Natalia Shlikhta1; 1 National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Ukraine
Discussion
Ever since the 1939 “reunification” of Galicia with the “Great Ukraine,” the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church there was destined for liquidation. The Soviet regime did not manage to accomplish this between 1939 and 1941 because of a lack of time and inability to oppose a powerful figure of the Church’s leader, Metropolitan Andrei Sheptytsky. The regime’s decision to liquidate this Church was based on several reasons: from geopolitical motives to considerations of Soviet nationalities policy; the anti-Vatican objective was important among them. A chosen tactic – liquidation through “reunification” with the Russian Orthodox Church — was surprisingly logical. The regime learned the lesson of the 1920s–1930s: it was not enough to destroy the hierarchy and clergy to eliminate the Church, as their fight against the ROC demonstrated. It was much easier to control a loyal institutional Church than “uncontrolled masses of believers.” This influenced their decision to pursue “reunification,” seen as an important step toward the assimilation of Galicians. I will organize my paper into three main parts. In the first section, I will examine the Stalinist regime’s policy toward the Greek Catholic Church, focusing on the reasons and methods behind its liquidation. In the second section, I will discuss the immediate effects of the regime’s “reunification” campaign in Galicia, emphasizing the reactions and choices of the Greek Catholic community. In the final part, I will highlight Pius XII’s response to the Soviet authorities’ liquidation of the Ukrainian Catholic Church.
