Introduction - II
* * *
Before the foundation of the General Seminary
in L'viv in 1783, most of the clergy were formed with only sparse education,
which they were given at home by their priest fathers -usually a scanty
minimum.
Empress Maria Theresa of Austria in 1775 founded
a central seminary in Vienna called the "Barbareum" for 46 Byzantine
(Greek) Catholic students in the empire, and it lasted until 1784. For
students from Halychyna there were places for 6 from L'viv, 6 from Peremyshl'
and 2 Basilians25.
When the General Seminary was established
in Lviv on June 30, 1783 in the former Dominican monastery, 26 for
Ukrainian students of Halychyna there were assigned 57, then 70, and finally
60 places, of which 20 were allotted for the Eparchy of Peremyshl'. The
period of study was 6 years, of which the last year was to be done in the
student's own eparchial seminary, in the presbiterial house. There they
had to study homiletics and pastoral theology, and learn to celebrate the
liturgical services. The time of study was shortened in 1790 to 4 years.
The presbiterial house was founded in Peremyshl' by the government on August
14, 1786 in the former Carmelite monastery. There were never very many
students in the presbiterial house. For example there were these students
in the following years: 27
| 
 | 
| 1787 | 
2 | 
1789 | 
5 | 
1791 | 
7 | 
| 1788 | 
11 | 
1790 | 
9 | 
1792 | 
5 | 
The courses of theology were in the Latin language.
For Ukrainian students who did not know Latin, in 1787 was opened the <<Studium
Ruthenum>> with courses in Ukrainian, which lasted until 1803, when Ukrainian
students could understand Latin better. The General Seminary was closed
in 1790, but at the request of the bishops, it lasted for Ukrainian students
until l893, until the Peremyshl' and Stanyslaviv eparchies opened their
own seminanes28. Previous to 2893, the seminary
in Peremyshl' had taken care of only 4th year theology students, the younger
ones attending the General Seminary. The students from Stanyslaviv shared
the Archeparchial Seminary of L'viv until January, 190729.
- 
25 BLAZHEJOVSKYJ, DMYTRO, Byzantine Kyivan Rite Students,
Rome 1984, pp. 233-235.
 
- 
26 NABYWANIEC, Op. cit., p.147-148.
 
- 
27 Ibid., pp. 156-159
 
- 
28 Ibid., pp. 147-148.
 
- 
29 Shematism of Stanyslaviv [1907], p. 263.
 
Two hundred florins were assigned for
the support of the students. If there was not enough place in the seminary
building, some students willing to study theology could get permission
to live outside and study as externists, frequenting all courses and church
services like the students living in the seminary. For their support they
received 150 florins paid monthly by the rector, under whose jurisdiction
they were all the time30.
The priests were supposed to continue
their religious education after ordination. To assure that this was done,
four written trimestral examinations were introduced in the deaneries and
it was the dean's duty to report to the chancery the names of those who
presented themselves for the examinations and the result of the examinations.
In addition, catechetical courses were organized for the clergy31.
Study in the seminaries was not
a free gift from the government - neither in Vienna nor in L'viv. The bishops
had to pay for each student and the money had to be collected from their
clergy. If not enough could be collected, the government paid the difference
from the Religious Fund. After ordination or leaving his study, the student
had to repay the amount used for him to the Religious Fund32.
It was the merit of the government
that it forced the bishops to be concerned with the education of their
clergy and forbade them to ordain candidates without education. It also
obliged the clergy to deliver sermons and to teach catechism.
It was decided on June 17, 1786
that the monthly income of each pastor was to be 300 florins, and that
of assistants 150 florins. If this sum was unobtainable from regular sources,
the difference would be supplied from the Religious Fund. For retired and
disabled priests 200 florins were assigned from the Religious Fund. The
Religious Fund was established by Joseph II from the sale of confiscated
church properties in Halychyna. mostly of Latin rite monasteries and of
some Ukrainian monasteries. Its combined worth was 27,814.003 florins,
which sum was located in banks at 5% interest33.
- 
30 Ibid. pp. 152-156.
 
- 
31 Ibid. pp. 160-163. p. 210.
 
- 
32 Ibid. pp. 146-148.
 
- 
33 Ibid. pp. 189-191.
 
For the needs of the eparchy, the bishops
collected from the parishes, with the help of the dean's, an annual cathedraticum
which was assigned by the eparchial consistory. It was to be paid in florins
by the deaneries for example:
 
| 
 
  | 
| 1. | 
Balyhorod | 
439 | 
  | 
  | 
4. | 
Drohobych | 
818 | 
| 2. | 
Bircha | 
444 | 
  | 
  | 
5. | 
Sjan'ik | 
428 | 
| 3. | 
Dobromyl' | 
509 | 
  | 
  | 
6. | 
Zhovkva | 
314 | 
* * *
The Ukrainian Catholic population
continued to grow during the years 1828-1939, the period covered in this
work. The growth was in spite of the conditions under which the people
lived. Epidemics spread throughout the region periodically especially virulently
in the years 1831-1832 and in 1847. The nature of typhus, typhoid fever,
cholera and "recurrent fever" were practically unknown at that time and
the people had no idea how these fevers were spread or how to protect themselves
against them. Hospital care was almost non-existent until the mid nineteenth
century.
A considerable number of Ukrainian's
were farmers, and were at the mercy, not only of crop failure, locust hordes,
blights, oppression from landlords, etc., but also had to face the enmity
and distrust of their neighbors - of the Poles because they were too "eastern"
and of the Russians because they were too "western". The Ukrainian desire
for self determination and independence was a constant source of irritation
to both Poland and Russia and over the centuries the people have paid an
enormous price for this desire. The "ethnic cleansing" which took place
after each of the two World Wars are only too well known in the history
of the Ukrainian people, and were not the only occasions of conflict.
By the end of the 19th century,
the Ukrainian's had begun to emigrate to other countries in the New World,
and in the years up to 1914, massive emigrations had taken place - to Canada,
the United States, Brazil and Argentina. After World War II, another wave
of emigration's took place, this time also to western Europeans countries
and to Australia. Those who remained on their native soil faced the possibility
of being transported by force to Siberia or other places in the Soviet
Union, or, for those in the Polish part of the eparchy, of being deported
to the Soviet Union, to the western provinces of Poland or to the former
German territories given to Poland in 1944 according to the Treaty of Yalta.
In 1944, the western part of the Eparchy
of Peremyshl' and the whole Apostolic Administration of Lemkivshchyna came
under Polish domination, and the eastern part came under the Soviets. On
February 4, 1949, the Archbishop of Warsaw, Stefan Cardinal Wyszynski,
was nominated by Rome as Special Delegate for Eastern Rite Catholics in
Poland. He directed religious matters for the Ukrainians through vicar
generals appointed by him Father Vasyl' Hrynyk, who held the position until
his death on May 31, 1977. then Father Stefan Dzubyna, first as Vicar General
and then as "Vicar Capitularis" until 1981. On September 18, 1981 the Archbishop
of Warsaw, Josyf Cardinal Glemp, was appointed as Ordinary for Greek Catholics
in Poland, and he appointed two vicars general - Father Ivan Martynjak
for the 2 southern deaneries of Peremyshl' and Wroclaw, and Father Josafat
Romanyk, OSBM, for the 2 northern deaneries of Koszalin and Olsztyn.
Father Martynjak, who had already
been consecrated as Auxiliary Bishop for Eastern Rite Catholics in Poland
on October 16, 1989 in Czestochowa, was nominated as Eparch of Peremyshl'
on January 16, 1991 and the Eparchy was reestablished. He was enthroned
on April 13, 1991 in Peremyshl'.
Ukrainians are now established
in eparchies in Western Europe, North and South America and Australia.
Many of the first priests came from the Eparchy of Peremyshl' to administer
to the religious needs of the early Ukrainian Catholic emigrants. The Ukrainian
Catholic Church survived both underground in their own lands, and in Diaspora
where they now have l5 eparchies. Now that Ukraine is independent, the
future is in the hands of God, the strong faith of the people, and the
responsibility of its ecclesiastical leadership. That will be for future
historians to relate...
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Originally Composed: May 12th, 1997
Date last modified: Sunday July 11th, 1999.