St. Bogoljub Gakovich
St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church
Saint Bogoljub Gakovich
Saint Bogoljub Gakovich’s American journey began in 1928. By 1932, he had reached the Iron Range of Minnesota, beginning a clerical career that extended across Pennsylvania and the broader Great Lakes region. Alongside his wife, Ksenija, with whom he raised three sons, Father Bogoljub dedicated his life to the spiritual nourishment of the Serbian Diaspora.
His ministry spanned several key parishes, including McKeesport, Steelton, Chicago, and Kansas City. During the hardships of the Great Depression, Father Bogoljub worked tirelessly to revitalize Orthodox church life in these communities and across the Iron Range.
Ministry and Return to Yugoslavia
After years of dedicated service in America—including a tenure as the Parish Priest of St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church in McKeesport from January 1933 to June 1934—he returned to his homeland in 1935, settling in Plaški, Lika (then Yugoslavia, now modern-day Croatia).
Arrest and Internment
The peace of his ministry was shattered in June 1941 when he was arrested by Nazi-aligned forces. Father Bogoljub was imprisoned in a barn for an entire month alongside his hierarch, St. Sava (Svetozar Trlajić), Bishop of Gornji Karlovac, and fellow priests Đuro Stojanović and Stanislav Nasadilo.
Martyrdom at Jadovno
Following a month of deprivation, he was transferred to the Gospić prison and ultimately to the Jadovno concentration camp. The brutality he faced there was profound:
- Prisoners were bound to one another, hand and foot.
- One person in the pair would be shot, their falling body dragging the living victim into the deep karst pits.
- Those who survived the initial fall perished from the impact or the agonizing onset of dehydration and starvation.
Legacy and Veneration
Father Bogoljub Gakovich was glorified as a Saint by the Orthodox Church in 2004. His martyric death serves as both a profound inspiration of faith and a sobering reminder of the devastating consequences of radical ideologies.
To the faithful of McKeesport and beyond, he remains a testament to enduring courage in the face of darkness.
Vječnaja pamjat! • Memory eternal!
Portions of this text and the accompanying image appear courtesy of All Saints of North America Orthodox Church.
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St. Bogoljub Gakovich - courtesy All Saints of North America Orthodox Church |
St. Bogoljub Gakovich (Hieromartyr)
St. Bogoljub Gakovich came to the United States in 1928 and then to the Iron Range in 1932. He and his wife, Ksenija, had three boys. Along with the parishes on the Iron Range he served in McKeesport, Steelton, Chicago, and Kansas City. During the Depression, he worked very hard to activate church life among the Orthodox on the Range. In 1935, he returned to Plaški in Lika, Yugoslavia (now present day Croatia). In June of 1941, he was arrested by the Nazis, and with his Bishop St. Sava (Svetozar Trlajić) of Gornji Karlovac and others (including fellow Priests Đuro Stojanović and Stanislav Nasadilo) was confined to a barn for a month. After a month of suffering, he was taken to Gospić prison, then to Jadovno Camp. There they tied his hands and tied his arms to another person and one of them was shot in the head and pushed into the deep pits dragging the other person down to die either of the drop or from dehydration/starvation.
Father Saint Bogoljub Gakovich served as Parish Priest of our St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church (McKeesport, PA) from January 1933 until June 1934.
His martyric death serves both as an inspiration but also a sobering warning to us all about radical ideologies.
He was glorified by the Orthodox Church in 2004.
The image and portions of this article were taken from All Saints of North America Orthodox Church
