Archpriest Milorad Milosevich, retired rector of Saint Luke Church here, fell asleep in the Lord on the afternoon of June 22, 2010. His health had been steadily declining for the past several years.
Born in Bosnia in 1931, Father Milorad studied engineering before having a deep personal experience of Christ, which led him to pursue theological studies. In seminary his favorite professor was Father [now Saint] Justin Popovich. In the late 1950s, he fled Yugoslavia’s political regime, first finding asylum in Greece and then traveling to the US, where he enrolled at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary, Crestwood, NY. After his graduation in 1961, he was awarded a scholarship to study at the World Council of Churches’ graduate schools in Bossey, Switzerland, and Salonika, Greece.
He married the former Rose [Ruza] Milasinovic in 1961 and was ordained to the priesthood the following year by His Grace, Bishop Dionisije of the Serbian Orthodox Church at Holy Trinity Church, Youngstown, OH, after which he was assigned as the first full-time priest at Saint Luke Mission, McLean, VA. Under his leadership, the fledgling community purchased a five-acre lot in 1971, on which a church and hall were completed in 1976. In 1981, he and the parish were received into the Orthodox Church in America.
For 47 years, Father Milorad lovingly cared for and instructed his parishioners, celebrating with their joys and helping them to turn to Christ when the sailing got rough, and always leading by personal example. His focus always was on bringing his parishioners closer to God through more attentiveness to Scripture, frequent Communion and Confession, and the pastoral love and care that he displayed his parishioners and those around him. When not serving in the altar, he was often found planting trees or doing ground maintenance on the church property or helping in the church kitchen. He also served as a Serbo-Croatian language specialist with the US State Department for 24 years. Declining health caused him to retire from active ministry in 2009, but he continued to worship at Saint Luke’s with his beloved parishioners until he was hospitalized a few weeks before his death.
Father Milorad is survived by his wife, Protinitsa Rose, and by a devoted and supportive extended family that includes his sister-in-law, nephews and nieces.
His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah will preside at funeral services at Saint Luke Church. The Funeral Vigil will be celebrated on Friday, June 25, at 7:00 p.m. The Divine Liturgy will be celebrated on Saturday, June 26 at 9:00 a.m., followed by interment at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Silver Spring MD. A memorial meal will follow in the parish hall.
May Father Milorad’s memory be eternal!