Archimandrite Gabriel Vuckovic

Abbot of the monastery Lepavina

The Archimandrite Gabriel (Vuckovic) entered the monastery as a novice at the end of the April 1961. He was born on May 23/10, 1944 in the village Duboka, borough of Kucevo (near Pozarevac), from father Dusan and mother Dusanka. His name was Bora at the birth. The first monastery where he went was Tuman, and then the Monastery of Rajinovac. He attended monastic school at the Monastery of Transfiguration.

Father Gabriel took his monastic vow on the Holy Saturday at the Monastery of Rakovica in 1964. Bishop Sabba and Archimandrite Milutin, who later became Bishop of Timok, performed the tonsure of father Gabriel, after he gradated at the theological seminary in 1963/64.  Same year, with the blessing of the Most Reverend Patriarch German, Father Gabriel went to the Monastery of the Holy Patriarchate of Pec.

He served the army from September 23, 1965 until March 11, 1967 in Skopje. After his return from the army, he transferred from the Diocese of Belgrade and Karlovac to the Diocese of Raska and Prizren. He entered the Brotherhood of the Monastery of Visoki Decani. He was ordained to the Hierodeacon by the Bishop of Raska and Prizren Pavle on the feast of Saint Stephan of Decani in 1967. He stayed in the Monastery of Visoki Decani from March 21, 1967 until March 10, 1971. On his personal request, he got the Canonical approval to transfer to the Monastery of Chilandariou, Mount Athos (Greece).

He came into the Monastery of Chilandariou on March 12, 1971. The duties, which were assigned to him, were the Deacon and the prosphorar. Later on, he was assigned the duty of the host, initially in the general office and the Assemble of elders, (general administration) and later as the host for all of the monastic guests.

He was ordained to the Hieromonk on January 26, 1980 on the Day of the Holy Martyrs Ermil and Stratonik. The Bishop of Rodostol Chrysostom, from Karea (Mount Athos) performed ordination.  Right after that, the Archimandrite Gabriel got the new obedience as the Hieromonk in the Church. On the day of the Monastery’s Patron Saint (the Entry in the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos), during the Vigil, he was ordained to the mikroschemos with the same name Gabriel. Bishop of Zvornik and Tuzla Basil (Kachavenda) performed the ordinance with the attendance of father Gabriel’s spiritual father, Abbot Nikanor. With the blessing of the Monastery of Chilandariou, he stayed among Greeks, with the Elder Kiril in the Saint Nicolai  Belozersk cell from March 1983 until March 1984.

With the blessing of his spiritual father, Abbot Nikanor and on his personal request, he obtained the general canonical approval to return to Serbia. He spent one month in the Monastery Banja near Risanj. He spent three months with the Protopresbyter Momo Krivokapic in Boka Kotorska. He was accepted to the Diocese of Zagreb and Ljubljana in August 1984. He became the Abbot of the Monastery of Lepavina on August 17, 1994. His Eminence Metropolitan of Zagreb, Ljubljana, and the entire Italy Jovan ordained him to the rank of the Archimandrite during the Divine Liturgy on the day of Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos in 1994.

During the Civil War (1991-1995) he remained at the monastery. In his pastoral work, he is well known for the use of the modern technology, available through the Internet, for spiritual purposes. The Holy Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church chose Father Gabriel to draw the envelope with the name of the new Patriarch in January 2010.

The Holy Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church formed the Missionary department and chose father Gabriel as the one of twelve permanent members at the end of 2014.