The Holy New Hieromartyr Peter, Metropolitan of Dabar and Bosnia
Life
Peter (Zimonjić) was the Serbian Orthodox Metropolitan of Dabar and Bosnia who was arrested and killed in 1941 during the Second World War, and is venerated among the Serbian New Martyrs. Born Petar Zimonjić on June 24, 1866 in Grahovo, he was the son of a priest and embarked on a long ecclesiastical career before his episcopate. He is commemorated on September 4.
After theological studies at the seminary of Reljevo and the Orthodox Theological Faculty at Cernovice, he took monastic vows in 1895 and rose through teaching and administrative posts in the Church. He was consecrated Metropolitan of Zahumlje and Herzegovina at Mostar in 1903 and was appointed Metropolitan of Dabar and Bosnia in 1920, an office he held until the war. He was known for his firm defense of Orthodox practice, including his insistence on the continued use of the Serbian Cyrillic alphabet under wartime pressure.
Contributions & Legacy
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Ecclesiastical Career
Petar Zimonjić was born into a notable family; sources identify his father as the nobleman and priest Bogdan Zimonjić. He studied at the seminary in Reljevo from 1883 to 1887 and at the Orthodox Theological Faculty in Cernovice from 1887 to 1893, after which he taught at the Reljevo seminary and later served as a consistorial advisor in Sarajevo.
He received monastic tonsure in 1895, taking the name Peter, and was soon ordained to the diaconate and the priesthood. In 1903 he was elected and enthroned at Mostar as Metropolitan of Zahumlje and Herzegovina, and by royal charter dated November 7, 1920 he was appointed Metropolitan of Dabar and Bosnia, succeeding Evgenije (Letica).
Arrest and Martyrdom
Following the Axis occupation and the establishment of the Independent State of Croatia, Metropolitan Peter was arrested on May 12, 1941. He was first held in the Beledija prison and then transferred to the Kerestinec camp. Accounts relate that he refused opportunities to abandon his flock, regarding it as his duty to remain with his people.
After enduring imprisonment and torture, he was moved through several locations and is recorded to have died in 1941; testimony preserved in the tradition places his death at the Jasenovac concentration camp, while some accounts name other camps. He was numbered among the many Serbian clergy and faithful who perished in this period.
Glorification
Metropolitan Peter was glorified as a saint by the Serbian Orthodox Church in 1998. He is venerated as a New Hieromartyr and is commemorated together with the other New Martyrs of the Serbian Church who suffered during the Second World War.
His companions & kin
Commemorated among the Serbian hierarchs, clergy, and faithful who suffered during the Second World War.
