Andrej Tumpej – Righteous Among the Nations

Andrej Tumpej (1886-1973), the first parish priest of the Church of St. Cyril and Methodius in Čukarica, Belgrade, holds a distinguished honor: the title of "Righteous Among the Nations." This prestigious recognition, awarded by the State of Israel, is given to non-Jews who demonstrated extraordinary courage by saving Jewish lives during World War II.

Andrej Tumpej was born on November 29, 1886, in Slovenia, in the parish of St. Lawrence, near Ptuj. After finishing primary school in his hometown, he pursued his education at grammar schools in Maribor and Ljubljana. In 1905, Tumpej became a member of the Lazarist monastic order and began his theological studies in Graz, Austria, where he was ordained a priest in 1911. Shortly after, he moved to Istanbul, serving as a religious teacher at the Austrian College and a higher trade school. With the onset of World War I, Tumpej returned to Slovenia, and by 1926, he was serving as a parish priest in Bitola, within the Skopje-Prizren Diocese.

In August 1929, Tumpej relocated to Belgrade to join the newly established Lazarist community at the Church of St. Cyril and Methodius in Čukarica. There, he took on multiple roles: leading catechism for youth, teaching religious education in various schools, conducting church choirs and instrumental classes, directing a tamburitza orchestra, and visiting parishioners, all while fulfilling his regular pastoral duties. Tumpej twice held the position of head of the Belgrade parish, from January 1, 1930, to June 27, 1932, and again from May 22, 1935, to February 20, 1948.

During World War II, Tumpej displayed exceptional compassion, helping numerous individuals in peril, including many Jews. His efforts to protect the Kalef family, among others, earned him posthumous recognition as a “Righteous Among the Nations.” When Nazi forces occupied Belgrade and began their genocidal campaign against Jews, a Slovenian woman named Antonija Ograjenšek, married to the Jewish Jakov Kalef, pleaded with Father Tumpej for help. He safeguarded their daughters, Matilda and Rahela, by giving them new identities—Lidija and Breda—along with forged documents.

“The girls spent three months with nuns at a convent. (…) Father Tumpej enrolled Lidija and Breda in the Matija Ban Gymnasium. Though they were strangers in this new part of the city, the school's principal, Orthaber, a Volksdeutscher, knew of their Jewish heritage. He honored Tumpej's request and kept their secret throughout the war. Sadly, he was later killed during the liberation of Belgrade, so their secret remained forever untold. (…) One day, rumors spread that Father Tumpej had been arrested. It then emerged that he had helped other Jews as well. He had issued false documents to two Jewish women preparing to leave for work in Germany. Unfortunately, they were recognized at the Belgrade train station by a Volksdeutscher who had known them previously. The women were arrested and, under brutal torture, revealed that Tumpej had provided them with the false papers. When the Nazis accused Tumpej of aiding Jews, he responded that he would have helped them, too, had they been in similar danger. He endured Gestapo torture like the Jews he tried to protect, but ultimately, he was released.” (From the book: Righteous Among the Nations – Serbia).

After the war, Tumpej continued his missionary work across the Balkans, but his heroic deeds remained largely unknown. In 1948, he moved to Bitola in Macedonia, later spending half a year in Letnica, Kosovo, followed by six years (1950-1956) in Uroševac, where he also managed the parish in Kosovska Mitrovica for three years. From 1957 to 1967, he served as a priest in Smederevo. Afterward, he moved to Skopje, but due to serious illness, he returned to Belgrade, where he passed away on March 5, 1973. Tumpej often referred to himself as an "old Balkan man," a fitting title considering the 25 years he spent in Bitola, Letnica, Uroševac, Kosovska Mitrovica, Smederevo, and Skopje, as well as 19 years in Belgrade. He also adopted the name "Momčilo" in place of "Andrej," with "Momčilo" meaning “young man” or “man” in Greek.

Breda Kalef, who retained the name given to her by Father Tumpej, later became a renowned opera singer. In interviews, she spoke about Tumpej's bravery and expressed her deep gratitude, noting that her path to becoming a prima donna at the Belgrade Opera began in the Catholic Church in Čukarica, where she sang as a young girl. In recognition of Tumpej's heroism, she initiated the process that led to him being honored as a “Righteous Among the Nations” (Certificate awarded on April 12, 2001). His name is now inscribed alongside many others on a stone plaque in the Garden of the Righteous in Jerusalem.