On Tuesday, November 18, 2025, the promotion of the collection of works Abba Justin – the pledge of tradition was held at the Orthodox Theological Faculty in Belgrade .
The promotion, which was attended by the Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, along with many guests from church and academic life, was opened by priest Prof. Dr. Srboljub Ubiparipović, Dean of the Orthodox Theological Faculty. In his welcoming speech, he emphasized that this evening was not just a formal presentation of a book, but a gathering around the work and personality of the Venerable Justin of Celius, whose spiritual and theological imprint is deeply embedded in the history of the faculty.
The participants of the scientific meeting whose works are represented in the collection spoke at the promotion: Metropolitan of Bačka Dr. Irinej, Archpriest-Staurophorus Prof. Dr. Vladimir Vukašinović and Deacon Prof. Dr. Vladan Tatalović. Their presentations gave breadth and depth to the presentation of the book, each from their own perspective revealing the significance of Justin’s theology for the modern age.
The presented collection brings together sixteen papers from a scientific conference dedicated to the significant triple jubilee: 130 years since the birth, 45 years since the repose, and 10 years since the transfer of the relics of the Venerable Justin of Celius. As emphasized, the papers do not offer only academic analyses, but also reveal the experiential theology that Justin built through a living relationship with Christ and the continuous life of the Church.
The first speaker at the promotion, Prof. Dr. Vladan Tatalović, emphasized that the collection Abba Justin – the Pledge of Tradition is not only a scientific publication, but also a testimony of living memory and responsibility before the work of the Venerable Justin of Celius. He recalled that Justin’s theology did not arise from academic methodology, but from asceticism, prayer and the encounter with Christ. For Abba Justin, as he emphasized, theology was a “science above sciences” and an “art above arts”, based on deep spiritual experience. Prof. Tatalović pointed out the difference between such a theology and contemporary academic approaches that sometimes distance theology from tradition. Abba Justin remains an example of a theologian who speaks from the life of the Church, and not from a speculative distance.
Prof. Tatalović briefly presented the structure of the collection, which includes liturgical and ascetic topics, dogmatics, biblical studies and historical-pastoral works. In his opinion, the book testifies to the mature research work of the Orthodox Theological Faculty in Belgrade and the clear connection of academic thought with church consciousness. In conclusion, he emphasized that the collection is not just an academic document, but a reminder of Abba Justin, whose theology grew out of life, not from technique, and which remains one of the most powerful testimonies of 20th-century Orthodox thought.
The next speaker at the promotion was Prof. Dr. Vladimir Vukašinović, who reminded that the gathering on the occasion of the collection dedicated to Abba Justin Popović continues in the same spirit as the scientific conference held a year earlier. According to him, when we talk about Abba Justin, we are not talking about a person from the past, but about a living witness to the truth of Christ who still stands at the center of theological thought at the Belgrade Faculty of Theology.
Prof. Vukašinović referred to the title of the book The Pledge of Transmission , explaining that in liturgical life this expression denotes what is handed over to a priest at the moment of his ordination: not a book, not instructions, but Christ himself in the Eucharist. Abba Justin is, according to him, an example of a man who preserved this pledge and was sanctified through it, which is why this title most precisely expressed the essence of his life and theology. Prof. Vukašinović recalled that the scientific conference, on which the collection is based, was organized in cooperation with Matica Srpska within the framework of a broader project on the spiritual and theological life of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Continuing his presentation, Prof. Vukašinović spoke about the challenges of contemporary theology and the danger of reducing it to academic formalism or ideological discourse. He recalled that theology has meaning only when it remains rooted in the life of the Church. According to him, the misuse of theological concepts, the separation of science from tradition and the transformation of theology into a technique without spiritual content lead to theology losing its fruits and becoming empty. In contrast, the theology of Abba Justin, founded on prayer, asceticism and liturgical experience, remains an example of correct theology that gives birth to life. The fruits of such theology, as he emphasized, are seen in temples and monasteries, and not in empty departments of Western theological faculties.
Finally, Prof. Vukašinović said that the collection testifies not only to the theology of Abba Justin, but also to the way in which theology can and should be created today. He emphasized the belief that Abba Justin is present with his prayers in every true theological effort and that his example remains a landmark for young theologians, but also for faculty professors.
His Eminence Metropolitan of Bačka Dr. Irinej said that most of what he intended to present had already been covered in previous presentations, and that he would share only a few key thoughts about Abba Justin and the significance of the collection. He emphasized that every time, and especially today, carries the danger of self-confident, self-sufficient and proud “theologians”. Abba Justin, on the other hand, in the words of Metropolitan Irenaeus, always spoke as a witness of the Church, and not as the bearer of a personal theory or intellectual construction. He did not want to present “something of his own,” but to confess what he had received and experienced in a living relationship with God. This is precisely what distinguishes his theology from any dry academic analysis.
He then recalled his recent meeting in Austria with Bishop Mark of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, a disciple of Abba Justin. After more than half a century, they again discussed the works of their common teacher. On that occasion, Bishop Mark brought a text by the Venerable Justin and asked for an explanation of a single word. For Metropolitan Irenaeus, this was a living example of the fact that everyone who is sincerely engaged in theology sooner or later resorts to Justin’s texts and seeks nourishment and instruction in them.
Speaking about the significance of the collection, he emphasized that its pages encompass the breadth and depth of Justin’s theology, in which devotion to the mission of the Church of Christ is clearly visible. He also recalled Abba Justin’s early writing on religion and philosophy in Dostoevsky, which he wrote as a fifteen-year-old young man. This text, according to Metropolitan Irenaeus, seems to have been written today, because Justin, even in his earliest works, shows the gift of recognizing the spiritual needs of the time and offering the remedy found in Christ. This is what makes theology prophetic, regardless of the time in which it is written.
The Metropolitan then shared a personal memory, half a century old, from the Monastery of Celje. When members of the Holy Synod of Bishops came to Abba Justin for advice, he welcomed them in his old style, humble and polite, and made a great prostration before them. Abba Justin treated everyone with respect, whether they were ordinary people or academics. Such humility and such wisdom, he added, can only be seen in true theologians.
In his closing message, Metropolitan Irinej called on students and young theologians to remain faithful to the spirit of their teachers, especially Father Justin, who bore witness to the truth of Christ with the “living book of the Spirit.” He recalled the troparion dedicated to Abba Justin, which says that with his teachings and life he poured “wealth” into the hearts of the faithful. It is a signpost, he said, to the port of salvation to which all the saints aspire and to which they call us.
Source: Patriarchate of Serbia
