Theodore (Nestorović) of Vršac

Our father among the saints, the matryr Teodor of Vršac (Свети свечтеномученик Теодор Вршачки) was the Serbian Orthodox bishop of Vršac in the sixteenth century.

During the Austro-Turkish war from 1593 to 1606, many Serbian people suffered from the action of the wild islamic warriors. The Serbs in Banat decided to protect their families from Turkish troops. They asked their bishop Teodor to lead them. He joined the rebellion against Turks in 1593. The Serbs liberate some towns but in the end were defeated. Bishop Teodor with group of people left for Transylvania. The Turks promised that they would stop killing innocent people if Toedor were to return. When he did he was siezed and then killed in a terribile fashion: his skin was ripped off. His feast day is May 16/29.