Archiprêtre Vasilije Ivosević

This article presents the figure of Archimandrite Simeon Popović (1855-1941), founder of the cave monastery of Dajbabe in Montenegro, a major figure of Serbian asceticism in the first half of the twentieth century. Archpriest Vasilije Ivošević offers a biographical and spiritual account, translated from Serbian, tracing the journey of this monk trained in Kyiv and Paris, who settled into silence and prayer until his death in 1941. The article highlights the characteristic features of his holiness: gifts of clairvoyance, a ministry of hospitality open to Orthodox Christians, Christians of other denominations, and Muslims, as well as literary and iconographic output. His contribution lies in shedding light on a living Serbian ascetic tradition rooted in hesychasm, and in bearing witness to an Orthodox spirituality with an ecumenical and peacemaking vocation.

This article presents a collection of spiritual and moral maxims composed by the Serbian archpriest Vasilije Ivosević and translated from Serbian into French. The approach draws on traditional aphoristic wisdom, inherited from Orthodox parenetic literature. The central idea is that God reveals Himself to man through creation, moral conscience, and the practice of Christian virtues — prayer, repentance, humility, fasting, and good works. Each maxim articulates an observation drawn from daily, rural, or artisanal life, paired with a corresponding spiritual truth. On the theological level, the collection illustrates the Orthodox conception of the spiritual life as a progressive and concrete exercise, emphasizing the interdependence of faith and works, and divine mercy as the foundation of salvation. The value of this text lies in its transmission of a Serbian popular piety rooted in the patristic tradition.