[1] Bishop Irinej was born on February 6, 1955 in Cleveland to father Đuro and mother Milica (née Svilar).

On January 15, 1994, Metropolitan Christopher of Midwestern America ordained him as a deacon in the Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago.

He is the holder of the Order of Vuk Karadžić, third degree, which was awarded to him by Svetozar Marović, the president of the state union of Serbia and Montenegro.

For several years, he was one of the editors of the magazine Staze Pravoslavlja, the official publication of the Serbian Orthodox Church in North America.

He had a notable role as executive director of the Office for Foreign Affairs of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Washington.