-called First Tarnovo Uprising (1598), the Metropolitan of Tarnovo Dionysius Rali, his subordinate bishops in Veliki Preslav, Cherven and Lovech, the Metropolitan of Plovdiv, and, apparently, the Archbishop of Ohrid also participated in the numerical organization! The Death of St. Varlaam was created by an unknown Bulgarian writer, and in the 17th century it entered the work of the Ukrainian church writer Ivan Vishenski.
According to Acad. Iv. Snegarov “… Joasaf II (1719-1745) was the last notable Ohrid archbishop. Due to his organizational talent, selfless devotion to the Ohrid Church and stubborn defense of its independence, he can be added to the ranks of the great Ohrid hierarchs from Byzantine times…” The energetic archbishop strengthened the church and gained enviable authority. This is also evident from his long reign, exceeding “in times” that of many of his predecessors. Joasaf “… enlightens those who live in darkness (…), makes all passages sound with his grace, shines like a golden sun…”
Local Ohrid poets writing poems in Greek glorified it as “… the dawn of Ohrid…” and “… a beautiful and quiet port of Bulgaria…” Joasaf was a native of the then famous town of Moshhopole (now Voskopoya, Albania), populated by Aromanians (Vlachs), Greeks and Bulgarians. Before being elected archbishop, he was metropolitan of Korcha (Bulgarian Gorica), where the Bulgarian population still exists today. Joasaf II highly valued the Bulgarian spiritual culture. In 1742, by his command, the “Akolutiya” (service) for the Holy Septuagint was printed in Moskhopole. In it, the holy brothers Cyril and Methodius and their disciples Clement, Naum, Angelarius, Gorazd and Sava are glorified as “…pillars and co-apostolic shepherds of Bulgaria…”, they asked for “…salvation of the Bulgarians…”
From the time of Joasaph II, there is also a wonderful fresco composition by two painters from Korchan, the brothers Konstantin and Anastas, in the Ardenitsa monastery, where another famous Bulgarian – St. Ioan Kukuzel Angeloglasnia – is depicted together with the Seven Saints.