Saint Sava Church, London

Saint Sava Church, London

Address: 5567 Wonderland Road South, London ON, N6P 1N5

Phone: 519 652-2771

Website: svetisavalondon.com

Priest: Fr. Dusko Markovic
Phone: 905 805 4460
Email: markovicdusko91@gmail.com

Fr. Dusko Markovic was born in 1991 in Serbia. He graduated from the Theological Seminary of St. Arsenije of Srem in Sremski Karlovci, and then from the Orthodox Theological Faculty in Belgrade, where he is completing his master's thesis in Sociology of Religion. He also graduated from the Dr. Vojislav Vuckovic Music School in Belgrade. He was ordained to the rank of deacon on December 25, 2016, by the hand of Bishop Vasilije (Vadic) of Srem. For three years, he served in the Cathedral Church of St. Dimitrije in Sremska Mitrovica and served as the secretary of the Church Congregation. With the blessing of Bishop Mitrofan of Canada, he came to Canada in December 2019, where he was appointed diocesan deacon. He is married to Milena, a graduate of theology, with whom he has a daughter, Angelina. Bishop Mitrofan of Canada ordained him to the rank of presbyter on March 27, 2021, at the Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Milton.

History

With the arrival of a new wave of economic emigration to London in the 1960s, the need for a more organized church life arose. At the founding assembly on September 19, 1965, representatives of Serbian families from London and the surrounding area gathered in the YMCA building with one goal: to establish a Church and School Congregation that would be a centre for the cultural and spiritual upliftment of Serbian life in London and the surrounding area. The session was attended by about thirty representatives of Serbian families from London and the surrounding area. At this founding session, each of the Serbs present expressed their opinion and expressed hope for the success of this gathering. Since the opinion of all those present was that the Serbs from London and the surrounding area urgently needed such an institution, it was unanimously decided to establish a Church and School Congregation in London, which was done at the same session.

After that, the election of the first board of the newly established Church and School Congregation took place. At the proposal of Janko Basara, who proposed Nikola Lalic from Strathroy as the first president of the newly established Church and School Congregation, the same Nikola Lalic was unanimously elected president of the new Church and School Congregation in London. Janko Pasic from London was also unanimously elected vice president. Nikola Ivanovic was elected secretary, and Janko Basara was elected treasurer. All members present agreed that the newly established Church and School Congregation in London should belong to and be part of the Serbian Orthodox Church with its headquarters in Belgrade, and that the newly established Church and School Congregation should operate according to the laws and dogmas valid in Belgrade, and that they should recognize only the representatives of the mother church in America and Canada.

The second item on the agenda was the question of the name of the newly established Church and School Congregation. There were many proposals on this item, but the members present finally agreed that the new Church and School Congregation should bear the name of the founder of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Saint Sava. The members present expressed their desire to immediately become members of the newly established Church and School Congregation of St. Sava, which they did by giving the treasurer a membership fee of three dollars per person. At the first meeting, a total of 23 members joined the newly established Church and School Congregation of St. Sava. Then, President Lalic closed the meeting by expressing his desire to meet again as soon as possible and in as large a number as possible.

Following the decision of the membership meeting in 1983 to begin building the church, the membership of the Saint Sava Church and School Congregation at its annual meeting on November 27, 1983 elected committees that would lead this great construction project. Since the construction committee had received all the necessary permits for the construction of the church and had a plan approved by the membership, drawn up by the architect Mr. Constantine Zourdoumis from Ottawa, and a contract signed with him, construction could begin. The work began according to plan. The cornerstone of our new church was laid, and on June 16, 1984, the Bishop of Eastern America and Canada, Christopher (Kovacevich), with a priest present, consecrated the foundations. In front of a crowd of people from London and other churches from Ontario, this first step announced the birth of a new place of worship. This magnificent celebration was graced with their presence by the following church figures: Bishop Christopher, the Dean of the Canadian Deanery Fr. Mirko Visnjic from Windsor, the priest of the Church of Saint Sava from Toronto Fr. Mihajlo Doder, and the priest from Kitchener Fr. Bogdan Obradovic.

After the foundation was consecrated, craftsmen were hired to carry out the masonry work of the blocks and bricks. They did their job on time and to the satisfaction of all of us, very nicely, as can be seen. The iron structure was mostly purchased from the Richard Wilcox company, which Rade Ivanovic cut to size from them. A great contribution to this part of the work, in addition to the brothers Janko, Nikola, Aleksandar and Mirko, was made by brother Milisav Isajlovic, an experienced master welder. The church is covered with real red tiles obtained from the Netherlands. The dome of the church is made of iron structure and plywood, and all of this is coated with copper. All work was completed by the beginning of 1987. After the crosses arrived, two smaller crosses purchased by members of the Church and School Congregation and one main one as a gift from architect Constantine Zourdoumis, their consecration was scheduled for March 14, 1987. The crosses were consecrated by the Bishop of Canada Georgije, and the priests present concelebrated. The interior of the church remained to be completed. This work was entrusted to a private contractor who, to the satisfaction of all those present, did an excellent job. The work slowly approached completion. It should be noted here that contractors were hired only when members of the Church and School Congregation were unable to professionally perform the work themselves. Therefore, the names of individual brothers and sisters, by their craftsmanship, will remain as shining examples of sacrifice and perseverance.

The church was consecrated on September 4, 1988. The act of consecration was performed by Bishop Georgije and Bishop Chrostopher, and the following priests concelebrated with the bishops at the consecration: Fr. Slobodan Zivadinovic from Ohio, Dean of the Eastern Canadian Deanery Fr. Stevo Stojsavljevic, Fr. Mihajlo Doder from Toronto, Fr. Bozo Bakajlic from Windsor, Fr. Uros Todorovic from Niagara Falls, Fr. Milutin Veljko from Kitchener, Fr. Milos Milovanovic from Oakville, and the host, Fr. Dobrica Obradovic. The theologians Slavko Nadj and Ljubomir Rajic were also present. The godparents at the consecration were Mika and Ljubo Radojcic. This celebration would not have been as successful as it was without the brothers and sisters who invested great effort and work in addition to financial resources. For the successfully completed work and dedication, Bishop of Canada Georgije awarded the local priest Fr. Dobrica Obradovic with an episcopal certificate of recognition and promoted him to the rank of protopresbyter. With the certificate, the Bishop also honoured the Board of Directors of the Church and School Congregation, the Construction Committee of the Church and School Congregation and the Ognjena Marija Circle of Serbian Sisters. Several people were honoured with awards from the Church and School Congregation and with awards from the Government of Ontario. The celebration of the consecration was a success in every respect: spiritual, entertaining and financial.