Audiences with Cardinal Pacelli and the Defence of Kosher

The critical edition of Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli's handwritten minutes, from audiences with Pope Pius XI and the Diplomatic corps, is being prepared by historians of the Vatican Archives. To date, two volumes have been released, the audiences of 1930 and 1931.

Throughout the 1930s, Pacelli repeatedly drew the attention of the diplomatic corps to the fact that Hitler and his racist ideology was a huge problem for humankind. After a number of sensational articles appeared in the press, I thought it was time to publish English translations of the audience minutes and other documents which I transcribed several years ago, from two Vatican archival collections.    

Minutes taken by papal Secretary of State, 
Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli 
from his daily audiences with Pope Pius XI 
and from his audiences with the Diplomatic Corps  

Pius XI–Pacelli, 13 May 1933

Re. Possible Audience for Minister Göbbels 

The Holy Father regrets that he is not able to receive him.

Pacelli–von Bergen, 18 May 1933

            The upcoming visit to Rome of Minister Göbbels was discussed.  The Ambassador has written to Baron Neurath to ensure that the Minster does not ask for an Audience with the Holy Father, something to be avoided [as it would require] and official refusal.

Pacelli–Charles Roux, 6 July 1934

He spoke about the situation in Germany and the barbaric killings that happened there, saying that a government like that represents a great danger for the peace of Europe. He made me read the report of the French Ambassador in Stockholm, in which the latter recounts that the Archbishop of Uppsala, Dr Eidem, travelled to Berlin to speak with Hitler in defence of the Protestant churches. Hitler gave a speech for three-quarters of an hour to explain that he was the greatest and most beloved man in Germany and with a single word was capable of destroying the Protestant religion, and also the Catholic one. The Archbishop said to the Ambassador that Germany is being governed by a “madman.” 

Pacelli–Charles Roux, 27 July 1934

He spoke about the very serious events in Vienna. [Attempted Nazi coup] I told to him that, in my view, it would be opportune for the [European] Powers to take vigorous steps in order to put a stop to such a serious cause of disorder in the heart of Europe.

Pacelli–Charles Roux, 9 August 1934

            He also told me that, in Berlin, the idea of a common initiative of the three Powers (Italy, France, Britain) had not succeeded, following the events in Austria. Britain generally does not like to become involved in the affairs of the continent. ... Everyone knows the role that Germany actually played and its responsibility; but it was impossible for France to propose a joint intervention, when the other two parties did not intend to participate.

Pacelli–Skrzyński, 14 September 1935

Returning from a brief stay in Germany […] He complained about the attitude of many priests, especially the elderly which, in their opposition to the new regime. They will not accept even that which is truly good and don’t want to allow the salute ‘Heil Hitler’, etc. I responded that it while it is very true that there is a strong religious revival in Germany, […] that is certainly not to be attributed to the Government, which persecutes the Church and keeps as Reichsleiter of German Culture someone like Rosenberg. […] So it is not surprising if priests are show little support to a Government which makes the Church suffer so much.

Pius XI–Pacelli, 29 December 1935

Re. Yesterday’s words of the Pope to the German Ambassador. 

The Holy Father said, with profound emotion: We did not expect to be treated this way by Germany. There is someone who says, like Napoleon said in Russia, that in a few years the Catholic Church will disappear in Germany. It is not the Church that is to disappear, others will disappear.

Pius XI–Pacelli, 30 December 1935

The Holy Father once again explained his words to the German Ambassador. He said: “There have always been those who have said that the Church is destined to disappear. But it has always been those people who have disappeared, not the Church.”

Pacelli–Skrzyński, 7 March 1936

            Exposition of the World Press […] Ferociously anti-Semitic papers were represented but a very Catholic paper like Czas was not. 

Pacelli–Charles Roux, 20 March 1936

In the morning he had an audience with the Holy Father to whom he presented his recent historical work on Napoleon. The Holy Father conversed with him for a long time and with much benevolence. The Ambassador revealed to His Holiness the motives for which it was opportune that the Holy See express itself about the aforementioned concept in the interests of its own situation in France, where silence would not be understood. The Holy Father thanked him having spoken in a  kindly way and said to him: If you would have immediately gone into the Rhineland with two-hundred thousand men, you would have done everybody a favour. (His Eminence the Cardinal Vicar [of Rome] came to see me this morning after his own audience, and told me that the Holy Father had said the same thing to him). The Ambassador responded that it was not done because of the love of peace; and His Holiness replied that he appreciated  such sentiments but repeated: If you would have immediately gone into the Rhineland with two-hundred thousand soldiers, you would have done everybody a favour. You are being told this by the Pope that Maurras calls “the most German in history.”

Pius XI–Pacelli, 4 April 1936

Re. the German Ambassador insisting on an Audience for Minister Frank.

            Not possible — if it were conceded, he would return to Germany and say that he had been received by the Pope and that everything is fine.

Pacelli–Pignatti Morano, 8 January 1938

            He came at my summons. I explained to the Ambassador that, after the Holy Father on Christmas Eve made that lofty and wise protest against religious persecution in Germany, it would have been distressing for Him to read in yesterdays and this morning’s papers (for example in Il Messaggero) an exaltation of Hitler and of National Socialism to the level of delirium. And this when, there not a single comforting piece of news from Germany regarding the Government; neither from the nuncio nor from the Bishops nor from other sources; not a single obstacle removed, not a single one of the Holy See’s protests is heard with the slightest deference!

Pacelli– Pignatti Morano, 25 March 1938

He came at my summons by order of the Holy Father, in order to speak with him about what the papers published regarding the illumination of buildings on the occasion of the upcoming visit of Hitler to Rome, and of the measures published regarding the extension of such illumination to the Via della Concilazione and perhaps even religious houses and Catholic institutes. This would greatly displease the Holy Father, to Whom it was promised [by whom?] that nothing would ever be done which would cause him displeasure. His Holiness asks if this apotheosis to the point of excesses, of a confessed enemy of the Catholic Church and of the Christian religion, is not contrary the first article of the Concordat, as well as against good sense. That which the Head of the Government [Mussolini] sent the Ambassador to say made the Holy Father frown. The Holy Father is tempted to doubt his [Mussolini’s] sincerity.

            The Ambassador said that he will deal with the matter immediately and hopes to be able to promptly put the matter in order. He added that the Governor of Rome had even prepared a letter to obtain the consent of Vatican authorities for an illumination with large reflectors on Saint Peter's Basilica, on the occasion of the arrival of Hitler, but he stopped it. The Ambassador has cause to believe that this union with Germany, in which the Italian Government is entangled out of necessity, will not last long. For the moment and by necessity, external appearances make up for lack of solid content. The Osservatore Romano does well to hammer against the abuses of Nazism. He [the Ambassador] immediately shows all those articles to the [Foreign] Minister. After the annexation of Austria, everyone was apparently against the Minister, but now things have calmed down. 

Pacelli–Menschausen (chargé d’affaires), 7 September 1938

            I believe even less that Ambassador [von Bergen] speaks with the mandate of the Government in as much as, for two years, our relations have become purely formal; so much so– an example which I believe to virtually unique – although there is an Ambassador, I no longer receive any response to my diplomatic Notes. 

            Herr Menschausen replied that we should also have been able to understand the opinion in Germany from the press. I answered that, in Germany (as in Italy) the press carries but a single view; those who have a different opinion kommen nicht zum Worte [do not speak].

From correspondence between Cardinal Pacelli and the Apostolic Nuncio in Warsaw, Archbishop Filippo Cortesi, Regarding Anti-Semitic regulations

Pacelli–Cortesi, 26 April 1938.

            According to information received here and that which was reported in the press: in Poland an anti-Semitic law was introduced, which no longer permits butchering by slitting the jugular vein, which the Israelites are obliged to perform according to their religious precepts.

Wherefore, the August Pontiff, inspired by a noble sense of benevolence toward all who suffer persecution, desires Your Excellency, after ascertaining the veracity of such news, to explain to the Polish Government, in the form and under the circumstances you deem appropriate, that it would be inopportune to interfere […] in matters which are of a strictly ritual character.

Cortesi–Pacelli, 7 May 1938.

That law was indeed debated and approved by the Chamber of Deputies but was suspended in the Senate and will not be reintroduced. […] As your Eminence rightly notes, every anti-Semitic act of persecution or violence must be condemned.

Unity and Universality upon English Shores

            

On Saturday, 21 March, Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski is enthroned as bishop of the Eparchy of the Holy Family of London. Although he is only the second eparch since the creation of a full eparchy in 2013, he is the seventh bishop to shepherd the Ukrainian Greek-Catholics of the United Kingdom.

Kyr Buchko in Great Britain

            Although Ukrainian Catholics began to settle in Britain around 1900, the Byzantine Catholic Church of the Kievan tradition (UGCC) was canonically established for them only in 1947, when Bishop Ivan Buchko was given jurisdiction over all the Ukrainian Catholic clergy and faithful scattered across western Europe, following the Second World War. He came to London on 4 January 1947 and, the following day, formally notified the local Catholic hierarchy of his charge. Raised to the rank of archbishop in 1953, Buchko held jurisdiction over Great Britain until the creation of an apostolic exarchate for England and Wales, in June 1957 (extended to the rest of the United Kingdom in 1967). And he continued as apostolic visitor over various parts of Europe until 1971.

            Being too poor to build their own churches, Ukrainians relied on generous moral and financial support of the Roman Catholic hierarchs, parish priests, and organizations. Still, the English and Welsh bishops would have preferred to have the Ukrainians under a single Latin ecclesial structure. For this reason, a proposal for a separate Ukrainian bishopric was rejected in October 1954. In the face of resistance from the bishops, the project was salvaged due to the firm leadership of Cardinal Eugène Tisserant at the helm of the Vatican Congregation pro Ecclesia Orientali (renamed “of the Eastern Churches” after the Second Vatican Council).

Tisserant 1950

With the eparchies suppressed in their homeland, Pope Pius XII had promised to restore the Ukrainian hierarchy in the diaspora, and Cardinal Tisserant helped find a way to keep that promise. Buchko was to be relieved of some of his responsibilities by the creation of individual apostolic exarchates for England, Germany, and France. Since the local hierarchs were reluctant to see a ‘foreigner,’ Tisserant asked the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Bernard Griffin, to serve as first exarch. In April 1955, Griffin accepted and the English hierarchy gave their approval. However, Scotland was to be left under Archbishop Buchko, since it was considered inappropriate for an English archbishop to hold jurisdiction in that country. Pius XII approved the apostolic exarchate for England and Wales in June 1955.

Cardinal Tisserant had obtained what was possible for the moment. Once the Latin bishops got used to the structure, a Ukrainian bishop would be appointed. But knowing the strong nationalistic feelings of the Displaced Persons (DPs), Buchko worried that the faithful would not accept an English exarch unless a there was a Ukrainian priest or auxiliary bishop at his side. He suggested proceeding with an exarchate in Germany, but the search for suitable candidates led to the postponement of both projects. In the meantime, Cardinal Griffin died prematurely and his successor, Archbishop William Godfrey, had to be approached. Godfrey accepted on 2 May 1957 and the exarchate was  finally created on 10 June 1957 with the issuing of a papal bull, Quia Christus omnes. 

The formal handover of the mission proved to be somewhat complicated. Buchko came to London, in August, to perform a final visitation and met with Godfrey to discuss the handover and appointment of a Ukrainian vicar-general, to run day-to-day affairs. Godfrey insisted that such a priest be from Canada, as a former British colony and member of the Commonwealth.

Buchko was adamant that Ukrainians witness the Latin and Byzantine hierarchies cooperating at a solemn liturgical ceremony. It had to take place in the tiny Ukrainian church in Saffron Hill, rather than at Westminster Cathedral, and the Byzantine Liturgy needed to be celebrated by a member of the Ukrainian Catholic hierarchy. Metropolitan Maxim Hermaniuk of Winnipeg was in London in September, but did not officiate because the ceremony was delayed: the papal bull did not arrive on time and Godfrey left for Ireland on his annual vacation. 

The problem was resolved when Cardinal Tisserant instructed Archbishop Buchko to return to London to preside. The ceremony took place on 10 November 1957, according to an order of service devised by Buchko and approved by Apostolic Delegate O’Hara. The newly-appointed exarch and the apostolic delegate were received at the entrance of the church by Buchko, who presided over a hierarchical Divine Liturgy concelebrated by Ukrainian priests. As exarch, Godfrey gave the blessings in Church Slavonic and assisted from a throne on the left side, while the apostolic delegate sat in a simpler throne on the right. The papal bull was read in Latin and Ukrainian. Buchko brought greetings from the Ukrainian hierarchy, the clergy made obeisance by kneeling and kissing the ring of the enthroned exarch. The ceremony concluded with the intonation of the liturgical prayer “God grant them many years” (Mnohaya lita) for Exarch Godfrey, Apostolic Delegate O’Hara, the imprisoned Metropolitan Yosyf Slipyi, and the Ukrainian hierarchy worldwide. Godfrey was accompanied by his two priest-secretaries and his courtly gentleman, Anthony Bartlett. 

Godfrey & Buchko 1957

On 30 December 1957, Buchko replied to Godfrey’s letter of thanks, assuring him that he conserved beautiful memories of that solemnity which will be surely noted in the pages of the history, not only of the Ukrainian Catholic Church but also those of the Universal Church, during which unity and universality were magnificently resplendent upon English shores.

            All of Godfrey’s successors held proper enthronement ceremonies, which involved being ritually lifted into their throne and receiving a Byzantine crozier. Each ceremony was slightly different and, as with the first bishop’s, encountered some difficulties in the planning and execution. 

Enthronement 1963

Bishop Hornyak, the second exarch, was scheduled to be enthroned on 6 June 1963. Pope John XXIII died three days before. Rather than postpone, some adjustments were made. Westminster Diocese was represented by the Capitular Vicar, Bishop Craven, as the see had been vacant since the death of Cardinal Godfrey. Hornyak was lifted into the throne and given the pastoral crozier by Apostolic Delegate O’Hara. However, as a sign of mourning, the clergy wore red and the exarch wore a red omophorion. Following the Divine Liturgy, panakhyda was celebrated for the late pope.

Enthronement 1968 

On 12 May 1968, Bishop Hornyak was enthroned again, this time as apostolic exarch for Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The ceremony took place at the Ukrainian church of the Protection of the Mother of God and Saint Andrew, in Edinburgh. It was performed by Apostolic Delegate Igino Cardinale and attended by the Scottish Catholic hierarchy: Archbishop Gray of Edinburgh, Bishop Scanlon of Glasgow, and Bishop Hart of Dundee. 

Enthronement 1989

On 10 October 1989, the third exarch, Bishop Michael Kuchmiak, was the first to be enthroned at the Ukrainian Cathedral of the Holy Family in London. The rite was performed by the apostolic pro-nuncio, with Cardinal Basil Hume of Westminster assisting from a throne. On 16 June 2002, the fourth exarch, Paul Chomnycky, was enthroned by a Head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, Cardinal Lubomyr Husar. Although several Ukrainian hierarchs came, neither the nuncio nor any of the Latin bishops were able to attend. 

Enthronement 2011

Upon his appointment as apostolic administrator in 2009, Bishop Hlib Lonchyna held an inaugural Divine Liturgy with Cardinal Husar and two English bishops assisting from the throne. After being confirmed as fifth exarch on 8 November 2011, Kyr Hlib was enthroned by the nuncio, Archbishop Mennini. Husar’s successor, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, presided at the hierarchical Liturgy concelebrated by several British bishops as well as Ukrainian, Belarusian, and Melkite Greek-Catholic and Latin clergy. Ecumenical representatives attended from Ukrainian Orthodox and Presbyterian Churches. 

Cardinal enthrones Eparch 2020

Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the date of Kyr Kenneth’s enthronement was brought forward. The ceremony itself was changed to a semi-private rite performed by the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, standing in for His Beatitude Sviatoslav. His Eminence had previously attended significant Ukrainian celebrations, including the 2009 inauguration (when he was yet Bishop of Birmingham). Cardinal Nichols also invited His Beatitude and all the European Eastern Catholic bishops to celebrate an hierarchical Divine Liturgy at Westminster Cathedral, in 2017. This is the first Ukrainian inauguration/enthronement in Britain to be broadcast live, over the internet. A public celebration marking the beginning of the eparch’s ministry is being planned for a later date.

Mitred Archpriest Mykola Matychak

Seminary photo 1950

An Officer and a Gentleman

(1922 –2000)

On the 20th anniversary 
of his repose in the Lord.

Born 13 December 1922. in Stibno district of Peremyshl (Przemyśl) eparchy to peasant farmers Panteleimon Matychak [Matyczak] and Anna née Yakubovska. He attended the local elementary school from 1928, the Przemyśl gymnasium from 1936 and the commercial school. He was hired by the town office in 1941. He enrolled in eighth grade in Drohobych and took the matura exam on 17 November 1942, after which he worked at a milk plant. He joined in the Galicia Division in 1943 and took the officers course at Graz, Austria, in 1944, subsequently serving as lieutenant of the battalion. Following the surrender to the British, on 10 May 1945, he was interned at Bellaria, Italy, and subsequently at nearby Rimini.

Until this day I still do not know how our release came about. Was it due to Vatican intervention? ...  Are there some documents about it somewhere? ... Perhaps, in future, a researcher will find them in some archive.  – Father Ivan Muzychka, From Rimini to Rome

Bishop Buchko visits POWs

Vatican files opened for the first time, only two weeks ago, reveal the following: In June 1945 Bishop Ivan Buchko, himself a "displaced person," began lobbying the Apostolic See to assist Ukrainian refugees and POWs in Italy. He secured permission to dispatch two Ukrainian priests (Ivan Bilanych and Mykhailo Vavryk) to furnish the five Division chaplains (4 Catholic and one Orthodox) with liturgical supplies. On 28 July, Pope Pius XII received Cardinal Eugène Tisserant in audience. Tisserant presented the plight of Ukrainians as highly urgent and, upon his recommendation, the pontiff appointed Bishop Buchko as apostolic visitor to Ukrainian refugees and POWs. He also promised Tisserant that the diplomatic arm of the Holy See would plead with the British and American ambassadors to save the Division from the Soviets. With the Pope's approval, Tisserant wrote to Monsignor Giovanni Battista Montini (who later became Pope Paul VI), to obtain permission for some soldiers to enter the seminary. At the same time, Bishop Buchko was given clearance to visit Bellaria and gathered the names of former seminarians as well as new recruits. On 10 November, the list of seminarians was presented to the Holy See, which forwarded it to British authorities.

Of 30 volunteers only 26 presented themselves on the morning of 21 November 1945. After travelling all day, they arrived first at Saint Peter’s Square and reached Pontifical Saint Josaphat’s College by evening. Dressed in full uniform, Matychak, the only officer among the group, rendered formal thanks to the chaplain who handed them over to the College superiors. On 28 November he signed a curriculum vitae composed for him, in Italian, by Father Ivan Khomenko (Don Iván), a biblical scholar residing at the college.

The undergraduate seminarians studied at Pontifical Urban University (Urbaniana). Matychak was chosen as vice-prefect of the college. He excelled in sociology, pedagogy, biblical exegesis, pastoral theology and missionary studies. He received a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy 1947, a Bachelor in Sacred Theology 1950, and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology 1951. His rector, Father Yosyf Zaiachkivskyi, described him as “disciplined and exemplary, diligent, conscientious, laborious, sociable, charitable, active, strong and manly.” He was  ordained to the minor orders by Bishop Buchko in the College chapel, 4 March 1951, and to the priesthood on 3 May of the same year. 

Founding Marian Brotherhood 1954

It took several months of formalities with the International Refugee Office and British consular authorities for Matychak to be allowed to relocate to Great Britain. He arrived in December 1951 and his first assignment was curate of the Coventry pastoral zone, serving Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Somersetshire, Wiltshire, Dorsetshire, Devonshire, and Cornwall (December 1951–1953); from March 1953 his base was changed to Wolverhampton; his next assignment was parish priest of the Edinburgh pastorate serving all of Scotland, especially Glasgow, Galashields, Dundee, Grangemouth, Halmuir Hostel at Lockerbie, Annan, and Perth (December 1953–1971); from 1955 he also served Cumberland, Northumberland, Westmorland, and County Durham (with a pause from 1960–1962); he was transferred to the parish of Saint Olha, Peterborough (1971–1974), but was recalled to Edinburgh for a final year (1974–1975).

With Archbishop Gray of Edinburgh

Matychak's Edinburgh congregation worshipped in a chapel at a Ukrainian community centre on Mansion House Road, at Saint Columba Roman Catholic Church, Upper Grey Street, and sometimes Saint Patrick's. In 1964, they finally acquired a church in Dalmeney Street, Leith (Edinburgh), rechristened the following year as Our Lady of Pochaïv and St. Andrew. During his years of service, through sympathetic and active engagement and with his pedagogical-pastoral skills, he was very successful in organizing and keeping harmony within the Ukrainian hromada (community) and between the community and the church. 

First pilgrimage to Carfin Grotto

He founded chapters of Marian Brotherhood and Sisterhood, organized religious and social events and outings, pilgrimages, and established Ukrainian Saturday schools. He also published a multi-page bulletin for the Edinburgh pastorate. In many of his initiatives he involved the local Roman-Catholic clergy, missionary preachers, and hierarchy and received their support, often celebrating in the Latin cathedrals. He did not neglect Orthodox Christians, lending the use of his church in a pioneer ecumenical gesture, in the late 1960s, and helping them to form their own congregation. For his tireless pastoral missions, the Roman Catholic clergy referred to him as “Saint Paul of Scotland.” A few months after his visit to Scotland, on 29 November 1970, Cardinal Yosyf Slipyi made him honorary canon of the Lviv Metropolitan Chapter.

Matychak in 1990s

In 1975 Matychak was invited by Slipyi to serve as a professor at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Rome. He subsequently returned to England and served as a missionary to ‘patriarchal’ communities: Holy Protectress, Halifax (1977–1987); and Sacred Heart, Wolverhampton from 1987, where he finished the construction of a new church dedicated to Saints Volodymyr and Olha. Patriarch Yosyf (Slipyi) elevated him to the rank of mitred archpriest in June 1981. In 1989, he welcomed the new apostolic exarch for Britain, Bishop Michael Kuchmiak, CSsR, in a solemn pastoral visitation to the new church. 

Mykola Matychak died on 17 March 2000 in Wolverhampton. Funeral Parastas was sung on 30 March at the church he had completed. On the following day, his former comrade-in-arms, Bishop Kuchmiak presided over the Funeral Divine Liturgy. According to his family’s wishes, he was buried in Zymna Voda, Ukraine.

Cardinal Hlond's Secret Report on the Polish Dictatorship

SECRET INFORMATION

on the religious-political situation in Poland

Excerpts from a report from the Primate of Poland, 

Cardinal August Hlond, to Pope Pius XI

Rome, 14 March 1932

Characteristics of the governing class

            The greater part of the governing coalition is made up of people who are religiously indifferent and positively adverse to Catholicism: Socialists, freethinkers, sectarians, apostates, and Freemasons. […] The present-day government, with the rarest exceptions, is made up of Officers of [Piłsudski’s] Legions with a mediocre intellectual culture and little political preparation. Dictatorship is the principal of the government and the military, and it is their method to view and act upon issues. They do not pay much attention to meeting European standards and especially they do not see the need to [use] them in internal administration. […]

            The concept of the state has not yet crystalized in the governing program. It oscillates between Fascist and Bolshevik concepts. Yet the omnipotence of the State is one of the foundations o the present political system. The citizen, the individual, does not count for anything. The family is virtually excluded from any influence over the spirit of education in state schools, which promote the cult of Marshall Piłsudski. The nation […] is generally governed in a sectarian sense, pushed toward a non-Christian future. 

A fuller version of this report has since been published here.

Father Josaphat Jean Conference videos

Links to videos of presentations from the conference (Ukrainian):

«Ви цілковито не змінилися»: відносини між о. Йосафатом Жаном та нунцієм Акілле Ратті – папою Пієм ХІ.

“You have not changed at all” : the Relatioship of Father Josaphat Jean with Nuncio Achille Ratti – Pope Pius XI.

«Метрополія всесвіту»: отець Жан як декан УГКЦ у Великій Британії.

“Metropolis of the Universe” : Father Jean as Dean of UGCC in Great Britain.

Videos of the entire conference

Photos from the life of Father Jean

Conference on Father Josaphat Jean at Lviv University

In conjunction with Ivan Franko National University in Lviv, the Basilian Order of Saint Josaphat in Ukraine and the Basilian Fathers Museum of Mundare, Alberta, are sponsoring a conference on Father Josaphat François Joseph Victorien Jean. Coordinated by Father Artemiy Novitskyi of Zhovkva, the conference will take place at the University from 29–30 November 2019. Three Canadian-Ukrainians will be participating at the event. The conference is part of the centenary celebrations of the founding of the Western Ukrainian National Republic (ZUNR), in the Foreign Ministry of which the native French-Canadian served. The following is an English translation of the program:

29 November 2019

Yeronim Hrim, OSBM 

(Basilian Philosophical-Theological Institute, Briukhovychi)

The Life and Work of Father Jean, OSBM.

Pietro Shkrabiuk

(Krypiakevych Institute of Ukrainian Studies, Lviv) 

“From Krekhiv to Buchach (1913–1919)” – state-building inspiration of Father Jean.

Liliana Hentosh

(Ivan Franko National University, Lviv) 

Diplomatic Activity of Father Jean during the Years of Struggle for Ukrainian Statehood, 1918–1921.

Athanasius McVay

(Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Edmonton, Canada) 

“You have not changed at all” : the Relatioship of Father Josaphat Jean with Nuncio Achille Ratti – Pope Pius XI.

Presentation of two of Dr McVay’s books.

30 November 2019

Oleh Pavlyshyn

(Ivan Franko National University, Lviv) 

The Historical Context of the Pastoral and Diplomatic Activities of Father Jean.

Yustyn Boyko

(Studite monk, Lviv) 

Father Jean’s Studite Period (1923–1931).

Artemiy Novytsky, OSBM

Father Josaphat Jean’s Ministry in Canada (1931–1972).

Athanasius McVay

(Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Edmonton, Canada) 

“Metropolis of the Universe” : Father Jean as Dean of UGCC in Great Britain.

Karen Lemiski

(Basilian Fathers Museum, Mundare, Canada )

The Unexpected Collection of the Basilian Fathers Museum.

Official announcement

Polish Government-in-Exile Mourns Metropolitan Sheptytsky

The following statement from Minister of Religion and Education, Monsignor Zygmunt Kaczyński, appeared on the front page of Dziennik Polski and L'Osservatore Romano, respectively the principal news organs of the Polish Government-in-Exile in London and of the Holy Apostolic See:

"The loss of Metropolitan Sheptytsky is grave as much for Poles as for the Ukrainian peoples of Poland. The deceased combined in his person the eminent qualities of pastor of souls and patriot. Throughout forty-years of intense activity, he efficaciously contributed to the development of the religious and cultural life of the entire [Polish] nation and, understanding the absolute necessity, he constantly strove to bring Ukrainians to Poles closer together, on the frontiers of the their common homeland. During the occupation, Metropolitan Sheptytsky maintained his constant line of conduct, concerned as always for so many suffering people. In his pastoral letters, he always encouraged the faithful and his fellow citizens to maintain cohesion, deploring their fratricidal conflicts. We unite, the minister concluded, with the Ruthenian [Ukrainian] Catholics of the district of Lwów, who have been left orphaned of their Shepherd, and we mourn the loss of such an eminent personality and pray ardently for the repose of this chosen soul."

— “Per la Morte di Mons. Szeptyckyj,” in Osservatore Romano (15 November 1944), p.1. cfr. "Minister ks. Kaczyński o śp. Metr. Szeptickim," in Dziennik Polski i Dziennik Zołniera (10 November 1944), p. 1.

Monsignor Kaczyński later returned to Poland, was arrested by the Communists in 1948 and 1951, and was executed in prison on 13 May 1953.

Vatican "Secret" Archive changed to "Apostolic"

ASV consultation hall as it was in the 1990s, before modernization

The Holy See announced today (28 October), the the official name of the Archivium Secretum Vaticanum (Vatican Secret Archive) is changed to Archivium Apostolicum Vaticanum (Vatican Apostolic Archive). In a motu proprio letter dated 22 October, Pope Francis explained that he was ordering the change in nomenclature after consulting close advisers and the Archive's Prefect. The papal letter, which alludes to "a vigorous and firm hope for progress" (no doubt in historical sciences and accessibility to the archival collections) provides a cursory history of the institution, emphasising that, over time, it has undergone various changes in structure and name. During one period, it was indeed known as the Apostolic Archive. From about 1646 it has been called Secretum (or Privy)  to distinguish it from archives with more public and civic administrative functions. The Letter argues that, in recent years, the understanding of the Latin term secretum has been lost among the general public [but not by scholars ed.] and the name has given rise to various erroneous impressions and caricatures (contained in popular literature and films). In 1881, Pope Leo XIII opened the papal archive to international scholars. Thenceforth, each Pontiff extended the chronological limit of constable materials. In 1985, John Paul II released documentation to the end of the pontificate of Benedict XV(1922). Benedict XVI opened the materials of the pontificate of Pius XI (to February 1939). Earlier this year, Francis announced that the coveted papers of Pius XII's reign (to October 1958) would be released on 2 March, the anniversary of the latter pontificate. The Vatican Archive is a collection of several historical archives of princely families, Roman Curial departments, and papal nunciatures and delegations. Its superiors and staff are experts specialised in archival sciences and church history. The Archive also offers a course with a diploma in archival studies. The announcement took many by surprise, even within the institution. One wonders whether the well-known abbreviation for citations "ASV" exclusive to the Vatican Archive, will now be changed to "AAV", an abbreviation common to other collections.

Yosyf Botsian: Bishop of Lutsk and Dreamer of the Revival of Eastern Catholicism

published in Logos: A Journal of Eastern Christian Studies, vol. 59 (2018) no. 1–4, p. 31–151.

Imagine the suffering to the heart of a bishop to see those faithful which God had entrusted to him, perishing without pastoral assistance, while he was bound hand and foot. — Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, November 1926

Abstract

Yosyf Botsian (1879–1926) is one of the important figures in the twentieth-century revival of Eastern Catholicism in Ukraine. Following his formation in several intellectual centers of Austria-Hungary, Botsian was brought into the chosen circle of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky's disciples.  Appointed rector of the Lviv Theological Seminary, he helped reform the institution according to Jesuit models, emphasizing spiritual development over external discipline. He also continued scholarly work and encouraged the social engagement of both seminarians and clergy. During the First World War, Botsian was sent into exile in Russia; before they were separated, Sheptytsky secretly ordained him as bishop of Lutsk, thus closely associating Botsian with his own dream of the restoration of Eastern Catholicism throughout the historical lands of the Kyivan Metropolia. Unfortunately, Botsian was never able to occupy his see. While Lutsk was incorporated into the new Polish republic following the First World War, neither Sheptytsky and Botsian nor the Oriental Congregation could overcome the opposition of the Polish government and of some Polish Roman Catholic hierarchs to the renewal of the Byzantine rite in eastern Poland. Effectively deprived of his episcopal rank in the last years of his life, Botsian endured disappointment, persecution, illness, and an untimely death. Groomed as Sheptytsky’s successor, Botsian never fulfilled this role, and his dream of the spread of Eastern Catholicism beyond Galicia and its return to the rest of Ukraine would not be fulfilled until after his death.