Great Eparchy of Dremvitca and Velika was covering the teritory of Ohrid, Devol, Kutmichevica, Glavnica, Kicevo, Prilep, Bitola, Prespa, Meglen, Voden, Kostur, Janica and other smaller towns. That was the teritory of more than half of present Republic of Macedonia, and part of Aegean Macedonia (Northern Greece). This Eparchy was ancestor of Ohrid Archbishopry (Holy Macedonian Orthodox Church). Eparchy of Dremvitca and Velika is now known as Debar-Kicevo Eparchy wich is part of Macedonian Orthodox Church (Ohrid Archbishopric).

In the days of Saint Clement, Macedonian nation wasn`t born yet, neither their state. Ancestors of todays Macedonians were known as Macedonian Slavs and their language was known as Old Slavonic language. First form of organized state for Macedonian Slavs from the teritory of todays Republic of Macedonia was Bulgarian medieval State, until the formation of the first Slavo-Macedonian state under the rule of Tzar Samuel.

Saint Clement was the founder of the first Slavo-Macedonian Monastery on Plaoshnik area, named by the name of Saint Panteleimon, and it served as the residence of his Eparchy. He build this monastery in the period from 893 until his death in 916.

Monastery of Saint Panteleimon served also as the university where Saint Clement with the help of his spiritual brother Saint Naum, teached pupils to be well educated Christians. More than 3,500 teachers, clergy, writers, and other literary figures emerged from this Ohrid Literary School where the Slavonic alphabet was used and the Old Slavonic language was introduced in religious services.

Monastery of Saint Panteleimon was build on the ruins of old christian church from the 4-th century. In July 2002, this thesis was proved when an old mosaic from the 4-th century was found few meters from the new rebuild monastery of Saint Panteleimon.

Saint Clement`s monastery on Plaoshnik and his tomb served as holy place for Macedonians until the close of 14-th century when teritory of todays Republic of Macedonia fell under Ottoman rule.

Ottomans turned this holy monastery into mosque. In the beginning of 16-th century this monastery became once again a christian temple, but after 100 years, due to its bad condition, monastery`s construction fall down. Ottomans on the basis of the monastery erected new mosque called Sultan Mohamed, but due to a lot of uprisings and Balkan wars, this mosque was also destroed.

Only few rocks from the foundations remained.

After the Second World War, and the creation of a new Socialists Republic of Macedonia , Ohrid Archbishopry was reinstalled , but noone had guts to even think about rebuilding the monastery, the holy place for every Macedonian.

10 Years passed after Republic of Macedonia proclaimed its independence, and yet, ruled by former communists, no-one thought about reconstructing this holy place. When His Holyness , Stephen became Archbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia, the time came. Financially helped by the state`s first non-communist prime minister, Mister Ljubcho Georgievski, Archbishop Stephen blessed and baptized remaining foundations of this holy place and started a reconstruction of Saint Clement`s monastery.A group of World`s famous Macedonian constructors from the village of Pustec took care of each stone that was put into the walls of the rebuilded monastery who look the same as the old one , because it was build on the remaining foundations of the old one.

His Holyness G.G.Stefan
Archbishop of Ohrid and Macedonia

Evening before, remains of Saint Clement in a special ceremony were taken from his temporary grave in "Sveta Bogorodica Perivlepta" Church ( few houndred meters downhill) into his original grave into this monastery.

© 2002 Copyright - Text and photographs by Boban Fidanoski- Skopje,Macedonia
Exception: Thanks to Ministry of Culture for image of Saint Clement and "plaoshnik14.jpg", and to Macedonian Information Agency (MIA) for images of Macedonian Archbishop and Primeminister.