Saint Sebastian (Dabovich)

Saint Sebastian (Dabovich) (1863-1940)

Dabovich may be spelt Dabović.

Jovan is pronounced “Yovan”.

Jovan may be spelt Ivan, Evan, Ioann, Johan, Johannes, John.

Sebastian may be spelt Sevastian, Sevastjan.

Early life of Jovan (John) Dabović

Jovan Dabović (John Dabovich) was born on 21 June, 1863, in San Francisco, California. His parents were Ilija and Jelena Dabović, who had emigrated from Sassovae, in the Principality of Serbia.

Ilija and Jelena Dabović were the first recorded Serbian immigrants to settle on the West Coast (together with Ilija's brother Nikolaj). They operated a small shop in San Francisco, California. The family had originally lived in the village of Sasovići near Herceg Novi, at the entrance of the Bay of Kotor, Montenegro (Crna Gora). In their move during 1853 (perhaps a consequence of the Ottoman-Montenegrin War of 1852-1853, perhaps a consequence of the developing "gold rush", perhaps both), they had crossed the Atlantic Ocean, traversed the Panama Isthmus (there was no Panama Canal at that time), and then sailed north to California. Other families followed. San Francisco Bay could provide a slightly familiar environment, since it has some small similarities to the Bay of Kotor.

From the Lord, Ilija and Jelena Dabović were blessed with seven children, of whom Jovan was the fourth. At his baptism, he received the name John.

According to his own writing, he was baptised in 1863 by the Hieromonk Kirill (of the Tikhvin Monastery), a chaplain of the Russian Imperial Navy, in a chapel aboard the ship "Bogatyr" (replaced in 1902 by a more modern cruiser). The baptism occurred in this manner since there was not yet an established Orthodox parish in San Francisco, nor was there yet an assigned priest. At that time, the navy chaplains cared for the members of the “Greek-Russian Slavonian Eastern Church and Benevolent Society” which had been formed in 1857. The Russian Imperial Navy was likely present in San Francisco for reasons having to do in part with the sale of Alaska to the USA which would be finalised in 1867. This was a matter with many complex factors.

John (Jovan) grew up within the Orthodox Faith, and within the worshipping life of the Orthodox Church. At first, worship tended to be informal and in the homes of the various believers in the San Francisco area. In 1868, the Priest Nikolai Kovrigin (a priest of the Russian Mission), was transferred from the Russian Orthodox cathedral in Sitka, Alaska, along with an assistant, the Reader Vasily Shishkin, and the community began to hold worship services in the home of a local Serb, Peter Sekulovich. As an adult, Jovan wrote the following childhood recollection :

 I remember that first service, to which I went with my mother. We had to walk a long way along unpaved streets. 
 Furthermore we were mercilessly drenched by rain. At last we reached a small house ; we crossed over a ditch 
 (or temporarily excavated gutter) on a plank and entered the church.  The 'church' was set up in a divided room. 
 At the end, opposite the entrance, the Holy Antimension lay on a covered table.  A little table in a corner served 
 as the table of oblation.  I remember two icons on the walls : the Saviour and the Mother of God.  There were 
 approximately twenty communicants at that Liturgy.  

This was the remote beginning of the parish community which eventually became Holy Trinity Cathedral in that city.

In 1872, Bishop John (Mitropolsky) transferred the diocesan cathedral, together with the administration and his residence to San Francisco. Bishop John was of a strong missionary disposition. He wished not only to care for the Orthodox Christian Faithful in Alaska and in the mainland USA, but also to make the Orthodox Christian Faith available to everyone who wished to embrace this Faith and way of life. It is probable that the evangelical attitude and motivation of Bishop John about making the Orthodox Christian Faith available to all Americans was inherited by Jovan, since it became his lifelong desire as well.

Jovan attended services at the Pierce Street site of the cathedral, and he was predictably present at services. He had developed a deep love for the Lord and for the Church, and he was very content to be in the Temple to serve and to worship the Lord. From childhood, he felt in his heart the call from the Lord to serve Him as a priest in due time. He continued to pay attention to this call and to co-operate with it.

Jovan attended the Mission School which Bishop John had transferred from Sitka, and he studied alongside the indigenous students that had moved with the school to San Francisco in order to continue their studies. Besides other subjects, he learnt Russian, Church Slavonic and Greek. The former were taught by Dimitrios Frankiades, who also taught English. The choirmaster Michael Vladimirov taught singing and mathematics.

As he continued to grow up, Jovan became known for his humility, his abstinence, and his care for the poor. In a practical expression of this care, he frequently gave his personal possessions away to the needy.

After finishing high school, John served his parish as a reader and as a teacher.

Young Jovan Dabovich

Higher education

After he graduated from high school, Jovan served briefly in San Francisco also as a chanter at services in the Temple.

In 1884, he was assigned briefly to assist at Saint Michael’s Cathedral in Sitka, Alaska. While he was there, he came to know Tlingit families in the cathedral parish. Through them, he became familiar with Saint Innocent (Veniaminov), and he also learnt about a group of Tlingits who had not yet accepted the Orthodox Christian Faith. This was in the settlement of Juneau. He later wrote :

 My assistants among the Indians — the Kolosh natives Ivan Hlyantich, Pavel Katlyeyan and others — set out 
 for what was then a very small place, now the sizable town of Juneau, and following special instructions 
 from me, they (and other parishioners) spread the Word and Orthodoxy — and the result of that is — the present
 Church of St. Nicholas in Juneau.  

Within 6 years of this beginning, the Tlingit of this place began to travel to Sitka in order to be baptised. By 1893, the Temple of Saint Nicholas in Juneau had been constructed by both the Tlingit Orthodox Christians and the gold-miners who had settled there.

In 1885, Jovan took the blessing to continue his studies, and he travelled to Russia. There, in Saint Petersburg, the capital of the Russian Empire, he studied at the Saint Petersburg Theological Academy, and also at the Kiev Theological Academy, in order to prepare for a life as a missionary.

Monastic tonsure, 1888

After his 3 years of study in the 2 academies, Jovan was tonsured to be a monk in 1888, and he was given the name Sebastian.

Diaconal ordination, 1888

Soon afterwards, on 25 December, 1888, the Monk Sebastian (Dabovich) was ordained to the Holy Diaconate by Metropolitan Isidore (Nikolsky) of Novgorod, Saint Petersburg and Finland.

Diaconal service

When Father Sebastian had been studying in Saint Petersburg, Metropolitan Isidore (Nikolsky) was marking 50 years of episcopal service. During these years, he had participated in the ordination of more than 100 bishops, including all the bishops of the North American mission in the latter half of the 19th century. Father Sebastian wrote about him that he

 was the most faithful friend, spiritual advisor, and material support, under God, of the young Church in North America 
 in her many serious trials, temptations, and persecutions.

Following his ordination, the Hierodeacon Sebastian (Dabovich) received the blessing to return to San Francisco, where he served as a deacon at the Saint Basil Cathedral in San Francisco (which was later named "Holy Trinity Cathedral" after reconstruction). He served under the omophor of Bishop Vladimir (Sokolovsky-Avtonomov), who had been assigned to San Francisco in 1888.

Hierodeacon Sebastian was assigned also to teach at the pastoral school in San Francisco.

Bishop Vladimir had learned from Saint Nicholas (Kasatkin) of Japan that, when the Orthodox Christian Faith is brought to new territories, it must be made available in the local languages. He became the first Orthodox hierarch in North America to preach and serve in English. He also required his priests to learn and serve in this language as well.

Father Sebastian later recalled that :

 The bishop paid special attention in the temple to preaching the word of God in English, which was the language commonly
 understood.  To this end the bishop himself, although not completely familiar with the English language, improvised talks 
 in English, which the people readily heard. 

Bishop Vladimir also assigned Father Sebastian, as a native English speaker, to be the English-language preacher at the San Francisco cathedral.

Thus, Hierodeacon Sebastian served under Bishop Vladimir until 1891, when Bishop Vladimir was recalled to Russia.

Presbyteral ordination, 1892

On 29 August, 1892 (the day after the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos), Hierodeacon Sebastian was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) in the Cathedral of Saint Basil in San Francisco, California.

This ordination took place not long after Bishop Nicholas had been assigned to be the bishop of the Aleutian Islands and Alaska (he, himself, had been ordained to the Holy Episcopate only in the previous September).

Pastoral service

On the following Sunday, the newly-ordained Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabovich) gave his first homily as a priest, on the theme “Love according to Christian Doctrine”.

Before his ordination, Hierodeacon Sebastian had submitted a report to Bishop Nicholas in which he estimated that there were about 1,500 Orthodox Christians residing in the states of California and Oregon, and Washington. He asked that he be assigned to care for these believers. Bishop Nicholas, who saw his rare apostolic zeal, granted his request.

Thus, the newly-ordained Hieromonk Sebastian was assigned to serve as a missionary priest for California and the Pacific Northwest.

Within a week after his ordination, Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabovich) departed on a missionary tour of the West Coast of North America. He travelled as far north as Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and as far south as San Diego, California. When he returned, he had travelled more than 3,000 miles.

On this missionary journey, Father Sebastian found poor Orthodox immigrants of many ethnic backgrounds who lived far from Orthodox Temples and clergy. Because of the isolation, some had come under the influence of Protestants ; however, they welcomed the opportunity to return to the Church of their youth. He performed baptisms, both of children and adults, and he offered the other Holy Mysteries and services of need of the Church to the isolated Orthodox Christians.

In Oregon, Father Sebastian came to the conclusion that Portland was the best site for a chapel, even though there were not many Orthodox Christians in that city. It was nevertheless a central location for believers in the surrounding area. For example, he had found a population of Greek fishermen who had settled along the Columbia River and in the port city of Astoria. In Washington, Father Sebastian saw even more possibilities in Seattle There, he found a larger group of dedicated Orthodox Christians who were eager to form a parish. He also found Orthodox Christians in the communities of Tacoma, Gig Harbour, and Wilkeson. He also found some Orthodox Christians in Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia. In his missionary journeys, Father Sebastian offered the Orthodox Christian Faith to all. He did not concern himself with ethnicity except in a secondary manner.

He also found many Uniats who had acquired questionable practices resulting from their ecclesiastical ties to Roman Catholicism. Despite this, they thought that they were actually Orthodox Christians.

The newly-ordained Hieromonk Sebastian tirelessly preached the Gospel, served Divine Liturgies, counselled people, and established many parishes throughout the country. Throughout his life, he conveyed the light of liturgical certainty and calm to a world that was spiritually hungry and suffering.

In 1893, at the request of Father Alexis Toth for a second priest to serve in Minneapolis, the Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabovich) was sent by Bishop Nicholas to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he was assigned to replace Father Alexis Toth as the priest of Saint Mary’s Orthodox Church. Father Sebastian continued the work of Father Alexis as he strove to help former Uniats enter more deeply into the life of the Orthodox Church. While he was serving at Saint Mary's, he also taught at the Missionary School, which was established in 1894.

Mr. Paul Zaichenko, who was at that time the choir director of the parish and the music director of the Missionary School, wrote about the service of Father Sebastian :

 Fr. Sebastian Dabovich succeeded Fr. A. Toth as parish priest.  He was a quiet and pensive monk, always considerate, 
 conscientious, modest.  He performed his duties sincerely, and taught the Bible class of the parish school with 
 enthusiasm.  He was a tireless and unselfish worker, a humble and a just man before his Lord.  He was one of the 
 most worthy workers in the Mission.  I knew him back in San Francisco.  At that time he sang in the cathedral choir, 
 of which I was a choirmaster.  His aim was his betterment in religious life.  As in San Francisco, so too in 
 Minneapolis, he was the example of virtuous living ; he always considered it his duty to avoid an evil step.  Leading 
 a quiet monastic life, he found great happiness in reading religious books and in teaching students the Holy Bible. 
 He loved children and was always considerate of his parishioners.  Notwithstanding his short stay in Minneapolis, he 
 was loved by his flock.  He was a bright torch of love, kindness, and sincerity.  

Saint Mary's Temple, and the seminary, Minneapolis

While he was serving at the parish in Minneapolis, the Hieromonk Sebastian made his first visit to Chicago, Illinois), where he spent 10 days helping Bishop Nicholas to organise an exhibit about the Orthodox Christian Faith and the Orthodox Christian Church at the "World's Columbian Exposition" ("World’s Fair").

During his short stay in Chicago, Father Sebastian gathered local Orthodox Serbs and celebrated the Divine Liturgy for them. Although he was only able to meet about 20 Serbs at that time, it opened a door for future work in that city.

In December, 1893, Father Sebastian was recalled to San Francisco. He soon went to Jackson, California, where he baptised a Serbian child. At that time, he saw that there were many Serbs living there, and he there organised the first Serbian Orthodox parish in North America. It was dedicated to Saint Sava of Serbia. Jackson is situated about 209 km (130 mi) northeast of San Francisco and about 80 km (50 mi) southeast of Sacramento (the state capital).

In February, 1894, Bishop Nicholas went to Jackson to bless the parish. In May, 1894, the first burial in the cemetery occurred. By December, the Temple was completed. It was a small but beautiful building, situated prominently above the town, and surrounded by the cemetery. Bishop Nicholas had bells for the church sent down from Alaska. He also donated a chandelier, together with an icon of the Mother of God which had been painted at Saint Panteleimon’s Monastery on Mount Athos. In time, the Mother of God would perform miracles through this icon, which would come to be known as the “[Jackson Icon of the Mother of God]”.

Jackson Icon of the Mother of God (Theotokos)

On 16 December, 1894, Bishop Nicholas, assisted by Father Sebastian, sanctified the new Temple. Father Sebastian took care to translate portions of the service into English for the sake of the non-Serbs who attended the service. Thereafter, Father Sebastian regularly travelled to Jackson to serve in this Temple.

Original appearance of the Temple of Saint Sava, Jackson, California

Current appearance of Saint Sava's Temple, Jackson, California

In addition to this particular pastoral service, he was regularly travelling, and he proved to be an important help in organising groups of Orthodox Christians into worshipping communities. This was particularly so in the Pacific Northwest of the USA, although his missionary work took him as far south as Arizona. The following are examples of the fruits of his Christ-loving labour.

In Seattle, Washington, is situated the Temple which later became the Saint Spiridon Cathedral, where he even served as a temporary priest before the arrival of Father Ambrose Vretta in November, 1895. Holy Trinity Church in Wilkeson, Washington, is a community which he visited in 1892 and 1895 before its official beginning in 1896. The Temple of Saint Nicholas in Portland, Oregon (begun in 1890 by Lavrenty Chernov Stevens, a Russian/Aleut who had moved there and who had built a small Temple), is a community in which he served its first Divine Liturgy in 1895.

Saint Spiridon's Temple, Seattle, 1895

Father Sebastian also visited various settlements in California and Arizona, where he had heard that Serbs were living. From these visits, in such places as Angels Camp (near Jackson), Fresno, Visalia and Hanford), and also in Bisbee, Arizona, Orthodox Christian communities were established in time.

1895

In 1895, with the blessing of the Most Holy Synod and imperial consent, Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabovich) was awarded the right to wear the Gold Cross. This award was given to him extraordinarily early (after 2 years instead of the usual 10 years). As Bishop Nicholas said, when he gave the award :

 It is granted to you not only as a reward for your devout ministry in the lower ecclesiastical ranks, but even 
 more so as an encouragement in the ever greater labours and heroic tasks which you will continue to face in your 
 missionary ministry [...].  
 
 You were not forced to pick up the Cross of a monk and a missionary, but did it of your own free will, for your 
 and others’ salvation.  This made you not your own but Christ’s (see Gal. 3:29) ; now you should seek not your 
 own (see I Cor. 13:5) but the things which are Jesus Christ’s (see Phil. 2:21).  

For the greater part of 1896, Hieromonk Sebastian was in his ancestral land Serbia, where he had travelled to visit family, and where he spent several months furthering his theological studies. When he returned to San Francisco in November of 1896, he was assigned to serve as the pastor of Saint Basil's Cathedral, and as a teacher in the church school. He fulfilled this responsibility and at the same time, he continued his missionary journeys throughout the western USA. Following the example of the Apostle Paul, he continued to visit the new communities he had formed and organised, tending to their spiritual needs, making the Holy Mysteries available to them, and ensuring their survival.

During this year, the parish of Saint Sava in Jackson, California, was officially established as a Serbian Orthodox parish. This establishment took place with the knowledge and blessing of Metropolitan Mihailo (Jovanovich) of Serbia.

In August, 1897, Father Sebastian travelled to Butte, Montana. Butte was in an important region of copper-mining, and many Serbs had moved there for work. On 15/28 August, Father Sebastian served the Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos. There were 31 who attended, and Father Sebastian began with them the process of organising a parish. While he made frequent visits to the community, it was first nurtured by Fathers Ambrose Vretta and Vladimir Alexandrov. In due time, Holy Trinity Church was founded there.

Holy Trinity Temple, Butte, Montana

In October, 1897, together with Bishop Nikolai (Ziorov), he visited Fort Ross, California, on the Pacific coast north of San Francisco. Fort Ross was a trading-post of the Russian-American Company, which functioned until about 1842.

In November, 1897, Father Sebastian accompanied Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) to Washington, DC. Also accompanying Bishop Nicholas in Washington were the Priests __ Popoff of Chicago, and Alexander Hotovitzky of New York City. The purpose of this journey was to present a formal complaint to President W McKinley about the theft of Church properties that had been and was still occurring in Alaska. This was the second meeting in the history of the USA between an Orthodox bishop and an American President (the first having been a meeting between Bishop Vladimir (Sokolovsky-Avtonomov) and President Grover Cleveland in 1889).

On 9 November, 1897, soon after returning to San Francisco, Father Sebastian officiated at the wedding of his niece, Ella, to a young Russian immigrant, Theodore Pashkovsky.

Also in 1897, Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabovich) was awarded the Order of Prince Danilo from Prince Nicholas {Petrović-Njegoš) of Montenegro, primarily in recognition of the pastoral care he had shown for Serbian immigrants who had come to America from Montenegro, and also for the articles he had written about the province of Montenegro and its struggles against the Ottoman Turks.

In 1898, Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) arrived in North America to be the successor of Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) as the Bishop of the North American diocese.

In 1899, by decree of Emperor Nicholas II, the Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabovich) was awarded the Order of Saint Anne. This award had come as a fruit of a "de-briefing" conversation about the Russian Mission between Bishop Nicholas (Ziorov) and Tsar Nicholas II in Saint Petersburg.

Dabović family, 1900 (Father Sebastian is seated, at the left)

At a time when he had begun to write and to publish (from his own limited funds) books about the Orthodox Faith in the English language, Father Sebastian was following an evangelical path which had been understood by the leadership of the Russian Mission and by others in Saint Petersburg even before he was yet born. Therefore, ever seeking to reach out to those outside the Church, Father Sebastian initiated contacts and discussions with non-Orthodox churches. His principal focus was the Protestant Episcopal Church of the USA, which, at that time, seemed to him and to others as being the most similar to the Orthodox Church amongst non-Orthodox American confessions. He and they also perceived it to be the church most receptive to Orthodoxy. This perception suggests that the main contacts were with the "High Church" Anglicans of that time. For instance, Father Sebastian had developed a correspondence with Bishop Charles Grafton, Episcopalian bishop of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, and there had been a conference of Orthodox-Episcopalian dialogue in Fond du Lac. In November, 1900, Bishop Tikhon (Belavin), together with Father Sebastian and Father John Kochurov, rector of the Chicago cathedral, attended the consecration of a vicar for Bishop Grafton. Not long after this, Bishop Grafton made a visit to Russia.

Priest John Kochurov ; Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabović) ; Bishop Tikhon

Such meetings did not imply any compromise of the Orthodox Christian Faith, but rather a firm witness to this Faith and hope to the others. The intention was to try to entice the strayed sheep to return to the sheepfold. Moreover, in his writings, Father Sebastian made it very clear that there could be no compromise nor betrayal of the Orthodox Christian Faith in such encounters with the non-Orthodox. He wrote :

 [...] Christ forbids us to judge anybody, for only God knows whether our brother culpably holds the error, or whether 
 he believes it to be the truth.  But even if he believes his error to be the truth, error remains error, and can never 
 become truth.  Therefore, we must always condemn error, though we may not condemn the person erring.  

In 1900, Bishop Tikhon assigned the Hieromonk Sebastian (Davovich) to membership in the "North American Ecclesiastical Consistory", which was the equivalent of the diocesan council of the entire North American mission.

1902

In 1902, Father Sebastian continued his missionary activities when he was assigned by Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) to serve in Alaska as the Dean of the Sitka Deanery, and Superintendent of the Alaska missions. While he was in Alaska, he helped establish the Church of Saint Sava in Douglas, near Juneau. Land was donated by the local mining company, and a donation for the Temple’s construction was sent from the Holy Assembly (Synod) of Bishops in Serbia. Working together with the local Orthodox Christians, Father Sebastian built the Temple with his own hands. With the blessing of Bishop Tikhon, on 23 July, 1903, Father Sebastian, along with Hieromonk Anthony (Deshkevich-Koribut) and the Priest Aleksandar Jaroshevich, sanctified the Temple of Saint Sava in Douglas, Alaska.

At this time, Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) elevated the Hieromonk Sebastian (Dabovich) to the dignity of igumen.

Temple of Saint Sava, Douglas, Alaska

Some missionaries, 1902

Later in 1903, Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) sent Igumen Sebastian (Dabovich) to Chicago. On his way there, he stopped to visit the parishioners of the Holy Trinity Temple in Butte, Montana, and to strengthen the community's resolve to provide for a permanent priest. Within 4 months of his visit, enough money was collected to begin construction of the new Temple. In Chicago, Father Sebastian likewise encouraged the now-increased number of Serbian parishioners in the project for establishing a Temple for the Serbian parishioners.

In 1903, with the blessing of the Most Holy Synod, the diocesan see was transferred from San Francisco to New York City.

In 1903, Bishop Innocent (Pustynsky) was ordained to the Holy Episcopate, and he was assigned to serve as the Vicar-Bishop of Sitka and Alaska.

Towards the end of that year, Igumen Sebastian (Dabovich) made a brief visit to Russia and to Serbia before he returned to his labours.

In September, 1904, the new Temple of the Holy Trinity in Butte, Montana, was completed, and on the Feast of the Beheading of Saint John the Forerunner (29 August/11 September), Igumen Sebastian served the first Divine Liturgy in the new Temple. He was assisted by the Serbian priest, Hieromonk Jacob (Odzhich).

Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin) continued to adjust the structure of the Diocese of North America and the Aleutians in order to meet the needs of its multi-ethnic constituents. In the Orthodox spirit of "sobornost" (catholicity), he understood that each ethnic group required special attention and leadership. He expressed this in a report to the Most Holy Synod in 1905 :

 We do not consider that we have the right to interfere with the national character of the churches in this country ; on the 
 contrary, we try to preserve it, giving each a chance to be governed by leaders of the same nationality. 

It was in this spirit that Bishop Innocent (Pustynsky) had been ordained for Alaska, and that Bishop Raphael (Hawaweeny) had been ordained in 1904. It was now his hope to be able to provide similarly for the Serbian parishioners.

Archimandrite Sebastian, Serbian missionaries and others

1905, Serbian Mission

In March, 1905, Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin) established the "Serbian Orthodox Mission in America", with its centre in Chicago. He then blessed Father Sebastian to lead the Serbian Mission.

At that time, Igumen Sebastian (Dabovich) was assigned to serve in Chicago, Illinois. The Serbian community did not yet, however, have its own permanent building. As with many communities everywhere, the rational sheep were unable to galvanise themselves without a shepherd. Therefore, soon after his arrival in June, 1905, Igumen Sebastian served the Divine Liturgy in a rented hall on Milwaukee Avenue, with about 200 Serbian families in attendance. Immediately afterwards, he organised a parish committee, and he began to look for a building suitable for the new Temple. Within a matter of days, the first Serbian Orthodox church in the city had been established.

On "Vidovdan" (the Feast-day of Saint Vitus, and the day of the Battle of Kosovo in 1389), 15/28 June, 1905, Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin) sanctified the Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Temple in Butte. He was assisted by Father Sebastian and by Father Jacob, who became the first permanent priest of this parish.

On 18 September, 1905, Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin) elevated Igumen Sebastian (Dabovich) to the dignity of archimandrite in the new Holy Resurrection Temple in Chicago. At that time, Archbishop Tikhon said to him in public :

 I greet you, most honourable Father Archimandrite Sebastian, with your elevation to the rank of archimandrite and your 
 assignment as head of the Serbian Mission in America.  You were entrusted by the diocesan authorities even earlier, 
 as a native Serb, with the administration of one or another of the Serbian parishes here.  Now you are being called 
 to a greater ministry : upon you is being laid the care of all the Serbian churches in our extensive diocese and of 
 the spiritual needs of all the Serbs in America.  You know how many of them are scattered here : how often they go 
 astray like sheep that have no shepherd, how they end up in a foreign home, and how, having come here for work or 
 to become rich, some of them have become spiritually impoverished and, in this heterodox country, lose the great 
 spiritual treasure of the old country : the holy Orthodox Faith, love for the Slavic people, and fondness for their 
 good native customs.  Our benevolently solicitous hierarchy, which is always concerned about the needs of the Slavs, 
 who are of one blood with us, desires to have mercy on these people, and is calling upon you now to guide spiritually
 the Serbs who are living here.  

In 1905, Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin) nominated Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) to the Most Holy Synod in Saint Petersburg as a candidate for ordination to the Holy Episcopate. It is not completely apparent why this nomination did not proceed, although there were certainly some known complicating factors. Archbishop Tikhon had asked Father Sebastian to write letters to Patriarch Dimitrije (Pavlović) and to the Holy Synod of Bishops in Serbia, and to ask for a letter confirming that, as far as they were concerned, there was no obstacle to the appointment of a bishop for the Serbs in North America. However, the Serbian bishops considered that since they had no first-hand knowledge of the situation in North America, and also not being certain of the relationship between the Russian and Serbian hierarchies in the context of America, they did not feel confident about writing such a letter to the Most Holy Synod in Russia. Moreover, during the summer of that year, Serbia was enmeshed in 3 battles with the Ottomans, and there was also a general election. Furthermore, not all Serbs in the USA wished to be part of the Russian diocese if there were any hope of having an administration in the USA directly connected with Serbia. To this effect, there was some correspondence with bishops in Serbia.

Nevertheless, since Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) was not to become a bishop, he was left free to continue his valuable and broad missionary activities. To become a bishop, because of the nature of episcopal responsibilities, can make some missionary activities much more difficult. However, the many divergent opinions amongst the Serbians in North America did present difficulties for the development of the Serbian Mission as intended by Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin).

Archimandrite Sebastian inside Holy Trinity Church, Chicago

For the next 5 years, Archimandrite Sebastian led the Serbian Mission from its centre at the Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, where he was serving as the parish priest. During his time as head of the Serbian Orthodox Mission, he tended to the needs of the many Serbian communities throughout the country. He also initiated the publication of the "Herald of the Serbian Church in North America", the first Serbian Church newspaper in the USA.

It is useful to know the opinion of Bishop Nikolai (Velimirović) :

 Archimandrite Dabovich could have been a bishop even in 1907.  The Russian archbishop wanted to consecrate him as a 
 Russian bishop for the Serbian people.  But the Serbs did not want it that way.  Archbishop Tikhon was sorry about that. 
 He was eager to show his appreciation to Fr. Dabovich for all his wonderful work.  Failing to make him a bishop, he did 
 something else.  Once when he celebrated the Holy Liturgy in the Serbian church in Chicago, he presented our 
 archimandrite with a precious mitre, which was worth 1,000 roubles in gold.  But Fr. Dabovich quickly sold that 
 precious gift and gave it to the church towards paying its debts. Such a man was he. He was absolutely unselfish. 

Original Holy Resurrection Church, Chicago

In addition to pastoral and missionary work, Archimandrite Sebastian prepared Orthodox literature in the English language : the lives of the saints, an explanation of the services, and collections of sermons.

In 1907, Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin) was transferred away from North America and recalled to serve within the Russian Empire. This decision, taken for whatever reason by the Most Holy Synod, interrupted the focussed development of the North American diocese.

Archbishop Platon (Rozhdestvensky), 1907

In 1907, Archbishop Platon (Rozhdestvensky), the new leader of the Diocese of North America and the Aleutians, arrived in New York City. Archbishop Platon continued to develop the missionary work of the diocese in a manner similar to that of Archbishop Tikhon.

In September, 1908, Archimandrite Sebastian wrote to Archbishop Platon in order to explain the current difficulties faced by the Serbian Mission. The main difficulty was, as it had been, finding an adequate number of Serbian clergy to care for the increasing number of communities that were developing :

 Last Easter in three churches there were no services, a fourth was closed, and many colonies with a fairly dense 
 Orthodox population did not even hear ‘Christ is Risen’.  It is impossible to obtain priests anywhere, and in most 
 cases people cannot give enough to support a priest properly.  Now they have promised me in Belgrade that at the 
 next Assembly of Bishops they will raise the question of allocating two scholarships for the Mission, so that two 
 Serbian lads from America may be educated at a seminary in Serbia.  But this presents other problems : finding the 
 money to send these lads to Europe.  
 
 Serbian archpastors in the Old Country with brotherly love expect Your Eminence to organise our part of the Church. 
 The Lord’s blessing will doubtless be given to a continuation of the work begun with wisdom, after six years of 
 responsibility, by His Eminence Tikhon, now Archpastor of Yaroslavl.  

These words express well enough the difficult situation of Archimandrite Sebastian and the mission, perhaps a variant illustration of the idioms : "sit between 2 stools" or "sit upon 2 chairs". He did not fall between, but he had to manage to sit on both at once, as it were. The 2 chairs may be described as the Russian and Serbian Orthodox Churches. The placement is the missionary field of North America. At that time, following the canonical prescriptions, the Orthodox Church remained one Church for all people under one bishop on one territory. The missionary territory required delicate communications on the part of the Church of Russia with the other Local Churches, such as those of Serbia, Antioch, Greece, Constantinople and others, whose people were now emigrating to North America (and elsewhere), and who needed to be nourished spiritually.

Of course, the situation with the Serbian communities was but one of many similar situations faced by Archbishop Platon, and by Archbishop Tikhon before him. There was a rapid expansion of the number of communities, and it was difficult to find both enough clergy to serve them, and enough money to support them. Speed was of the essence, but the resources were often insufficient.

In 1908, Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) was assigned to serve at Holy Transfiguration Church in Denver, Colorado. This parish, which had been received from the Unia in 1904, consisted of both Serbs and Russians (the term "Russian" ought to be understood loosely : most people called Russians were not from the main part of Russia, but from other parts of the empire).

In July, 1909, Archimandrite Sebastian travelled from Denver to San Francisco, where he took part in the sanctification of the newly-rebuilt Holy Trinity Cathedral.

By this time, Archimandrite Sebastian may have been coming to a point of exasperation. It seemed that he was approaching the limit of his ability to accomplish what he had been blessed to do, and what he had remained committed whole-heartedly to do : to establish and nurture the Serbian Mission.

Despite his determination and commitment, many Serbs in the USA had made it clear to him that they did not wish to support or be united under the Serbian Orthodox Mission because it was within the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church. Some even blamed Father Sebastian for having established the mission under the Russian Church and for situating the Serbian congregations in America under that Church. Such nationalistic sentiments had generally been developing after the revolutions of 1848 under various secular influences (the so-called "Enlightenment" and the ideas of the German philosopher G W F Hegel). Their spirit was contrary to Orthodox Christian ecclesiology, and they influenced the perceptions of Orthodox Christians. Another term used for this phenomenon is "tribalism". It was not at all the Serbs alone who were thus influenced. Not long before this, in 1872, there had been a Pan-Orthodox Synod in Constantinople which condemned "ethno-phyletism". Nevertheless, some rejected the Serbian Mission as being “a totally Russophile agency”, and Father Sebastian as being, in their opinion, a “Russophile”.

All this being the case, it is nevertheless a pastoral principle (well understood by Father Sebastian) that the food presented to the sheep must be recognisable by the sheep as being food before they will take it. In this, whether the sheep are "regular" sheep or the "rational" sheep of the Lord, they behave similarly. Despite the inability of some of the Serbian immigrants to perceive it, Father Sebastian was a selfless servant of Christ in His Church. He neglected himself, and he cared first of all for the spiritual well-being and salvation of Christ’s flock.

Both Archbishop Tikhon and Archimandrite Sebastian understood that, for the Serbian flock in America to be nourished properly, they needed a Serbian archpastor and Serbian priests who spoke their language and understood their needs. This principle had been the motivation for their attempt to organise the Serbian Orthodox Mission and to have a Serbian bishop ordained for North America. Father Sebastian had been open to the possibility of Serbian congregations in America being placed directly under the Serbian Church. However, under the circumstances of the Serbian Church at the time, that Church was not able to shoulder such a responsibility as demanded by some. He, himself, was not concerned about this detail as much as he was that there be good clergy found to care for the many congregations that did not have a permanent pastor. He was further concerned that of the 19 fully-organised communities, only 11 had full-time canonical clergy. This left an open door for wandering impostors and irregular clergy to invade (which they did). In fact, the Serbs were not alone in this vulnerability at that time.

In late 1909, Father Sebastian came to perceive that there was no longer the former general goodwill amongst the Serbian communities towards him. He therefore understood that he would not be able to continue to lead the Serbian Mission, and he asked Archbishop Platon (Rozhdestvensky) to be released from this responsibility. Archimandrite Sebastian also wrote to the Most Holy Synod, in which he included these words :

 Most Serbs have said that they do not want any other jurisdiction, not even Russian, but their own Serbian Church 
 jurisdiction.  On this day I am submitting to North American Archbishop Platon my resignation as administrator 
 of the Serbian Mission, for I am exhausted from the effort and cannot oppose a multitude single-handed. [...] 
 Once again I caution the Holy Synod that the Serbian Church in glorious, vast America has been left without an
 administrator and I urge that a Serbian archpastor be sent.  

In response to Archbishop Platon's report and request in this regard, the Most Holy Synod responded favourably. However, they included in their response the following :

 Concerning the Hieromonk Sebastian, His Grace Tikhon of the Aleutians, in his communication to the Holy Synod of 
 June 2, 1902, no. 74, wrote that the appointed Hieromonk, during his service in the Mission, exerted considerable 
 efforts towards 1) building holy churches in America (the construction of churches in Jackson and Seattle, and the 
 decoration of the cathedral church in San Francisco), 2) organising church-parish life in Minneapolis shortly after
 the parishioners joined the Orthodox Church, 3) raising religious and national consciousness among Slavs scattered 
 across America, 4) acquainting non-Slav Christians (primarily Episcopalians) in America with the teachings of the 
 Orthodox Church, for which purpose he wrote and published, from his meagre resources, several books in English, 
 and 5) translating official documents of the Administration into English. 

1910 : release from the responsibility of leading the Serbian Mission

In 1910, Archbishop Platon released Archimandrite Sebastian from the responsibility of the Serbian Mission, and he assigned him to care for Serbian parishes in California. Father Sebastian soon reported to Archbishop Platon the positive developments regarding these parishes, and about clergy he had found who were arriving to serve some of them.

On 14 August, 1910, the new Saint Basil of Ostrog Temple in Angels Camp, California, was sanctified.

Temple of Saint Basil of Ostrog, Angels Camp, California

Father Sebastian continued to care for other developing communities, including the one in Los Angeles. This newly-constructed Temple of Saint Sava in Los Angeles was sanctified in 1911.

Temple of Saint Sava, Los Angeles, California

Although it is not mentioned that Father Sebastian was directly involved in its establishment, in 1912, the Serbian Congregation of Holy Trinity was established in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Because of his activities, he must have been involved at least by correspondence. Regina, Saskatchewan, is approximately 1,000 km (621 mi) northeast of Butte, Montana, and by this time there were means of easier and more rapid communication and travel between the 2 cities than in the previous decades.

Holy Trinity Temple, Regina, Saskatchewan (est. 1912, constructed 1916)

1912-1913 : chaplaincy in Serbia

Although Father Sebastian intended to continue in Los Angles, events abroad redirected his focus of service. In 1912, the Balkan Wars began. At this time, Father Sebastian felt a responsibility to help there. He received the blessing to be absent on leave, and he travelled to Serbia, where he served as a military chaplain for more than a year. While he was there, he made several pilgrimages to holy places. He also wrote to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Belgrade, in which he supported the development of a diocese of the Church of Serbia in North America.

Then in 1913, with the blessing of Archbishop Platon (Rozhdestvensky), Father Sebastian joined the faculty of the newly-opened Saint Platon Seminary in Tenafly, New Jersey. While he was there, he prepared for ordination several Serbian seminarians, who went on to become much-needed priests for the Serbian parishes in America.

Saint Platon's Theological Seminary, Tenafly, New Jersey

In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Archimandrite Sebastian also travelled to various Serbian communities on the East Coast to serve them. His travels took him also to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The congregation and Temple of Saint Nicholas was established there in 1913. This was now the second Serbian congregation to be established in Canada.

Temple of Saint Nicholas, Hamilton, Ontario

Father Sebastian also continued to be involved in conferences and discussions with the non-Orthodox. As always in such encounters, he took a charitable but uncompromising approach by seeing what was good and right about those he met, but at the same time speaking with love about the cases in which what they believed and practiced was not yet in harmony with the Orthodox way. He continued to encourage the non-Orthodox to "come home".

1914, Archbishop Evdokim (Meschersky)

In 1914, Archbishop Evdokim (Meschersky) took the place of Archbishop Platon (Rozhdestvensky) as the head of the North American Diocese. Archbishop Evdokim proved to be of a different disposition from his predecessor.

In 1915, Archimadnrite Sebastian (Dabovich) met with Archimandrite Nikolaj (Velimirović) in San Francisco. Father Sebastian met him at the railway station, and introduced him to many of the resident Serbs. He then took him to Holy Trinity Cathedral there. A close spiritual kinship began to develop between these two dedicated missionaries. Father Nikolaj later wrote about him :

 He was a sincere and convinced believer and a Christian missionary of world-scope.  He travelled restlessly and 
 preached and lectured indefatigably.  He composed books, wrote articles, epistles, and thousands of private 
 letters to laymen and priests with needed explanations, exhortations and encouragements.  He spoke and wrote 
 in Serbian, English, and Russian.  His clumsy handbag was always full with New Testaments, religious booklets, 
 printed sermons and tracts.  Also with small crosses for boys and girls.  All this he distributed freely.  He 
 never visited a Serbian family empty-handed.  He remembered the apostolic words : 'It is more blessed to give 
 than to receive' (Acts 20:35). 

By 1916, the tension between the Serbian parishes and the Russian Orthodox North American diocese had come to a point of separation. On the one hand, all the registered Serbian parishes wished to form a diocese under the Serbian Orthodox Church. On the other hand, in part because of the nature of the process, the Russian Orthodox Church was unwilling to release the parishes. Further, there was no obvious request for the parishes on the part of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The Serbian Church was at that time greatly beleaguered along with the whole country. At this time, many thousands of Serbs had been forced from their homes in the context of the "Great Retreat", also called the "Albanian Golgotha". Tens of thousands of Serbs perished during this inexpressibly painful time, as they fled their homeland even in the midst of winter. Some eventually returned ; some never returned.

Father Sebastian managed to remain relatively detached from the brewing conflict, but he was not spared being subjected to various unjust accusations. He had formerly been resented by some Serbs for supposedly being too pro-Russian, and now he was resented by some Russians for seeming to be too pro-Serbian. Archbishop Evdokim (Meschersky) was trying to keep the Serbian parishes together in the diocese to which they had come into being. He accused Father Sebastian of “agitating against the Russian Church authorities in America”, and he accused Archimandrite Nikolaj (Velimirović) of “spreading dissension among Serbian parishes in America”.

On 5 October, 1916, Archbishop Evdokim called an Assembly of Serbian Clergy in Chicago, for the purpose of “sorting out the ambitions of the Serbs”. At this meeting, presided over by the archbishop, Father Sebastian was strongly criticised. Contrary to these sorts of attacks, Father Sebastian did not involve himself in empty political polemics. It was always his concern to nourish the spiritual flock in accordance with the Orthodox tradition.

After that meeting, Father Sebastian received a letter of sympathy from one of the Serbian priests present, Father Matej Stijachich :

 With a feeling of profound pain in my soul, I remembered long after our meeting in Chicago [...] that business of ‘bearded 
 children’, and also the personal attacks on Your person at every opportunity.  Believe me, the sympathies of the Serbian 
 clergy were never so much on your side as they are today.  

Archimandrite Nikolaj (Velimirović) commented that Archimandrite Sebastian simply

 went on with his apostolic mission all over America from coast to coast.  Thus many times he visited lonely Serbian 
 families in deserts and wildernesses to administer Holy Sacraments and bring consolation. 

In the face of this situation, and with World War I still raging, and with his ancestral land in shock and in shambles, he felt that he ought to be in Serbia at this time (a spiritual perception and understanding, not mere emotion). He asked the Most Holy Synod of the Church of Russia to release him so that he could serve the Serbian Church in the land of his ancestors.

In 1917 this request was granted, and Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) travelled once again to Serbia in order to serve as chaplain in the Serbian army. Serbia was not liberated until 1918.

Transfer to Serbia-Yugoslavia, 1917

When Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) returned to Serbia (in the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later Yugoslavia), he was sent to serve as a chaplain in the Serbian Army in the aftermath of the "Great Retreat" and the end of World War I. He joined the suffering of his ancestral people, and he accompanied them on their return to their homeland at the end of the war.

After this, Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) continued his pastoral labours in the same manner as before. His life involved repeated travels from Serbia to the USA and back again. By the end of 1917, the tensions between the American Serbs and Russians came to an end. The Bolshevik Revolution of October, 1917, had cut off the North American Diocese from the Church of Russia herself, and the administration of the Russian parishes outside the former Russian Empire was in great disarray. This situation persisted for very many years.

In February, 1921, Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) met Bishop Nikolaj (Velimirović) in New York City. Vladkika Nikolaj had been ordained to the Holy Episcopate in 1919. His was the first visit of any Serbian hierarch to North America. Both men respected each other as true servants of the Lord, servants who loved the Lord above and beyond all else. Vladika Nikolaj later wrote about this meeting :

 His poverty amazed me when I met him. [...] I invited him to lunch.  Blushing, he said, 'Thank you ; I just
 bought a roll of bread with my last five cents'.  And salary ? None.  He lived on people’s freely given 
 donations.  And still, even with empty pockets, he planned new journeys to Alaska, to Japan, and of course 
 to Europe.  'But you are without means !' I remarked.  He smiled with his usual childlike and fascinating
 smile and quoted the Bible : 'The Lord will provide' (see Genesis 22:8).  And marvellously enough, the Lord 
 always provided for His faithful servant.  

By 1921, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North America had been established. Archimandrite Sebastian had some hope that the Serbs might receive a bishop and a diocesan organisation as well, since Bishop Nikolaj (Velimirović) had arrived in the USA to investigate the situation in order to make proposals. Therefore, he addressed Patriarch Dimitrije (Pavlović) of Serbia about the matter :

 Considering the conditions and problems of the Serbian population in colonies across America, with their churches, 
 organisation and needs, it is imperative to undertake as soon as possible the reorganisation and unification of our 
 parishes and missions there, so that it truly becomes the Serbian Church in America.  His Grace Bishop Nikolaj could 
 do this, taking advantage of the present circumstances which are well known to him, especially since he enjoys the 
 sympathies of the authorities there.  

In the autumn, Metropolitan Varnava (Rosic) proposed that Bishop Nikolaj (Velimirović) be assigned to North America, with Archimandrite Mardarije (Uskoković) as his assistant. There was resistance in Serbia about exporting Bishop Nikolaj. Debate continued until it was decided in 1923 that Archimandrite Mardarije (Uskoković) would be assigned to serve as administrator for the newly-formed Serbian Orthodox Diocese of North America and Canada. The matter of deciding upon a bishop continued to include the candidacy of Archimandrite Sebastian. However, in 1925, the Holy Assembly of Serbian Bishops elected Archimandrite Mardarije as the Bishop of the American-Canadian Diocese. On 25 April, 1926, he was ordained in Belgrade, and he arrived in the USA in July, 1926.

While he was in the USA in 1921, Archimandrite Sebastian was contracted by the American Bible Society to distribute Bibles in the Balkans. In the USA, he continued to serve in Serbian Orthodox Temples, and also in the homes of those believers who lived far from an Orthodox Temple, and who were unable to travel to any Temple. During such visits, he would often see to the baptism of children and to the solemnising of marriages, and he would provide in other appropriate ways for their spiritual welfare.

Archimandrite Sebastian also continued his missionary journeys to the Orthodox Mission in Japan, which had long interested and inspired him. Already in 1912 (not long before his repose), Archbishop Nicholas (Kasatkin) of Japan had proposed that Father Sebastian stay in Japan and do missionary work there. Although he had been unable to remain, Father Sebastian returned many times in order to support the missionary labours of the Church in Japan. He likewise continued to travel to the USA for a similar purpose. Later, Bishop Nikolaj (Velimirović) wrote about him that Father Sebastian had traversed the Pacific Ocean 9 times during his lifetime, and the Atlantic Ocean 15 times.

After the fifteenth crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, Archimandrite Sebastian remained in Serbia, now in retirement. Patriarch Varnava (Rosić) gave him an apartment, where he lived until 1938. Then he moved to the diocese Bishop Nikolaj, and to the monastery in Zhicha, where he stayed for a time. He had a faithful cell-attendant, the Priest Jovan Rapaich who cared for him for the remainder of his days. Father Sebastian went for a time to Herceg Novi (from where his parents had emigrated), and then he returned finally to Zhicha.

By 1940, Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) had become quite enfeebled because his heart was malfunctioning. Bishop Nikolaj visited him very frequently, and provided for his needs (for which Father Sebastian was very grateful).

During Bishop Nikolaj's last visit to Father Sebastian, Vladika Nikolaj reported that Father Sebastian was sitting in an armchair, and that his breathing was laboured. When Vladika Nikolaj asked him whether he needed anything, Father Sebastian uttered his last words : “The Heavenly Kingdom without end !” [The intent is the Kingdom of Heaven where there is life eternal.] Bishop Nikolaj reported that "These were his last words, representative of his entire service on earth".

Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich)

Repose, 1940

Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) fell asleep in the Lord on 30 November, 1940, in the Monastery of Žiča (Zhicha) in Yugoslavia (as it was at that time called).

On the eve and the morning of 1 December, 1940, the Funeral Services for the Burial of a Presbyter (Hieromonk) were offered by Bishop Nikolaj (Velomirovic) and others in the monastery's Temple. Present was the American Consul General.

After the funeral services, the body of Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) was interred in the monastery cemetery.

1987 Grave-marker in Žiča ; monuments in California

It should be understood that during the next year, 1941, the Axis forces invaded Serbia. The Zhicha Monastery was in one of the centres of battle. As a consequence, the monastery was bombed, and then set afire by the Nazi Germans.

Because of this, the grave-marker that remained for Archimandrite Sebastian was merely two pieces of metal in the form of the Cross, which simply bore his name. This is itself an expression of his Christian monastic humility.

Glorification, 2015

In 2007, with the blessing of Bishop Hrizostom (Stolić) of Zhicha and the blessing of Bishop Maxim (Vasilijević) of Western America, Father Sebastian’s remains were disinterred from his grave in Zhicha Monastery in Serbia and they were transferred to the Saint Sava Church in Jackson, California (the first Temple founded by Father Sebastian, and the first Serbian Orthodox Church in the Western Hemisphere), where they were again interred.

On 1 September, 2007, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated in Jackson to mark this occasion, the bishops serving included Metropolitan Christopher (Kovacevic) (Serbian Orthodox Church), Metropolitan Joseph (Bosakov) (Bulgarian Orthodox Church), Archbishop Kyrill (Dmitrieff) of San Francisco and the Western American Diocese (Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia), Bishop Irinej (Dobrijevich) of the Diocese of Australia and New Zealand, and numerous priests and deacons. The Divine Liturgy was followed by a memorial service for Father Sebastian, the interment of his remains in the Saint Sava Church, and by a talk about Father Sebastian’s life by Bishop Irinej (Dobrijevich) of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Australia and New Zealand.

Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabović) was glorified by the Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church at its regular session 14-29 May, 2015.

 The Holy Assembly of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church during its regular session held 
 from 14-29 May, 2015, inspired and guided by the Holy Spirit, decided that his name be added 
 to the Diptych of saints of the Holy Orthodox Church.  From the holy Archimandrite Sebastian 
 Dabovich (1863-1940) we realise how historical predicaments become a starting point for 
 knowledge of God and spontaneous praise.

Saint Sebastian (Dabović) was glorified at the same time as Saint Mardarije (Uskoković). They were both referred to as “preachers of the Gospel, God-pleasing servants of the holy life, and inspirers of many missionaries”.

Feast-days

Saint Sebastian (Dabović) is commemorated on 17/30 November, the date of his repose.

With the blessing, he may be commemorated also on 19 May, the date of the glorification.

Tropar Tone 4

O God of our Fathers,

ever act with kindness towards us.

Take not away Your mercy from us ;

but through the supplications of Holy Archimandrite Sebastian

guide our lives in peace.

Kontak Tone 8

O Apostle and Enlightener of America, born in San Francisco,

the first one born in America to become an Orthodox priest,

fiery preacher of the word of Christ amongst the peoples of America,

you travelled throughout the country, and you preached the Truth and love.

You confirmed many souls in the Orthodox Faith,

and you erected many Temples to the glory of God.

Although you were poor, you were rich in the Holy Spirit.

O Father Sebastian of Jackson, and Apostle of all America,

intercede with the Lord whom you served with your whole heart,

that He give us your last spoken wish : “the Kingdom of Heaven without end”.

Saint Sebastian (right) and Saint Mardarije (left)``

Icons of Saint Sebastian (Dabović)

Reflections

It was previously written that Father Sebastian (Dabovich) faced the difficulty of "sitting between 2 chairs", with regard to the relationship between the Russian and Serbian Orthodox Churches. In his own life, this was also the case. He was the first priest who was born in North America to be serving on this continent. He was a diligent and zealous shepherd. Nevertheless, the vast majority of people he cared for were those who had immigrated to North America`. From having lived in Europe, they had a different formation. From having lived in what may be called Yugoslvia (where they had been constantly under pressure from the Ottoman Empire and from the Austro-Hungarian Empire), they had a different perspective. These differences produced greater and greater difficulties for all concerned as time progressed.

Bishop Irinej (Dobrijevic) wrote that :

 At the time of his death, Fr. Sebastian owned nothing more than a gold cross, some books, and a few personal mementos. 
 He had long since given away any significant personal possessions to the poor and needy, choosing for himself a life
 of poverty, simplicity, and dedicated missionary service.

This apostle of North America was the first Orthodox priest who was born in the USA itself, and he is also the first native-born American to be tonsured as an Orthodox monk. (Alaskan-born priests were ordained before Father Sebastian, but this was when Alaska was still part of Russia.) In his missionary motivation, and in the manner of his missionary travels and preaching, he rather reflects the Apostle Paul (apart from being shipwrecked and imprisoned). As with the Apostle Paul, a saying of the 20th century may express the many difficulties of life : "No good deed goes unpunished". Although not likely intended by the originators, this saying expresses the typical response of evil to the action of good, as expressed in the Gospel according to John, "And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it" (John 1:5). Darkness tries in vain to keep away the light. Likewise, "He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him" (John 1:11) applies, as with Christ, to both. Both, as the Lord, suffered slander. Both loved the Lord intensely, and they were both undaunted by difficulties, obstacles and opposition.

Known as the “Father of Serbian Orthodoxy in America”, Father Sebastian built up the souls of believers of many nationalities including Serbs. He organised the Church, erected houses of prayer, and was devoted to charitable work. In addition to establishing many churches, Saint Sebastian also wrote many articles and sermons. As part of his missionary labours, Father Sebastian compiled one of the first English translations of the Divine Liturgy, and he wrote and published, from his own meagre means, some of the first English-language books of Orthodox catechism. He is distinguished by the tremendous apostolic, pastoral, and literary work that he accomplished during the 48 years of his priestly ministry.

Besides bearing witness to his missionary and pastoral zeal, Father Sebastian’s books also testify to his ardent love for Jesus Christ and His Church, to the depth of his knowledge of the Orthodox Christian Faith, to his careful adherence to the teachings of the Church, to his literary and poetic gifts, and to his profound sense of spiritual beauty. A large portion of the books consists of sermons that he gave in Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Cathedral in San Francisco and in mission parishes on various feast-days. These sermons reveal him as an inspired preacher, whose words could soar to the heights and at the same time strike deeply the hearts of his listeners.

Bishop Ireinej (Dobrijević) said about him that :

 Although he was of Serbian ancestry, Fr. Sebastian knew his task was to minister to Orthodox Christians of all ethnic 
 backgrounds, and to minister and reach out to the non-Orthodox as well. Being fluent in English, Serbian, and Russian, 
 and knowing some Greek as well, Fr. Sebastian was a bridge between the New World and the ancient Faith of traditional 
 Orthodox lands.  In the words of Bishop Irinej : 'By every report Sebastian Dabovich was not one to ask about jurisdictional 
 or national affiliation before setting out on long journeys to minister to Orthodox Christians in mining communities, 
 lumber camps, or far-distant towns or villages.  He offered his pastoral services with a free hand to anyone who was in need. 
 Just as he gave no thought to his own comforts as a youth, caring more for the needs of others than for his own concerns, 
 Fr. Sebastian denied himself all worldly comforts of home, family, or earthly possessions, so that he could provide for the
 spiritual needs of the Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Greek, Syrian, or Arab Orthodox Christians who required his aid.  
 He took part in the work of Saint Alexis Toth of Wilkes-Barre to bring former Uniats more fully into the Orthodox ethos 
 and way of life ; and he laboured to bring Episcopalians into the saving enclosure of the Orthodox Faith and Church.  
 He was an Orthodox apostle of universal significance'.  

Bishop Irinej (Dobrijević) also wrote about Archimandrite Sebastian (Dabovich) :

 Without any outside funding or organisational support, he carried the gospel of peace from 
 country to country. [...] Concentrating much of his work in the United States, he ceaselessly 
 travelled back and forth across the American continent, using every available mode of 
 transportation — from stagecoach to railroad to foot.  His wider ministry stretched from the 
 Aleutian Peninsula of Alaska, to Russia and Japan, to small Balkan towns on the coasts of 
 the Black and Adriatic Seas.  

Saint Nicolaj (Velimirović) of Žiča (Zhicha), Serbia, who buried Father Sebastian at the Zhicha Monastery when the latter reposed there in 1940, called him “a viceless man” ; and And Saint Nikolaj fittingly designated him “the greatest Serbian missionary of modern times”.

Ten years after Father Sebastian’s repose, Saint Nikolaj wrote about him :

 Here is a man who indebted all the Serbian race, especially all the Serbs and all the 
 Serbian organisations in America.  Should that man remain without a monument or any sign of 
 honour on American soil ? He does not need it.  He did not wish it.  All he wished to his last 
 breath was the Kingdom of Heaven, which I believe he has obtained by the Grace of his Lord. 
 But his people need it ; his posterity needs it.  The Serbian people always cultivated the 
 noble virtue of gratitude.  Let them express their traditional gratitude to this remarkable
 Serbian — Father Sebastian Dabovich. 

In the Serbian Western Diocese, an annual Saints Sebastian and Mardarije Orthodox Institute was established.

Awards :

Order of Saint Daniel from Prince Nicholas of Montenegro, 1897

Order of Saint Anne, from Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, 1899

Awards from the King of Serbia and from the Patriarch of Jerusalem

Writings

Some Writings

• "The Holy Orthodox Church" (1898) ISBN : 9781230211879. alternative source

• "The Lives of the Saints" (1898) ISBN : 1933275383.

• "Preaching in the Russian Church : Lectures and Sermons by a Priest of the Holy Orthodox Church" (1899) ISBN : 1933275227. Reprinted in June, 2008, by the "Orthodox Research Institute" ; ISBN 10 : 1933275227 ; ISBN 13 : 978-33275222. alternative source

• Homily : “On the Condition of Society”.

• Sermon on the Feast of the Ascension.

• "Orthodox Church in California from 1806 until 1840".

• The Lives of the Saints, and several Lectures and Sermons

• “Saint Innocent of Alaska” (100th Anniversary of his birth).

• ‘A History of San Francisco’s Orthodox Community’ in “Russian American Orthodox Messenger” (13 & 27 April, 1898).

• ……“The Death of Bishop Nestor (Zass).”

Towards the end of the nineteenth century, Father Sebastian developed one of the first English language translations of the Orthodox Divine Liturgy. In addition, he wrote articles about Orthodoxy in Alaska and California, about Orthodox traditions surrounding the Feast of the Nativity of Christ, and about many other subjects not presently available.

Writings about Saint Sebastian (Dabovich) by various authors

Great gratitude is expressed to "The Orthodox Word" for its biographical publications about the life of Saint Sebastian.

Synaxis of the Saints of Holy Trinity Cathedral, Chicago Saint Sebastian

References

(Christiansen), Hieromonk Damascene, ‘Archimandrite Sebastian Dabovich: Serbian Orthodox Apostle’ in “The Orthodox Word”, vol. 43, nos. 1-2 (January-April, 2007), pp. 252-253.

'The Glorification of St. Sebastian' in "The Orthodox Word, vol. 51, no. 5 (304) (September–October, 2015).

Orthodoxwiki biography

Biography of Saint Sebastian on the web-site of Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Church in Tacoma, Washington

Russian Wikipedia biography

Article about the reburial of the relics of Archimandrite Sebastian in 2007

Additional information :

(Christensen), Hieromonk Damascene, “Archimandrite Sebastian Dabovich : Honouring an American Apostle”

Dobrijevich, Mirko (later Irinej, Bishop of Australia and New Zealand), ‘The First American Serbian Apostle – Archimandrite Sebastian Dabovich’ in “Again”, vol. 16, no. 4 (December 1993), pp. 13, 15.

Namee, Matthew, “Fr. Sebastian Dabovich & the mystery of St. Tikhon’s miter”

Palandech, John R, “Commemorative Book of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Chicago, 1905-1955” (Chicago, IL : Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Cathedral).

Pavlovich, Paul, “A History of the Serbian Orthodox Church” (Serbian Heritage Books, 1989). ISBN 10 : 096913312X ; ISBN 13 : 9780969133124.

…..“The Serbians : Story of a People” (Serbian Heritage Books, 1988). ISBN 10 : 0969133111 ; ISBN 13 : 978-0969133117.

Sanidopoulos, John, “Archimandrite Sebastian Dabovich : Serbian Orthodox Apostle to America”, 30 November, 2017

Stokoe M, Kishkovsky, L, ‘The Serbs’ in “Orthodox Christians in North America, 1794-1994”, chapter 4, p. 24

Tarasar, Constance J, ed., "Orthodox America 1794-1976 : Development of The Orthodox Church in America" (Syosset, NY : The Orthodox Church in America Department of History and Archives, 1975). ASIN : B000ZLZAUE.

Vallens, Alexander, “Archimandrite Sebastian Dabovich: The First Serbian Orthodox Apostle” (2005).

(Velimirovich) Bishop Nikolai, ‘Father Sebastian Dabovich’ in “Serb National Federation Commemorative Book, 1951” (Pittsburgh, PA : Serb National Federation).

Vukovic, Sava, Bishop of Sumadija, “History of the Serbian Orthodox Church in America and Canada, 1891-1941” (Alhambra, CA : Sebastian Press, 1998). ISBN : 281-96173-1891-1941.

The “Russian Mission” in North America

Archbishop Tikhon (Belavin)

Bishop Raphael (Hawaweeny)

Bishop Mardarije (Uskoković)

Bishop Nikolaj (Velimirović)

Metropolitan Platon (Rozhdestvensky)

Archbishop Evdokim (Meschersky)

Archbishop Alexander (Nemolovsky)

Bishop Georgije (Ðjokić)

Bishop Mitrofan (Kodić)

History of Saint Spiridon’s Cathedral, Seattle

Holy Missionaries MARDARIJE (Uskokovic) and SEBASTIAN (Dabovich) Newly Proclaimed Saints of the Orthodox Church! Western American Diocese of the Church of Serbia.

Saint Sava Serbian cemetery in Jackson, California

'St. Sava Turns 125: The Back Story Part V – Sebastian Dabovich and The Founding of St. Sava' in "Ledger News" 10 November, 2019

Photos of the new headstone for Archimandrite Sebastian in Jackson, California

Pravoslavie.ru "2015 Symposium in Honour of Newly-Glorified St. Sebastian Dabovich"

Biography "St. Sebastian of San Francisco and Jackson" on the web-site of All Saints of North America, Sun City, Arizona

Article about St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church in Douglas, Alaska

Video about Market Street, San Francisco, 14 April, 1906 (before the earthquake)

History of the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Chicago, Illinois

Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral, Chicago, Illinois

Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Church, Regina, Saskatchewan

“In California, the first American Orthodox Priest Archimandrite Sevastian (Dabovich) was Reburied”, 7 September, 2007

Serbica Americana : "Archimandrite Sebastian Dabovich - The Beginning of His Apostolic Labour" (eserbia.org site)

OCA news item : "Serbian Orthodox Church Glorifies Two North Americans"

Orthodox History : "An Interview with Fr. Sebastian Dabovich"

Pravmir biography "Holy Missionary Sebastian (Dabovich) of Jackson"

2015 Feast-day item : "Memory of St. Sebastian of San Francisco and Jackson Celebrated"

Article "Life of the Serbs before the founding of the Serbian Mission in America 1905"

OCA represented at the Canonisation of Saints Sebastian and Mardarije

“The Newly Glorified St Sebastian of San Francisco” (podcast)

Video : St Sebastian Dabovic - Priest's Travelling Kit

"The Orthodox Faith" : a catechetical series by the Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko

Orthodox Christian Fellowship catechism

Saint Sava Orthodox Church, Jackson, CA

Orthodoxwiki article about the Orthodox Church in America

Orthodoxwiki article about the Orthodox Church of Serbia

Orthodoxwiki article about the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of North and South America

Wikipedia article about the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Canada

Web-site of the Serbian Diocese of Canada

‘Our Serbian Orthodox Church : 800 Years on the Path of Saint Sava’ in “Istocnik – Herald of the Serbian Orthodox Church-Canadian Diocese”, issue 105 (August, 2019), pp. 27-34.

“Serbian Church holds Main Celebration for 800th Anniversary of Autocephaly” at Žiča, Serbia, 8 October, 2019 [with video]

“OCA represented at 800th Anniversary of Autocephaly Celebration of Serbian Orthodox Church” (2019)

2017 article about the consequences of anti-Serbian sentiment in the USA