JOHNSTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA = BISHOP IRINEJ'S GULAG“Unlimited power in the hands of limited people always leads to cruelty!” Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn FINAL PART

THE PATTERN CRYSTALLIZES: EPISCOPAL GULAG

By now, the pattern is undeniable:

Johnstown, Pennsylvania = Episcopal Gulag - where "inconvenient" priests are sent, far from major communities, support networks, anyone who might ask questions. Not a parish. A punishment.

Steubenville, Ohio = Secondary exile location

Removal without stated reason = Standard procedure

Targeting family members = Acceptable tactic

Leaving pregnant women without insurance = Not a problem

Forcing exodus to other jurisdictions = Common result

This has been happening since 2017 - eight years of destroying priests, traumatizing families, shattering communities.

THE LATEST VICTIM: FR. DRAGOSLAV KOSIĆ (2025)

Fr. Dragoslav Kosić - nephew of the already-persecuted Fr. Rajko Kosić - becomes the latest victim.

WHO HE IS:

Born May 18, 1978, Protopresbyter Dragoslav Kosić is not some inexperienced priest who stumbled into this crisis. He is:

EDUCATED:

· St. Arsenije Sremac Seminary, Sremski Karlovci, Serbia (1992-1997)

· St. Sava Theological Faculty, Libertyville, Illinois (1998-2002)

MULTILINGUAL: - Serbian, and English

EXPERIENCED:

• Diocesan Secretary, Eastern American Diocese (2003-2010) – more than 7 years working within the diocesan administration during the time of Bishop Dr. Mitrofan Kodić. He SAW how things are supposed to function. He KNOWS the proper canonical procedures. This made him dangerous - you can't lie to him about "diocesan authority" when he worked in the diocesan office for over seven years.

• Nearly 23 years of total service (more than 7 years as diocesan secretary + 15.5 years of parish ministry) across multiple states:

  • St. Sava, Boston, MA (2010-2011)

  • St. Basil of Ostrog, Greensboro/Winston-Salem, NC (2011-2016)

  • Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God, Charlottesville/Richmond, VA (2013-2016)

  • St. Symeon the Myrrh-gusher, Charlotte, NC (2012-2015)

For three years (2013-2015), he served THREE parishes simultaneously - driving hundreds of miles every week between North Carolina and Virginia communities. This wasn't ambition. This was sacrificial service to small Serbian communities who couldn't afford full-time priests.

• St. Sava Cathedral, Parma (August 2016-October 2025) - Nine years building a thriving community. Nine years of transparent financial management. Nine years earning the trust of families who would eventually stand in -2°F snow rather than abandon him.

THE ASSETS HE PROTECTED: St. Sava Cathedral sits on approximately $8 million in property with $1.8 million in liquid assets. Fr. Dragoslav believed in financial transparency - showing parishioners bank statements, explaining decisions, accounting for every dollar.

This made him a threat. Good priests who demand accountability over millions in assets cannot be tolerated by bishops who want control.

THE FAMILY VENDETTA: His uncle, Fr. Rajko Kosić, was removed from Holy Trinity Pittsburgh in 2020 after 20 years of faithful service only in that parish. Bishop Irinej doesn't just target individual priests - he targets families. Uncle removed in 2020. Nephew removed in 2025.

THE REMOVAL:

October 28, 2025: After nine years of faithful service, Fr. Dragoslav received his removal notice.

Notice given: 48 hours to one week (sources vary, but certainly less than one month)

Reason provided: None. No canonical trial. No charges filed. No accusations made.

Real reason: Parishioners had filed canonical appeals to the Holy Synod in Belgrade (August-October 2025). 120+ families formally complained about Bishop Irinej's governance abuses. As their parish priest, Fr. Dragoslav did what canon law requires - when parishioners write letters requesting forwarding to the Holy Synod, the priest forwards them to the bishop, and the bishop is canonically obligated to forward them to the Synod. When parishioners ask questions, the priest must respond. These are not optional courtesies - these are canonical obligations.

But under Bishop Irinej, nothing was ever done right. Letters went unanswered. Forwarding requests were ignored. Canonical procedures were treated as suggestions, not requirements.

Fr. Dragoslav simply fulfilled his priestly duty to facilitate proper canonical procedure. That made him a target for retaliation.

THE TERROR BEGINS:

What follows is not just removal. It's systematic terrorization of a priest and his family.

November-December 2025: Fr. Dragoslav falls seriously ill. He is bedridden - too weak to stand, too sick to defend his family.

Bishop Irinej knows this. And chooses this exact moment to strike.

December 5, 2025 - THE HOME INVASION:

While Fr. Dragoslav lies helpless in bed, unable to even get up:

• Bishop's kumovi and family members break into the parish residence through the basement

• They invade while children are home

• They change ALL the locks on the doors

• The children cry in terror, watching strangers take over their home

• Fr. Dragoslav - bedridden and sick - can only watch helplessly as his family is terrorized

• His wife, Protinica, collapses unconscious from the trauma

• She is hospitalized

• Police arrive - not to protect the family, but to ENFORCE the illegal invasion

• The invaders claim authority from the bishop

THE CRUELTY:

Think about the specific, calculated cruelty:

A priest is bedridden. Too sick to stand. Physically helpless.

Bishop Irinej KNOWS this - and chooses that exact moment to invade his home.

Why? Because a sick, helpless man cannot physically defend his wife and children. Cannot stop the lock-changing. Cannot prevent strangers from terrorizing his family. He can only lie there, helpless, watching his wife collapse and his children cry.

Maximum psychological trauma. Minimum risk of physical resistance.

This is not church discipline. This is calculated cruelty designed to break a man's spirit by terrorizing his family at his most vulnerable moment.

THE AFTERMATH:

• Fr. Dragoslav: Sick and bedridden, traumatized by watching his family terrorized while helpless to protect them

• Protinica: Hospitalized from trauma of the invasion, collapsed unconscious

• Children: Crying, terrified in their own home, traumatized by watching their mother collapse and their sick father unable to help

• The home: Locks changed, family locked out of their own residence

• The evidence: All on videos - proving Bishop ordered it

Three days later (December 8): Bishop's illegal "trusteeship" issues official statement claiming Bishop was "falsely accused" of calling police and ordering the invasion.

The lie immediately destroyed: Video from December 5th shows trustee Katarina Derekh:

• Confessing: "The diocese made the decision about the priest"

• Offering her phone to police so they could speak directly with Bishop Irinej

You cannot claim the Bishop "didn't know" when his trustee is offering her phone to police to speak with him in real-time during the invasion.

WHAT'S DIFFERENT THIS TIME:

The others:

• Fr. Stefan → Exiled to ROCOR (community couldn't save him)

• Fr. Zivojin → Fought back, eventually won (after being removed twice)

• Fr. Rajko → Transferred to Steubenville (community couldn't save him)

• Fr. Njegoš → Fled to Canada with pregnant wife (no choice)

Fr. Dragoslav → THE PEOPLE STOOD FOR HIM.

120+ families said: "NO."

Not "no" with violence. Not "no" with schism. Not "no" by leaving the Church.

But "NO" with:

• ✅ Canonical appeals to the Holy Synod (August-October 2025) - properly filed, properly documented

• ✅ Peaceful Sunday vigils in the parking lot - every week since November

• ✅ Documented evidence of every violation - video, photos, police reports

• ✅ Video proof of Bishop's direct involvement in December 5th invasion

• ✅ Public witness in -2°F snow - families praying outside their own cathedral

• ✅ Refusing to legitimize the illegal regime that replaced their priest

For the first time in eight years of persecution, Bishop Irinej faced organized, documented, peaceful resistance.

And when faced with resistance, he escalated to physical home invasion and family terrorization.

THE HOME INVASION TACTIC - PERFECTED

This wasn't the first time Bishop Irinej used home invasion as a weapon against clergy families.

In 2024 at St. Elijah Aliquippa, board members regularly entered Fr. Njegoš's parish house at will, disregarding his privacy, declaring "This is OUR parish home" - making the young priest and his pregnant wife feel unsafe in their own home.

Bishop Irinej had perfected the tactic: Make priests feel they don't belong. Invade their homes. Pressure them to leave.

By December 5, 2025, the tactic had escalated from psychological intimidation to actual physical invasion:

Bishop's kumovi and family members invaded Fr. Dragoslav's home while he lay bedridden and helpless. They changed the locks on the doors. They terrorized the family. Fr. Dragoslav's wife collapsed unconscious from the trauma and was hospitalized.

The pattern evolved:

• 2024 (St. Elijah): Board enters at will, "our home" declarations, psychological pressure

• 2025 (St. Sava Parma): Physical home invasion, lock-changing, family terrorization, wife hospitalized, sick priest helpless

Same bishop. Same tactic. Escalated cruelty.

This time, Bishop Irinej can't bury it. This time, the pattern is exposed.

THE COMMON THREAD: GOOD PRIESTS ARE DANGEROUS

Look at the victims:

✅ Fr. Stefan Zaremba - 27 years faithful service, Dean, Children's Camp Director✅ Fr. Zivojin Jakovljevic - Ph.D., Cathedral Dean, demanded $8M audit✅ Fr. Rajko Kosić - 20 years at Pittsburgh✅ Fr. Njegoš Perković - Young priest at $2M parish, wouldn't be puppet✅ Fr. Dragoslav Kosić - Beloved by 120 families standing in snow - parish with $1.8 million in liquid assets and properties valued at approximately $8 million

Notice what's missing: Lazy priests. Corrupt priests. Bishop Irinej doesn't remove bad priests. He removes good ones.

Why? Because good priests are dangerous to corrupt bishop, or maybe, just maybe, they have strong Serbian genes?

Good priests have the people's trust, ask uncomfortable questions about finances, build strong communities, actually shepherd their flocks.

Bishop Irinej can't tolerate that. So he destroys them. One by one. Year after year.

THE PATTERN OF FALSE OR VAGUE ACCUSATIONS

But notice something else - a systematic pattern that proves this is not legitimate church discipline:

In every single case, accusations are either non-existent, vague, or have no names attached:

FR. STEFAN ZAREMBA (2017):

• Accusation: "Needs of the diocese"

• Specifics: None

• Names of complainants: None

• Canonical trial: None

• Just: Removal decree

FR. RAJKO KOSIĆ (2020):

• Accusation: None given

• Reason provided: None

• Names of complainants: None

• Canonical trial: None

• Just: Transfer order

FR. NJEGOŠ PERKOVIĆ (2024):

• Accusation: "Bad behavior"

• Written complaints: None

• Witnesses willing to testify: None

• Names attached: None

• Anything verifiable: None

• Just: False accusations designed to intimidate

FR. DRAGOSLAV KOSIĆ (2025):

• Accusation: None

• Canonical trial: None

• Charges filed: None

• Names of complainants: None

• Just: Removal as retaliation

Why no names? Why no specifics? Why no witnesses? Because there are no real complaints. Just a bishop's decree - vague, unverifiable, unchallengeable.

Canon law grants bishops the authority to transfer priests for legitimate pastoral needs. Bishops across the Serbian Orthodox Church exercise this authority properly and with pastoral care. This is proper church governance.

But Bishop Irinej's pattern reveals something different:

When priests are systematically removed with accusations that have no names, no witnesses, no specifics - when there is no due process, no opportunity to defend, no canonical trial - this is not the proper exercise of episcopal authority. This is the abuse of that authority. This is a tyranny!

The question for the Holy Synod is not whether bishops have the right to transfer priests - of course they do.

The question is: Should a bishop be allowed to use that authority systematically against good priests with fabricated or unsubstantiated accusations? Should eight years of this pattern be permitted to continue?

The cruelty of this method:

When accusations are vague or have no names attached, priests cannot defend themselves. How do you prove innocence against charges that don't exist? How do you refute witnesses who won't come forward because they don't exist? How do you challenge a vague "needs of the diocese" with no explanation?

You can't.

And when episcopal authority is used this way - not for pastoral care, but as a weapon against good priests - it becomes abuse.

2017: Fr. Stefan Zaremba2020: Fr. Zivojin Jakovljevic, Fr. Rajko Kosić2024: Fr. Njegoš Perković2025: Fr. Dragoslav Kosić

And these are just the ones we know about. How many others were quietly removed, exiled, or driven out over eight years?

THE PSYCHOLOGY: WHAT DRIVES THIS?

What kind of person systematically persecutes good priests for nearly a decade? What kind of bishop leaves a pregnant woman without insurance? What kind of shepherd terrorizes clergy families?

We can speculate about what might have damaged Bishop Irinej in his younger years - perhaps some trauma warped his psychology, some wound that never healed and festered into rage.

But speculation about his past doesn't excuse his present actions.

Whatever happened to him doesn't justify eight years of removing priests without proper reasons. Yes, canon law allows a bishop to transfer priests - and most bishops exercise this authority with pastoral care and for legitimate needs of the church. But there should be a human approach. Bishops typically don't move priests unless the priest requests it or has made serious mistakes requiring correction.

Bishop Irinej removes good priests for asking questions. He uses accusations with no names. He provides no due process. He shows no pastoral care.

This is not the proper exercise of episcopal authority. This is the abuse of it. Actions matter more than origins. And his actions have destroyed lives.

THE QUESTION FOR THE HOLY SYNOD

Your Graces in Belgrade:

Eight years. Multiple priests. Systematic persecution. Pattern of abuse.

How much more evidence do you need?

✅ 2017: Fr. Stefan Zaremba - forced out to ROCOR✅ 2020: Fr. Zivojin Jakovljevic - removed twice, $8M/$90M at stake (now victorious)✅ 2020: Fr. Rajko Kosić - family vendetta? Good priest!✅ 2024: Fr. Njegoš Perković - pregnant wife, fled to Canada✅ 2025: Fr. Dragoslav Kosić - 120+ families in snow

This isn't "isolated incidents." This is systematic persecution. An eight-year campaign of destroying good priests who displease the bishop. It will continue until YOU stop it.

Bishop Irinej has learned he can get away with it. Remove a priest, sign papers, bury evidence, move to next victim. For eight years, that worked.

But now 120+ families stand in -2°F refusing to legitimize it. Now we speak for the victims, the faithful at St. Sava. Now the pattern is undeniable.

What will you do?

How many more priests must be destroyed? How many more families traumatized? How many more Sundays in the snow? How many priests' heads will roll before you take action?

TO THE VICTIMS: YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN

Fr. Stefan Zaremba - wherever you are - we see you.Fr. Zivojin Jakovljevic - victorious in your battle - we see you.Fr. Rajko Kosić - we see you.Fr. Njegoš Perković - in Canada with your family - we see you.Fr. Dragoslav Kosić - and your traumatized family - we see you.

And Svetlana Zaremba - whose "reality started in August 2017" - we HEAR you.

You are not forgotten. Your suffering was not in vain. Your witness matters.

Because you are the evidence. You are the pattern. You are the proof that Bishop Irinej Dobrijević has been systematically persecuting good priests for eight years. And now that pattern is exposed to the light. Where patterns exist, justice can follow.

TO BISHOP IRINEJ: THE PATTERN IS EXPOSED

Your Grace,

For eight years, you've destroyed priests and buried the evidence. THIS ONE YOU CAN'T BURY. And once this victim is visible, all the previous victims become visible too. Patterns don't lie!

Your pattern is clear:

You systematically persecute good priests who threaten your control. You exile them to punishment parishes. You target their family members. You leave pregnant women without insurance. You terrorize families. You conduct Liturgy under police protection.

That's not a bishop. That's a predator.

The only question: How will this end? But the pattern is exposed now. And patterns don't lie.

TO REPORT YOUR EXPERIENCE:

If you are a priest or family member persecuted by Bishop Irinej between 2017-2025, your testimony matters. The pattern must be documented.

Contact: parohijanistsava@gmail.com

Your privacy will be protected. Information will only be shared with your explicit consent or if it is already publicly available on the internet.

Because patterns are evidence. And evidence brings justice.

Eight years is enough.