Cetinje, Montenegro, January 27, 2026
“Metropolitan” Mihailo Dedeić, former head of the schismatic “Montenegrin Orthodox Church.” Photo: rtnk.me
“Metropolitan” Mihailo Dedeić, the former leader of the schismatic “Montenegrin Orthodox Church” (MOC) has issued a formal appeal to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople requesting a review of both his personal canonical status and that of the organization he led for nearly three decades.
The current leader of the MOC, “Metropolitan” Boris Bojović has expressed his desire for autocephaly from Constantinople and stated in a 2024 interview that the Patriarchate sent representatives to investigate the life of the MOC, though Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon said earlier this month that Constantinople has never had any contact with the MOC.
In a letter dated January 18, Dedeić asks to be summoned before a canonical court of the Patriarchate of Constantinople to address accusations that led to his excommunication. He specifically challenges the claim that he violated the canonical unity of the Serbian Orthodox Church, stating that as a cleric of Constantinople, his ministry “did not take place within the jurisdiction of the Serbian Orthodox Church.”
Dedeić, who is now in his late 80s, defends his role in leading what he terms “the movement for the restoration of the autocephaly of the Montenegrin Orthodox Church.” He characterizes Serbian Orthodox influence in Montenegro as “Greater-Serbian Svetosavlje ethnophyletism” and describes it as “a political instrument of the forced assimilation of Montenegrins.”
The letter also proposed forming a multidisciplinary commission of canon lawyers, historians, jurists, and sociologists to present Montenegro’s ecclesiastical situation to the Patriarchate and “to initiate a serious, canonically and historically grounded dialogue regarding the status of the Montenegrin Orthodox Church.”
Dedeić became head of the MOC on January 6, 1997, through public acclamation at a General Montenegrin People’s Assembly in Cetinje. He was consecrated as bishop on March 15, 1998, by “Patriarch” Pimen of the schismatic Bulgarian Alternative Synod and was enthroned as Metropolitan in Cetinje on October 31, 1998.
Prior to leading the MOC, Dedeić worked as a professor for the Serbian Orthodox Church and later as a priest of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in Italy. He was permanently suspended in 1995 following various scandals, including accusations of adultery and embezzlement. After becoming Metropolitan of the MOC in 1997, he was fully excommunicated by the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Constantinople
Dedeić served as undisputed leader of the MOC from 1997 until 2023, when its General Assembly voted to replace him—a decision he doesn’t recognize.
His letter expresses support for Patriarch Bartholomew’s “ecumenical efforts” and “commitment to inter-Christian dialogue,” while alleging that recent criticism of the Patriarch stems from “synchronized and perfidious campaigns” driven by “structures of Russian security and church-political interests.” Dedeić writes that both Montenegro and the MOC have been targets of “the same centers of power” for decades.
The MOC is not recognized by any canonical Orthodox church and represents at most 10% of the Orthodox population of the country. The canonically recognized Orthodox jurisdiction in Montenegro remains the Serbian Orthodox Church’s Metropolis of Montenegro and the Littoral.
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