Volyn Orthodox Eparchy in 1938: chronicle of opposition to a revision campaign

• Main Author: Volodymyr Borshchevych
• Format: Article
• Language: Ukrainian
• Published: EIKΩN, publishing house of the Volyn Orthodox Theological Academy 2018-10-01
• Series: Волинський благовісник
• Subjects: Orthodox Church; action of conversion; Border Guard Corps; p. Grinky of the Kremenetsky district; Volyn
• Online Access: http://vb.vpba.edu.ua/1531

The article outlines the main events in the life of Orthodox Volyn, when the main foreign threat was the action organized by the Polish authorities to convert to Catholicism. The position of the diocesan bishop, clergy and faithful in defense of the traditional religious orientation of the Volyn people is shown. If earlier one of the challenges was a new union, then from the second half of 1937 a wave of revision of souls, that is, the forced coercion of Orthodox Catholics into the transition, required a significant mobilization of forces for counteraction. One of the reasons for the Polish authorities to take more rigorous measures towards the Orthodox was the failure of planting a new union in Volyn. In early January 1938, the religious violence of Polish border guards against the Orthodox population grew publicly. Grinky of the Kremenets district. This was written by the Polish, Ukrainian and Russian press of the Second Common Polish Commonwealth. Ukrainian ecclesiastical forces actively use the seymes tribune to stop the revision. Metropolitan Andrei (Sheptytsky), head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, spoke in defense of the Orthodox Volynians, who believed that freedom of conscience could not be violated, and even more so by such brutal methods. Ambassador Stepan Skrypnyk spoke repeatedly from the Sejm's stand on the illegal actions of the border guards in Volyn. Violence against the Orthodox encouraged the head of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Dionysius (Valledinsky), to send a special letter to the Minister of Religious and Public Education. The Metropolitan demanded to protect the Orthodox population. Bishop Alexey (Gromadsky) as a diocesan bishop spiritually supported the faithful terrorized territories. During January 25-29, 1938, he traveled to the village with an archpastoral visit, where the Poles launched a revision campaign. Despite considerable efforts, Volodymyr's religious assimilation gave the Polish authorities little dividend compared to the provoked exacerbation and deepening of the existing interethnic and inter-religious tension. Volyn clergy, faithful, Ukrainian political and public institutions actively opposed violence, using all legal methods of struggle. In spite of a number of defeats, the Orthodox Volhynia generally resisted and retained their national-religious identity.