Diocese of the Serbian Church in Montenegro claims pressure from local authorities

The 13th-century Djurdjevi Stupovi Monastery near the town of Berane in Montenegro has been under 24-hour police surveillance for a week. The Serbian Orthodox Budimljansko-Niksic diocese called the situation «an atmosphere of siege» and regarded it as a continuation of the persecution of the Church, which is accompanied by legal pressure on the clergy.

According to an official statement from the diocese, the monastery, which is its administrative center, is surrounded by various police units and official vehicles that have blocked all approaches to the shrine. «Such scenes of police cordoning off churches in recent years could only be seen at the height of persecution of the Church during the totalitarian Djukanovic regime, » the statement reads, referring to the former president of Montenegro. It is noted that Interior Minister Danilo Šaranović has sent significant forces to control the monastery.

Along with increased surveillance, the authorities are putting legal pressure on the clergy. The State Prosecutor’s Office of Berane has reportedly re-subpoenaed His Eminence Metropolitan Methodius of Budimljansko-Nikšić for questioning. The parish priest Miljenko Raljević has also received a new summons, and could face a forced appearance if he fails to appear. The diocese views these actions as «an attempt to criminalize and socially isolate the Church using the repressive apparatus,» especially against the backdrop of the recent anti-Church media campaign.

The current escalation follows events in August, when Metropolitan Methodius consecrated a controversial World War II monument. This led to his second police interrogation in a month and the detention of several clerics. The diocese emphasizes that the vladyka was targeted by the authorities back in December 2019, when he participated in protests against the law with which the state tried to seize the property of the Serbian Church.

«The Diocese of Budimljana-Nikšić expresses its deepest concern about the blatantly violent attitude of the current regime towards the Serbian people in Montenegro,» the statement reads. Observers regard what is happening as a demonstration of state force against religious institutions in the country.

Recall, on September 11, 2025, the President of Montenegro Jakov Milatovic paid an official visit to the Patriarchate of Constantinople. The politician held a meeting with Constantinople Patriarch Bartholomew and other high-ranking representatives of the Phanar.