Saint Michael the Archangel Church, Burnaby

Mar 5, 2025 - 13:05 Updated: Jul 9, 2026 - 13:20

Saint Michael the Archangel Church, Burnaby

Address: 7837 Canada Way, Burnaby BC, V3N 3K8

Phone number: 604 525 0886

Priest: Fr. Sinisa Milutinovic
Phone: 204 894 7825
Email: sinisadjakon91@gmail.com

Fr. Sinisa Milutinovic was born in Travnik (Bosnia) on September 17, 1991, to parents Zoran and Rajka (nee Vukovic) Milutinovic. Due to the war, he left his home at the age of less than a year, to which he, like many other refugees, never returned. He spent his early childhood with his family in the region of Bosnian Krajina, near the city of Prijedor, on the slopes of Mount Kozara. Not having much choice, struggling to make ends meet, the Milutinovic family moved to Serbia in 2001, where, after a short wandering, they settled permanently in Bogatic near Sabac. As a cleric of the Diocese of Sabac, in 2005 he enrolled in the St. Sava Seminary in Belgrade, which he completed with perfect grades after five years of schooling, as one of the students of his generation. After completing the seminary, he married his chosen one Sanja and took on the duties of secretary of the Diocesan Administrative Board of the Diocese of Mileseva, secretary of the Bishop of Mileseva, secretary of the Church Court of the Diocese of Mileseva, diocesan deacon and deacon at the Cathedral Church of St. Basil of Ostrog in Prijepolje. He remained in that position until 2014, when he transferred to the Diocese of Canada and was appointed missionary priest at the Saint Petka Church in Saskatoon, in July 2014, when he was ordained to the rank of presbyter. The following year, in 2015, by the decision of His Holiness the late Patriarch Irinej, Fr. Sinisa was appointed parish priest in Winnipeg, where he spent the last seven years. During his pastoral service to the faithful people of Winnipeg and the surrounding area, Bishop Mitrofan of Canada awarded him the rank of protonamesnik in 2019. For his volunteer work and engagement in the wider community, the City of Winnipeg awarded Fr. Sinisa with the 2022 Distinguished Citizens Plaque. Fr. Sinisa is an alumnus of the St. Andrew the First-Called Orthodox Theological College in Winnipeg. He has three children: Aleksej, Pavle, and Irina.

History

The first Serbs arrived in British Columbia in the mid-nineteenth century and were among its founders. Mostly immigrants from various parts of Lika, Herzegovina, and Montenegro, they began their difficult and uncertain immigrant lives in scattered places throughout British Columbia. Many wanted to spend only a few years here, to earn a few dollars so that upon returning to their old lands they could buy more land, livestock, or build a small house and provide for their families. However, most of them started families here and never returned to their old lands.

The Saint Michael the Archangel Church and School Congregation was founded in the Blue Danube Serbian Home on Hastings Street in Burnaby on January 4, 1953. The founding assembly was attended by 45 members, and Stevo Konjevic was elected as the first president. The original idea, to establish a joint Church and School Congregation of Vancouver and Seattle, was rejected during the founding assembly, and at the proposal of the temporary president of the assembly, M. Ilic, it was unanimously accepted to establish a separate Church and School Congregation in Vancouver.

Several members proposed which saint the church should be dedicated to. The proposal of Nikola Plesac was accepted with the most votes, and the Holy Archangel Michael was chosen as the patron saint of the church. Soon after the establishment of the Church and School Congregation, a chapel was built in the upper rooms of the Serbian Home, which was consecrated by Bishop Dionisije on June 10, 1955.

The blessing from Bishop Longin of the American-Canadian Diocese for the construction of a new church building was received on February 14, 2002, and the building permit was obtained on February 28 of the same year. The construction of the Saint Michael the Archangel Church in Burnaby began solemnly on Monday March 4, 2002. The prayer service for a happy and God-blessed beginning of construction was served by all Serbian priests from British Columbia: Fr. Ljubomir Radulovic, Fr. Sava Arsenijevic, Fr. Miroslav Dejanov and Fr. Desimir Vidovic. On Holy Saturday, April 27, 2002, Bishop Longin consecrated the foundation of the church, with the concelebration of Fr. Ljubomir Radulovic, Fr. Miroslav Dejanov, Fr. Sava Arsenijevic, Fr. John Kaoukakis, Fr. Desimir Vidovic, and Dn. Milan Pajic. In the foundation, along with the foundation stone, four stones brought from the following lands were also incorporated: Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Dalmatia.

In August 2003, crosses were cast for the church and the bell tower. The crosses were donated by Goran Djasic. The crosses were consecrated on Sunday August 31, 2003. On the same day, a small cross was placed on the bell tower, while the large cross was ceremonially placed on the dome on June 6, 2004. The crosses were consecrated by Fr. Marko Todorovic, with the concelebration of Fr. Ljubomir Radulovic and Fr. Desimir Vidovic. The godfather of the smaller cross was Nikola Kos, and the godfather of the large cross was Vojo Bogdanovic from Kelowna.

The Serbian Home building was sold in April 2004, and the money was used to complete the construction of the new church. All the endowments and contributors to this home are also endowments and contributors to the newly built church building.

On Saturday March 5, 2005, the newly built church was consecrated, and then the first Holy Hierarchical Liturgy was celebrated. Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro and the Littoral and Bishop Longin of America and Canada presided with the concelebration of Fr. Budimir Andjelic (Florida), Fr. Miroslav Dejanov (Vancouver), Fr. Milovan Sredojevic (Kitchener), Fr. Vojislav Pavlovic (Hamilton), Fr. Michael Fourik (OCA), Fr. John Ayoub (OCA), Fr. Nikolai Kondratiev (OCA) and the responsible parish priest Fr. Desimir Vidovic. After the Holy Liturgy, the nearby Serbian Cultural Centre was consecrated by Metropolitan Amfilohije with the concelebration of Fr. Milovan Sredojevic and Fr. Desimir Vidovic.

The iconostasis of the Saint Michael the Archangel Church in Burnaby was made in magnificent woodcarving in the workshop of the Tvrdos Monastery in Herzegovina. The iconostasis is made of walnut wood specially intended for the manufacture of iconostases. All decorations and details were made according to the model of woodcarvings from ancient Orthodox churches. The Royal Doors were made according to the model of one of the most beautiful examples, the doors in the Hilandar Monastery. In addition to the iconostasis, the same craftsmen also made two choir lofts and two thrones (the episcopal and the Most Holy Theotokos thrones) from the same wood. The money for the iconostasis was donated by the Kosovo Maiden Circle of Serbian Sisters. At the beginning of 2005, the iconostasis and thrones of the church were richly decorated with icons. The iconography was carried out by the painter Mirko Toljic from Niksic, dean of the Academy of Fine Arts in Trebinje. When choosing an icon painter for the church, several bids were collected. Mirko Toljic gave the most favourable price, and the quality of his work was highly rated. The iconostasis and thrones are adorned with 26 icons of various sizes. All icons were made according to the Erminia. The largest donor for the iconostasis was the family of Stevo and Velinka Kos. Of particular value in the church is an icon of the Lord Jesus Christ from the 18th century. The icon was made in Russia, in the Moscow region. It was purchased in London, England, by the Vukovic brothers who lived in Venice and ran a shop selling works of art and antiques there. It came to America through Jovo Krneta, a Serb who lives in Chicago and imports works of art from Europe. Jovo Krneta would keep icons and church objects, not putting them up for resale, but rather donating them to Orthodox churches or keeping them for himself. He saved this icon as a special treasure to donate to the Saint Michael the Archangel Church in 2005, and for the repose of the soul of his brother Pavle, who lived and died in Vancouver that same year.

The Serbian Church Library was founded in 2007 and in a short time, about a thousand books and several hundred video cassettes were acquired.

The Saint Michael the Archangel Church and School Congregation in Burnaby has been part of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Canada since May 2009 and the decision of the Holy Council of Bishops on the arondation of dioceses and parishes in North America. The church is the first temple from the former New Gracanica Diocese in which the Bishop of Canada served the Holy Liturgy after the unification.

The church is decorated with three mosaics. Two are located above the main entrance door of the church: the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Archangel Michael, and the third, the Holy Archangel Michael, is located above the entrance door to the church building. The mosaics were made by Bosko Radulovic in 2010.

The Saint Michael the Archangel Church and School Congregation hosted the 31st Annual Assembly of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Canada in February 2013.

The church underwent a major renovation in 2018 and 2019, repairing the roof and replacing the windows. After the renovation was completed, new stained glass windows were installed in the church, and fresco painting is in preparation.

Organizations and associations

The Saint Michael the Archangel Church and School Congregation is the cradle of many Serbian organizations that work for the benefit of the local Serbian community, such as the Kosovo Maiden Circle of Serbian Sisters, the Serbian National Defense (Draza Mihailovic Branch), the Mlada Srbadija Folklore Group, the White Eagles Football Club, the Saint Vasilije of Ostrog Serbian School, the Obilic Church Choir, the Srpske zemlje newspaper and the Saint Vissarion of Sana Missionary Society.