Bishop Mitrofan (Kodić)

Bishop Mitrofan Kodić, nee Radovan, was born on 4 August, 1951, in the village Ljuša, Šipovo, Bosnia, Yugoslavia. Radovan completed his elementary studies in 1966. He went to study further at the seminary in the Krka monastery in Croatia, Yugoslavia. At the same time, he entered the brotherhood of the monastery. In 1970, Radovan was tonsured to be a monk, and he was given the name Mitrofan on the eve of the Feast of the Entrance of the Most Holy Mother of God into the Temple (3 December/20 November). He was ordained to the Holy Diaconate by Bishop Stefan (Boca) of Žiča. In 1971, the Hierodeacon Mitrofan (Kodić) graduated from the seminary of the Krka Monastery, while on 6 January, 1974, he was ordained to the holy priesthood in the monastery by Bishop Stefan (Boca).

In 1975, the Hieromonk Mitrofan entered the Faculty of Theology in Bucharest, Romania. He completed his studies, and he graduated in 1977. He then returned to the Krka monastery. There, he was assigned to be a “trainee” (supplent) in the Seminary of the Three Holy Hierarchs in the Krka Monastery. In 1987, the Hieromonk Mitrofan was assigned to serve as the rector of the seminary.

Sailors of the Sky

In these timely conversations led by Fr. Radovan Bigovic, many issues are introduced that enable the contemporary reader to deepen and expand his or her understanding of the role of art in the life of the Church. Here we find answers to questions on the crisis of contemporary ecclesiastical art in West and East; the impact of Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, Surrealism and Abstract painting on contemporary ecclesiastical painting; and a consideration of the main distrinction between iconography and secular painting. The dialogue, while resolving some doubts about the difference between iconography, religious painting, and painting in general, reconciles the requirement to obey inconographic canons with the freedom essential to artistic creativity, demonstrating that obedience to the canons is not a threat to the vitatlity of iconography. Both artists illumine the role of prayer and ascetisicm in the art of iconography. They also mention curcial differences between iconography in the Orthodox Church and in Roman Catholicism. How important thse distinctions are when exploring the relationship between contemporary theology and art! In a time when postmodern "metaphysics' revitalizes every concept, these masters still believe that, to some extent, Post-Modernism adds to the revitatiztion of Christian art, stimulating questions about "artistic inspiration" and the essential asethetic categories of Christian painting. Their exceptionally wide, yet nonetheless deep, expertise assists their not-so-everday connections between theology, ar, and modern issues concerning society: "society" taken in its broader meaning as "civilization." Finally, the entire artistic project of Stamatis and Rupnik has important ecumenical implications that aswer a genuine longing for unity in the Christian word.

The text of this 94-page soft-bound book has been translated from the Serbian by Ivana Jakovljevic, Fr. Gregory Edwards, and Andrijana Krstic. Published by Sebastian Press, Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Contemporary Christian Thought Series, number 7, First Edition, ISBN: 978-0-9719505-8-0

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