St. Sava

St. Sava was born around 1174, the youngest son of Stefan Nemanja, the founder of the medieval Serbian state. As a youth he fled the court to become a monk on Mount Athos, where he was later joined by his own father, who had abdicated his throne; together they founded the monastery of Hilandar, which became a great center of Serbian spiritual and cultural life.

Returning to his homeland, Sava labored to bring peace among his quarreling brothers and to strengthen the Christian faith and learning of his people; consecrated the first archbishop of the Serbian Church, he organized its life, gave it laws, translated and composed sacred writings, and founded churches and schools, so that he is honored as the father of Serbian literature and the enlightener of his nation. He died in 1236 while returning from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and he is venerated as the great patron saint of Serbia, commemorated on 14 January.