On 29 July 1865 Count Roman Aleksander Maria Sheptytsky - later known as Metropolitan Andrey - was born in the village of Prylbychi. One hundred and fifty years later, in the courtyard of St. George’s Cathedral in Lviv, President Poroshenko unveiled a monument to the Venerable Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky. The last week of October 2015 was dedicated to the memory of this Metropolitan of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church who lived through two world wars, publicly opposed Hitler’s genocidal tendencies, and led his flock through some of Ukraine’s most turbulent years.
Roman was not someone who looked like he would become one of Ukraine’s most important religious figures. He was born into an old Ukrainian-Polish aristocratic family. He was home schooled and then studied law in Krakow and Wroclaw. It was during this time that his religious aspirations came to the forefront, eventually becoming a Basilian monk and taking on the name Andrey. He was ordained a priest in Peremyzl in 1892, consecrated as bishop in 1899, and Metropolitan of Lviv in 1901. One of his brothers, Klymentiy, followed Roman’s religious path as a Studite monk. The other brother, Stanislaw, became a Polish general, Chief of the General Polish Staff in 1918, the Minister of Polish Military Affairs in 1923, and even threatened to duel the Polish Prime Minister Pilsudski.
Sheptytsky knew Hebrew and during the Second World War harboured hundreds of Jews in his residence, and also issued pastoral instructions to his priests to assist any Jews that they could. His pastoral letter “Thou Shalt Not Kill” was an open protest against Nazi atrocities. The man was committed to his people and was committed to Ukraine.
During Sheptytsky Week in Kyiv there was an unveiling of a traveling exhibit about his life. The Institute of National Memory, the SBU Archives, the Central State Historical Archives of Ukraine in Lviv, and the Central State Archives of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government in Ukraine all helped produce this visual exhibit about the Metropolitan. One of the exhibit’s most interesting aspects was the photographs of the Metropolitan surrounded by children and orphans. He was a constant supporter of initiatives that helped children and was an active supporter of Plast, the Ukrainian Boy Scouts. The exhibit also featured his pastoral letters and even telegrams from his visit to North America in 1927. It is fitting that this exhibit was featured at the Pedagogical Museum in Kyiv as this was the building that the Ukrainian People’s Republic used as its Parliament. It was during the proclamation of the Fourth Universal in January 1917 that the Metropolitan was in Kyiv last and saw the dreams of many Ukrainians fulfilled, if only for a brief moment in history. This exhibit is set to tour Ukraine, with support given by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
The week was also advertised throughout Kyiv with promotional posters with Sheptytsky’s quotes. These were placed all over the Kyiv metro system and a conference on Sheptytsky’s influence in Ukraine was held. The conference was at the Taras Shevchenko University in Kyiv and opened with a welcoming speech by Patriarch Sviatoslav (Shevchuk). The conference was attended by professors, religious figures and seminary students who analyzed Sheptytsky’s views, attitudes, and activity. Liliana Hentosh from the Ivan Franko Lviv National University, for example, discussed the Metropolitan’s complicated relationship with the Polish authorities. While he wanted Ukrainians to be active participants in the Second Polish Republic (and advocated Ukrainians to take part in the elections of the 1920s which produced a large number of Ukrainian politicians), he also knew that the Ukrainian minority would always been seen as disloyal, since loyalty meant assimilation.
Professor Yury Avvakumov from the University of Notre Dame (who himself was born in St. Petersburg and was a Greek Catholic priest) examined Sheptytsky’s relationship with Russia. Sheptytsky held a very complex view on Russia: he did not want any influence of Russian elements in a Ukrainian church, but also wanted a reunification with the Orthodox Church. While he was in Moscow at the end of the 19th century, he did find some very intellectual people and the Metropolitan even appointed the first Apostolic Exarchate for the Russian Greek Catholics, the Most Reverend Leonid Feodorov in 1917. However, all Russian government agencies – from Tsarist to Soviet to modern Russia – believed him to be an enemy of the state. Avvakumov pointed out that the Russian Greek Catholics were viewed as a fifth column – “the Nemtsov’s of the past” – and all died tragically under the Soviets.
One of the most interesting discussions of this conference occurred during the talks on the Metropolitan’s knowledge of the 30 June 1941 Act of Ukrainian State Restoration in Lviv by Yaroslav Stetsko. There are two conflicting views on whether the Metropolitan actually approved of the proclamation or whether he was just asked to “bless Ukraine” by Stetsko. The Metropolitan was concerned about the German attitude toward Ukraine and wanted to harmonize German-Ukrainian relations. The most important aspect of this discussion was the admission that hindsight was clouding these talks. One must remember that no one knew of the German plans against Ukraine when they entered Lviv in 1941. Furthermore, many of those in Nazi power at the time were Austrians, many of whom knew the higher authorities in Lviv from their time in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Therefore, the relations between the Germans and Ukrainians can only be viewed through this prism.
Sheptytsky week ended on 1 November with a remembrance mass at the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ. Metropolitan Sheptytsky has been one of the most influential people in Ukraine’s history. Not only was he an inspirational leader but also supported every Ukrainian - no matter if they were ethnically Ukrainian or not. That is why the Vatican recognized Sheptytsky with the title of “Heroic Virtue” in July 2015.
Larysa Zariczniak, Kyiv
Sheptytsky knew Hebrew and during the Second World War harboured hundreds of Jews in his residence, and also issued pastoral instructions to his priests to assist any Jews that they could. His pastoral letter “Thou Shalt Not Kill” was an open protest against Nazi atrocities. The man was committed to his people and was committed to Ukraine.
The week was also advertised throughout Kyiv with promotional posters with Sheptytsky’s quotes. These were placed all over the Kyiv metro system and a conference on Sheptytsky’s influence in Ukraine was held. The conference was at the Taras Shevchenko University in Kyiv and opened with a welcoming speech by Patriarch Sviatoslav (Shevchuk). The conference was attended by professors, religious figures and seminary students who analyzed Sheptytsky’s views, attitudes, and activity. Liliana Hentosh from the Ivan Franko Lviv National University, for example, discussed the Metropolitan’s complicated relationship with the Polish authorities. While he wanted Ukrainians to be active participants in the Second Polish Republic (and advocated Ukrainians to take part in the elections of the 1920s which produced a large number of Ukrainian politicians), he also knew that the Ukrainian minority would always been seen as disloyal, since loyalty meant assimilation.
Church. While he was in Moscow at the end of the 19th century, he did find some very intellectual people and the Metropolitan even appointed the first Apostolic Exarchate for the Russian Greek Catholics, the Most Reverend Leonid Feodorov in 1917. However, all Russian government agencies – from Tsarist to Soviet to modern Russia – believed him to be an enemy of the state. Avvakumov pointed out that the Russian Greek Catholics were viewed as a fifth column – “the Nemtsov’s of the past” – and all died tragically under the Soviets.
