MONASTICISM
IN THE UKRAINIAN CHURCH
Athanasius Pekar, OSBM
Analecta OSBM, Section II, Volume XIII (XIX) 1-4, 1988,
pages 378-386.
The origins of the monastic life in the Ukrainian lands are closely related
to the penetration of Christianity long before the official recognition of
Christianity as the State religion by Prince Vladimir the Great in 988 A.D.
The first missionaries, without any doubt, were monks who out of necessity
established their mission centers and missionary schools, in which young people
were able to get acquainted with the monastic way of life.
Certainly, some of these young people became interested in the missionary work and joined their spiritual Fathers, thus forming the religious communities on Ukrainian soil. Therefore, I ful1y agree with the statement of Hilarion, who later became Metropolitan of Kiev (1051), that already at the time of St. Vladimir "the monasteries were built on the hills and the monks began to appear."1
MONASTERY OF THE CAVES
The first explicit mention of the Ukrainian monasteries can be found in the Chronicle, The Story of Bygone Years, under the year of 1037, where it is recorded that Prince Jaroslav the Wise (1019-1054) founded two monasteries in Kiev, St. George's monastery for men and St. Irene's monastery for women. And the Chronicler continues: "During his (Jaroslav's) rule Christianity began to expand and bring its fruits, while the number of the monks increased, and new monasteries came into being."2 Notice the close relationship between the expansion of Christianity and the increase of the monasteries stressed by the Chronicler himself.
The most important monastery of this period was the Monastery of Caves in
Kiev, founded in the middle of the 11th century by St. Anthony Pecerskyj (d.
1073), as recorded by the same Chronicle under the year of 1051.3
However, the true founder of the monastery should be considered St. Theodosius
Pecerskyj (d. 1074),4 since it was
he who organized his growing spiritual family into a genuine monastic community
according to the rules of St. Basil the Great, as practiced at the Studion
monastery in Constantinople. The Studite Typikon (monastic rules and regulations),
as revised and adapted by St. Theodosius to the Monastery of Caves, was gradually
accepted by all the monasteries of Kievan Rus' and exercised a decisive influence
on the development of Ukrainian religious life.5
The Ukrainian monasteries, in contrast to those founded later in the Muscovite
lands, were built not in isolated, faraway places, but rather within the city
walls or, at least, c1ose to the cities so as to be of service to the Church
and to the people. Thus, besides doing their missionary work, the Ukrainian
monks became educators, writers and masters of art, while the monastic schools
became beacons of Christian learning and civilization. In the monasteries
the first Ukrainian books were written, in the monasteries the first Chronicles
(Litopysy) were compiled, in the monasteries the Ukrainian liturgical chant
was developed, in the monasteries the iconography and monumental art began
to flourish, in the monasteries the first libraries were established, and
all aspects of learning were promoted. The princes even engaged the monks
as their secretaries, personal advisors and ambassadors.6
In a short period of time the monasteries became important religious, cultural
and educational centers throughout the Ukrainian lands, and every city or
town aspired to have its own monastery, the "Sanctuary of Learning."
The Ukrainian princes and boyars were eager to establish and to support these
monasteries, the number of which was constantly increasing. Thus, by the end
of the 12th century there were already about 70 well-organized monasteries
in Kievan Rus', twelve of which belonged to nuns, conducting special schools
for girls.7
The superiors of ali these monasteries as well as a great number of the bishops
of the Kievan Commonwealth before the Tartar invasion (1240) were taken from
the Kievan Monastery of Caves, considered to be the Mother of all Ukrainian
monasteries.8 This way the monastic
traditions and the spirituality of the Monastery of Caves were carried from
Kiev to all parts of the Ukrainian lands and became a common heritage of Ukrainian
monasticism.
THE ORTHODOX MONASTICISM
The golden age of Ukrainian monasticism came to a sudden halt in the middle of the 13th century, when Mongolian tribes of Tartars, led by Khan Batyi, invaded the Ukrainian lands and brought about the downfall of the Kievan State. The city of Kiev, and with it all the important monasteries, including the famous Monastery of Caves, was completely destroyed and reduced to ruins. Seeking refuge from Tartars, the Metropolitan of Kiev transferred his see to the north, first to Vladimir on-Kljazma, in the Suzdal' Principality, and later to Moscow. A decline of the Ukrainian Church and monasticism came as a result.9
Prolonged domination of the Mongol "Golden Horde" over the Ukrainian
lands did not favor the revival of monastic life. The Monastery of the Caves,
by the middle of the 15th century, eventually became restored, but many other
famous monasteries were never rebuilt and simply passed into oblivion.10
The 13th and 14th centuries saw the revival of monastic life in the western
Ukrainian lands, namely in Galicia, Volhynia and Transcarpathia. The subsequent
Lithuanian and Polish occupation of the Ukrainian lands, however, encouraged
the Ukrainian nobility and well-to-do families to embrace Roman Catholicism
and to abandon their own nationality. With a loss of a national elite the
Ukrainian people were also losing the main source of support of their religious
and cultural life. It is true that some Lithuanian and Polish landlords did
build a few Ukrainian monasteries, but they were to serve the interests of
their patrons.11
The renewal of the religious and monastic life within the Ukrainian Church
was greatly stimulated by the Union of Brest (1596). While the Catholic part
began to organize its monasteries into one monastic congregation, which eventually
developed into the Basilian Order, the Orthodox part revived their monasteries
in the fight against the Union. Thus, during the 17th century, some new Ukrainian
Orthodox monasteries were founded even by hetmans and influential Cossack
families.
At the end of the 16th century the Monastery of Caves in Kiev, taking under
its jurisdiction six other monasteries, was elevated to the dignity of Lavra
and granted a privilege of exemption (Stauropegion) by the Patriarch of Constantinople.
Under the administration of Archimandrite Peter Mohyla (1627-1632), who afterwards
became the Orthodox Metropolitan of Kiev, the Monastery of Caves was restored
to its pristine greatness and once again played a leading role among the Ukrainian
Orthodox monasteries.12
The role of the Ukrainian Orthodox monasteries as cultural and educational
centers began to dec1ine in the middle of the 18th century, when the Holy
Synod of Moscow took a complete control of their internal matters. The rights
and the privileges of the Ukrainian Orthodox monasteries were gradually abrogated
and in a short period of time all the Ukrainian Orthodox monasteries became
nationalized ("stats'ki"), and their cultural and educational work,
including the printing of books, completely paralyzed. Then the 19th century
brought with itself a systematic Russification of the Ukrainian monasteries
under Russian domain, including the stronghold of Ukrainian Orthodox monasticism,
the Monastery of Caves in Kiev.13
After the 1917 revolution, the Soviet government gradually began to liquidate
all the monasteries that remained in Ukraine. In 1926, they closed down even
the Monastery of Caves in Kiev, and turned it into a National Museum, which
also included the Museum of Atheism. After the re-establishment of the Russian
Orthodox Church by Joseph Stalin in 1943, the Soviet authorities granted permission
to reopen a small monastery near the caves, but the large complex of the Monastery
of Caves is still being used by various government institutions.14
Another important Orthodox monastery, the Pocajiv Lavra in Volhynia, which
belonged to Poland between the two world wars, was to some extent preserved.
In 1944, after the Soviet occupation of Volhynia, the government confiscated
the extensive property of the Lavra and drastically reduced the number of
monks (from 200 to less than 20), the majority of whom was sent to Pocajiv
from Russian monasteries in order to secure a complete Russification of the
monastery.15
In 1964, the Soviet authorities had intentions to liquidate the Pocajiv Lavra,
but under pressure from the faithful and from abroad they did not carry out
their plan. The monastery, with its 16th century miraculous icon of the Blessed
Mother, continues to be a vibrant pilgrimage center for the entire Western
Ukraine. The official superior of the Lavra, with the title of Archimandrite,
is the actual Orthodox Archbishop of L'viv and Temopil'.16
At the present time there are no Ukrainian Orthodox monasteries in the diaspora.
The Ukrainian Catholic Church has several religious Orders and Congregations
with their own history. Therefore, I will talk about them one by one.
BASILIAN FATHERS
The Order of St. Basil the Great (OSBM - Ordo Sancti Basilii Magni), commonly known as the Basilian Fathers, was founded in 1617, when Metropolitan Joseph V. Ruts'kyj, OSBM. with the assistance of St. Josaphat consolidated the monasteries under his jurisdiction into one religious Congregation of the Holy Trinity and provided them with the Constitutions (Typikon), based on the Rules of St. Basil the Great.17 The Basilian monks were to be engaged especially in the promotion of the Holy Union, therefore, they placed emphasis on having members with priestly orders. Hence they became known as the Basilian Fathers, although there were many lay members in the Order, referred to as Lay- Brothers.18
The Basilian Congregation of the Holy Trinity, approved by the Holy See in
1631,19 was to include all those monasteries
within the territory of the Catholic Metropolitan Province of Kiev, which
would join the union with Rome. In the beginning the Metropolitan of Kiev
was also the General Superior (Protoarchimandrite) of the Basilians, but starting
in 1675 the monks elected their own General Superior, while the Metropolitan
retained only the right of supervision.
Basilian monasteries of Galicia and Volhynia joined the Lithuanian Congregation
of the Holy Trinity only in 1739, but they formed their own Congregation of
the Protection of the Blessed Mother, also known as the Ruthenian Congregation.20
It was Pope Benedict XIV who joined both Basilian Congregations into one Order
of St. Basil the Great, approved at the General Chapter of Dubno in 1743,
with two separate Provinces, Lithuanian and Ruthenian (Ukrainian).21
At that time the Basilian Order enjoyed its Golden Era, counting 195 monasteries
and 1,145 monks, of whom only 91 were lay-brothers.
Thanks to the efforts of Metropolitan Ruts'kyj the Basilians received 22
scholarships to the various Pontifical Colleges in Europe, which provided
the Order with a number of highly qualified educators and scholars. No wonder
that in a short time the Basilian monasteries started to play a leading role
in the religious, national and cultural life of the Ukrainian people living
under Polish domination.23
Besides their pastoral and missionary work, the Basilian monks in particular
showed great zeal in the education of the Ukrainian youth. In the middle of
the 18th century they conducted 83 schools, thus "providing an opportunity
for the rich and the poor to receive a proper education."24
Ukrainian books, both religious and educational, were amply supplied by the
Basilian printing houses in Vilnius, Suprasl', Univ and Pocajiv. The printing
house of Pocajiv, which reached its fame under the administration of the Basilian
Fathers,25 deserves a special mention,
since more than 265 books were printed there between 1713-1831.26
The Ukrainian song book, Bohohlasnyk, published in 1790, should be singled
out since, according to the opinion of Ivan Franko, it was "the most
important literary work published in Western Ukraine during the 18th century."
27
We cannot pass with silence the immense contribution of the Basilian monks
in the field of Ukrainian art, especially in music, iconography, engraving,
carving, even in architecture. The noted Ukrainian art critic, prof. Mykola
Holubec', identified and described the works of 52 Basilian masters, 38 of
whom were active in the 18th century as accomplished painters, sculptors and
architects.28
Thus the Basilian Fathers became instrumental in the renewal of the religious
and spiritual life among the faithful, and significantly advanced the cause
of the Holy Union. Referring to the missionary and pastoral zeal of the Basilian
Fathers, Pope Leo XIII stated: "When the Basilian Order was flourishing
so also the Ukrainian Catholic Church flourished."29
Unfortunately, after the partitions of Poland (1772-1795), three Basilian
provinces with their numerous monasteries came under Russian czarist rule
and were gradually suppressed. The only Basilian province that to some extent
survived was the Province of the Holy Savior in Western Ukraine, incorporated
into Austria in 1772. At that time the Province numbered 44 monasteries and
330 monks. However, due to the religious reforms of Emperor Joseph II (1780-1790),
the number of the Basilian monasteries in Western Ukraine was drastically
reduced and the reception of new candidates was limited. By the mid-nineteenth
century there remained only 14 monasteries, with about 50 monks.30
In Carpatho-Ukraine only seven Basilian monasteries survived the Josephinian
reform (15 monasteries were closed) with fewer than 30 monks. But politically
these monasteries belonged to the Kingdom of Hungary and, therefore, they
formed their own Province of St. Nicholas, which was formally established
in 1733.31
The dormant Basilian Order was in dire need of a reform, which was ordered
by Pope Leo XIII in 1882. Since the reform conducted by the Jesuit Fathers
was initiated in the monastery of Dobromyl', it is known in the history of
the Order as – the Dobromyl Reform.32
After World War I the reform was extended also to the Transcarpathian monasteries.33
These reforms revitalized the Order and rekindled the spirit of St. Basil
among its members.
The reformed Basilians carried their missionary work to the Ukrainian emigrants
abroad, especially to Brazil (1897) and Canada (1902), later to the United
States (1927) and Argentina (1934), and most recently to Great Britain (1962).
From Transcarpathia the Basilian Fathers extended their reform to Hungary,
Romania and Jugoslavia.
The Basilian publishing houses: in Zovkva, Western Ukraine: in Uzhorod, Transcarpathia;
in Toronto (initially in Mundare), Canada; in Prudentopolis, Brazil; in Aposloles,
Argentina; and at the General Curia in Rome, Italy, have made a considerable
contribution to the promotion of the religious and cultural life of the Ukrainian
people at home and abroad. Ukrainian spiritual and ascetic literature to this
day prevalently
depends on Basilian publications. The Basilian Fathers in Rome were the first
to provide the faithful with a complete Ukrainian translation of the Catholic
Bible (1963), with several reprints since.
The promising growth of the Basilian Order in its native lands was drastically interrupted by the Soviets and their Communist allies which came to power in Central Europe after World War II. They violently liquidated one Basilian province after another, namely: 1) The Province of the Holy Savior in Western Ukraine in 1946; 2) St. Nicholas Province in Carpatho-Ukraine in 1947; 3) The Romanian Province of St. Joseph in 1948; 4) Sts. Cyril and Methodius Province in Czechoslovakia in 1950; and 5) Hungarian Province of St. Stephen in 1950. In Poland and Jugoslavia the activity of the Basilian monks has been restricted to pastoral work in parishes.
At the time when the Basilian Order in Europe became almost completely wiped
out, it began to flourish out in the diaspora. Presently the Order, with its
General Curia in Rome since 1932,34
comprises the following Provinces*:
1) Canadian Province of the Sacred Heart (established in 1931)- numbers 4
monasteries, 7 residences, and almost 60 monks.
2) Province of St. Joseph in Brazil (est. in 1948) - 3 monasteries, 7 residences,
and about 120 monks.
3) American Province of the Assumption of BVM. (est. in 1948)- 3 monasteries
and 5 residences, with about 50 monks.
4) Vice-Province of the Immaculate Conception in Argentina (est. in 1948)
- has 2 monasteries, 2 residences, and 15 monks.
5) Vice-Province of the Patronage of BVM. in Poland (est. in 1983) with 1
monastery, 4 residences (parishes) and 20 monks.
In Jugoslavia there is only one residence-parish in Kula, with 3 monks.
In the United States the Hungarian Basilian Fathers have their own "Delegatura"
in Matawan, N.J. with 4 monks.
The residence of Bradford, England, with two monks, in 1970 was annexed to
the Canadian Province.35