LUCJAN BOGUCKI KAZIMIERZ MALINOWSKI MAREK SIKUŁA

Transcription

1 INTERNATIONAL MISSION CONGRESS OFM Conv. Cochin, Kerala, India January 12-22, 2006 LUCJAN BOGUCKI KAZIMIERZ MALINOWSKI MAREK SIKUŁA THE PRESENCE AND COMMITMENT OF THE CONVENTUAL FRANCISCAN FRIARS IN EASTERN EUROPE ANDE IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION: LIGHTS AND SHADOWS This text was added to complete the description and evaluation of the manner of doing mission in some of the circumscriptions of Eastern Europe and in the former Soviet Union. The descriptive part as taken from the report presented to the Assembly of the Order for Europe (Rome, at the Seraphicum, November 2005). The attempt at evaluation is instead the work of a study group during the Mission Congress in India

2 LUCJAN BOGUCKI KAZIMIERZ MALINOWSKI MAREK SIKUŁA THE PRESENCE AND COMMITMENT OF THE CONVENTUAL FRANCISCAN FRIARS IN EASTERN EUROPE AND IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION: LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. Translation by Daniel Pietrzak This text was added to complete the description and evaluation of the manner of doing mission in the revitalised circumscriptions of Eastern Europe and in the former Soviet Union. The first part which is descriptive (pp.1-7) was taken from a conference presented to the Assembly of the Order for Europe (Rome, at the Seraphicum, November 2005). The attempt at evaluation (pp. 7-8) is instead the fruit of the work of a study group during the Congress in India. Introduction: The presence and activity of the Order in Eastern Europe, undertaken by the CEO Conference, extends to the territories of Central and Eastern Europe, reaching until now as far as Uzbekistan in Asia. All the nations of this geographic area share the common experience of having passed through the terrible period of Communist dictatorship which, after the treaty of Yalta (1945) was imposed with violence on this part of the planet. The persecutions suffered by all Christian communities suppressed all forms of consecrated life bringing about great suffering for men and women religious who were either imprisoned, sent to concentration camps or camps of forced labour or killed in secret extermination camps. The wave of persecutions touched also the Franciscan communities, which, with the exception of Poland, officially ceased to exist in all the countries of the Soviet bloc. Religious life was able to survive in underground structures which resurrected with surprising vitality after the fall of Berlin wall in Whatever discussion relative to a united Europe and to the presence of our Franciscan family in this region cannot prescind from the fact that nearly one half of the inhabitants of that part of Europe regained freedom, including religious freedom, only 15 years ago. The founding or re-founding of our Franciscan presences is only recent history, not without its fragility if one thinks that while suddenly the omnipresent ideology and State control ceased, there are still remnants of the Communist system (as in Belarus, Uzbekistan and partially also in Russia). It is a reality made up of hopes mixed with frustrations and disillusionment, not easily understood by those who always experienced the reality of freedom in a climate the social stability. We are dealing with national and social realities which are still unstable: rapid economic changes has brought out poverty and too many socio-economic contrasts, so many people have been pushed to the margins of society, without any social support, with a great need for help and support which is given mostly by the charitable organizations of the Church. A hardship situation which is a great challenge for religious Orders present in these countries.

3 Positive dimensions are not lacking in these realities, beginning with the vitality of the younger generation and its great desire to know and the dynamics of democracy progressively penetrating the society in many countries of Central and Eastern Europe. With the entrance into the European Union there has been an increase in local initiatives, thanks to the new opportunities for development. Nonetheless, one cannot deny at the same time the presence of scepticism even in the countries of the old Europe, who are fearful that they will need to share their riches with countries who are suffering great need. In this re-birth, the Polish Provinces of the Immaculate in Warsaw, of St. Anthony in Krakow and of St. Maximilian Kolbe in Gdansk, played a fundamental role, experienced and strengthened as they were by their resistance during the Communist dictatorship, thanks to their numerical vitality and idealism re-kindled by the canonization of Fr. Kolbe. In dealing with these new geo-political realities there have been successes and difficulties. Under the first heading we can list the spiritual and moral collapse left by communism, religious indifference or a declared atheism among persons of the middle or younger age bracket, great confusion in terms of values as a result of the encounter with a culture based on Western consumerism, society marked by corruption and unemployment, the breakdown of the family, with an increasing gap between the rich and the poor, ignorance of the nature of consecrated life (which is one reason why there are few vocations in certain countries). Nevertheless, we have experienced a favourable acceptance from the local churches, from the faithful and even from the civil governments. A spontaneous dialogue has arisen with Islam, especially in Uzbekistan, with Buddhism in Kalmukia with the Orthodox Church in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. The friars are aware, thanks to their Slavic identity and territorial location, they can become an ideal bridge for a Church which is striving to breathe with both lungs. The multi-culturality of the places in which the friars are present can offer a laboratory for dialogue among the various nations, cultures and religions. The young age of the friars is a resource and a hope in this area. It is important to note that the friars have grown in the enculturation into the new cultures, and thus finding also a response in terms of vocations. Franciscan religious life present both in the places where we has been historically present and in the new countries has made it possible to create new institutional realities for the Order. 1. The missionary effort of the Order in Eastern Europe. We offer some perspectives on the complex reality in which the Order finds itself at present, by presenting an overview of our presences. Belarus. In this country which was once part of the Soviet bloc, there were no Franciscan presences in recent times, although one can look back to a Franciscan presence that dates to the 15th century, with its greatest development taking place in the 17th and 18th centuries, when Belarus was part of the Lithuanian Province. After the hard period of Communism, beginning in 1992, the Warsaw Province made the first attempts to return to our former friaries. Even now, the thrust of our work in this country is to recover the friaries which in former times belonged to the Franciscan Order. At the moment, there are five canonically erected friaries: Grodno, Holszany, Iwieniec, Porozowo, Udzial e una house in Swisloczy, which depends on the friar at Porozowo. In these friaries eighteen friars are working. Among the most important events to remember is the 300th anniversary of the arrival of the friars in Iwieniec, (present location of the postulancy) an event which was commemorated in in the presence of the Minister General, Fr. Joachim Giermek; the establishing of the friary in

4 Udzial, the headquarters of the Marian Apostolate in Belarus in The condition of the Order in Belarus is such that it is ready of become a Provincial Custody, although the precarious political situation urges caution. Bulgaria. According to the history books, our confreres arrived in Bulgaria in the 14th century from Croatia. But only at the beginning of the 20 th century, at the end of the Turkish occupation could our Order return to this country to find a fertile field for vocations to the Franciscan life. This was interrupted by the Second World War and the coming to power of the Communists. A good number of the younger friars found themselves outside the country, forced to live under the jurisdiction of various circumscriptions of the Order, where they worked, especially in Italy and Australia. After 1989 some of them returned to Bulgaria and along with Fr. Nedalko Romanov, who had lived through whole Communist era, undergoing imprisonment and persecution, and tried to bring about the re-birth of our Franciscan community. To achieve this rebirth, the General Custos, Fr. George Arlaski, in 1998, petitioned and obtained the support of the Polish Provinces of Warsaw and Krakow. In 2001, the superior of the community in Bulgaria, Fr. Maximilian Balabanski, and the Provincial of Warsaw, Fr. Grzegorz Bartosik, presented a common proposal to the Minister General by which the friars in Bulgaria were placed under the Warsaw Province as a Provincial delegation. At present there are 10 friars working in 4 communities and with the first local vocations. Bohemia. The Province of Bohemia has its roots at the beginning of the 13th century. After the velvet revolution of the 90 s, the Order reclaimed the majority of the friaries it had before the Second World War. We cannot forget the objective difficulty the friars had while living under the Communist regime, when they had to work as secular priests, and then to find themselves again within the structures of community. The Bohemian Province, although it undertook immediately the work of vocation promotion (a great help in this area came from the magazine, Knight of the Immaculate in the Czech language, which has become one of the most widely read religious magazine in Bohemia), because of its small numbers and the age of the friars, needed to ask help of the Polish Provinces. The optimism and hope at the beginning for a rebirth of the Bohemian Province had to give way to a harsh confrontation with the reality of one of the most secular and atheistic countries in Europe. Right now, the Order in Bohemia suffers from a serious lack of vocations and remains open to any possible collaboration. Lithuania. The beginnings of our Order in Lithuania go back to the 14th century. In 1686 an autonomous Province of Lithuania was created and which remained until its suppression in the 19th century. In 1939, the Province was subjugated to the Soviet system. The only Franciscan to remain to guide the faithful was Fr. Kamil Welymanski, who, despite the persecutions, imprisonments and brutal interrogations by the KGB, returned regularly to his parish in Miedniki (Medininkai), remaining there until independence was regained and religious liberty restored. To help in the re-establishment of religious life and of the Order, friars came to help from the Province of Gdansk. Notwithstanding the difficulties they encountered, in 1998, they succeeded in returning to the ancient Franciscan church in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, and in 2005, to open a third friary at Klajpeda. Already in 1994, a postulancy program was set up for candidates to the Order on Lithuanian territory at Miedinikai, while their formation usually continues in our seminary at Lodz-Lagiewniki (two of the friars finished their formation in Padua at the Istituto Teologico). At the moment, there are three friaries with 7 religious, of whom two are native Lithuanians.

5 Poland. This nation has played a determining role in the development of the missions of the Order and for its contribution in the re-organization of the Eastern countries. This has been possible because of the unique situation of the Catholic Church during the Communist period. The canonization of St. Maximilian Kolbe offered a special testimony and a stimulus for the presence of our Order in this country. In 1989, the three Polish Provinces numbered more than a thousand friars. With the help of these friars the formal structures of the Order were reestablished in six nations, while a presence exist in three others. At present, the friars of the three Polish Provinces work in the following nine countries, which were formally part of the Soviet Union: Uzbekistan, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Hungary, the Slovak Republic, the Czech Republic. (Since 1990 until now, 122 friars have worked and are working in these territories: 56 from the Krakow Province, 29 from Warsaw, and 10 from Gdansk.) At the present time, there are 71 friar-missionaries in different countries of the former Communist Bloc (32 from Krakow, 29 from Warsaw, and 19 from Gdansk.), working in the context of small Christian communities far apart from one another. Besides the help offered to post-communist countries, the Polish Provinces, during these same years, have opened and consolidated their presence in the missions of South America (Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru) and in Africa (Burkino Faso, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda). An event of particular importance was the founding of the Province of St. Maximilian in Brasilia, formed from the mission of the Warsaw Province begun in the 1970 s. Most recently, the missionary effort of these Provinces has not been limited to the formation of new missionaries but it has extended to include also the creation of suitable material conditions sufficient to support the missions. The majority of our missions are still in the first phase of foundation: a great help has been offered, since the middle of the 1990 s by the mission secretariats of the Provinces, which are becoming better organized to support the new presences. In wanting to specify the contribution of each Polish Province, we offer the following data: The Province of Gdansk. The commitment of the Gdansk Province in its apostolic activity outside the confines of Poland is underlined by the fact that 2/5 of the friars work outside the country, either in Europe or other continents. There are 102 solemnly professed who live in Poland, while to those who work in other European countries are 43 (7 in Lithuania;2 in Bohemia; 16 in Germany; 2 in Russia; 5 in Sweden; 1 in Turkey; 1 in Hungary; 1 in Great Britain; 8 in Italy). In terms of fostering an intercultural mentality, of particular importance is the collaboration among the friaries in Scandinavia (the Polish-Swedish friary at Jonkoping and that of the Danish-USA-Romania friary at Roskilde) who work in international, inter-confessional and inter-religious contexts. The Province of Krakow. There are 217 solemnly professed friars working in Poland. Those who work in the three European Conferences are 97 (3 in Austria; 1 in Bulgaria; 2 in Bohemia; 1 in France; 21 in Germany; 1 in Great Britain; 17 in Italy; and 13 in Uzbekistan), while those in initial formation number 117 (without counting the mission countries). The Province of Warsaw. The Province of Warsaw has 217 solemnly professed friars in Poland, while 76 others work in other areas of Europe (18 in Belarus; 10 in Bulgaria; 1 in Bohemia; 19 in Germany; 3 in Russia, 1 in Turkey; 3 at the Vatican; 20 in Italy); it is worth mentioning that these statistics do not include the number of friars who come from the Warsaw Province but are permanently affiliated to the Russian Custody.

6 Russia. The first attempts to extend the presence of the Order into Russian territori after the fall of the Communist government, came about in the years 1994/95. Two friaries were opened, one in Moscow and a second one in Kalmuchia, a federated republic of Russia. The three Polish Provinces were involved in the founding of the Order in this great Eurasian country. The friaries under the Warsaw Province grew more rapidly, situated as they were in the central part of Russia. Thanks to the charisma of Fr. Grzegorz Cioroch a publishing house and an intellectual centre were created, which brought together not only Catholic intellectuals but also gave us the possibility of giving birth to an historic work with the publication of the first Catholic Encyclopedia in the Russian language. The efforts in the area of vocations have brought some good results in the numerical increase of our community in Russia. These factors were decisive in establishing the General Custody approved at the General Chapter of Afterwards, as a result of the agreement with the Gdansk Province, and approved by the General Definitory, the friary of Czerniachowsk was added and later the friaries pertaining to the Krakow Province (Astrachan and Elista) were also added to the original friaries which had belonged to the Warsaw Province (Moscow, St.Petersburg and Kaluga). The tragic death of Fr. Cioroch, along with other difficulties (not the least the formation of candidates), brought about a realignment of the new jurisdiction. We believe, however, that the decisions of the recent Custodial Chapter and the help of the Order will allow this Custody to reach an internal equilibrium and a stable growth. Slovakia. The beginnings of the rebirth of the Order in Slovakia, after 1989, have been very difficult. During the Communist period, only two friar priests and one friar brother in temporary vows survived. In the hope of a more rapid growth in that territory, wjere we have been present since the 13 th century, the friars asked and obtained permission to be placed directly under the Krakow Province. The friars have begun a vocational apostolate and have taken back some of the friaries suppressed during the Communist era. A postulant house has been erected at Lewowcza, while in the capital, Bratislava, the friars have succeeded in a short time in building a new church and friary which has become the headquarters of the Custody and soon a formation house for the Slovak friars. On January 1, 2003, the Provincial Custody of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary was erected with 5 friaries. Today there are 19 solemnly professed, 6 temporary professed, 2 novices and 5 postulants. o Ukraine. The Order maintained its presence in Ucraine thanks to the heroic activity of Fr. Rafael Kiernicki, who never left the city of Leopolis(Lviv) even after the Soviet occupation in For 45 years he was the attentive guardian of the Cathedral of Lviv, which thanks to his efforts and his witness could not be closed by the Communist authorities. Notwithstanding the persecutions and many years spent in prison, his priestly ministry remained steadfast with regard to the Catholics, both those of the Latin and of Greco-Byzantine rites. He heard confessions and celebrated Mass, even when he was forced to work as a night-guard in the gardens of the city. With the return of religious freedom, he was named Latin Bishop of Leopolis (Lviv). An heroic figure who understood the persecutions suffered by the Church: Let us hope that soon the canonical process may begin toward the church recognition of his sanctity. In 1991 the Conventual Franciscans returned to their friary in Leopolis, promoting pastoral and charitable undertakings, first in the city itself and then in other part of this large country which has 60 million inhabitants. There are 10 friars working in four places with the care of a shrine and particular attention to charitable works.

7 Uzbekistan. The conditions of war brought Fr. Odoryk Bien to Central Asia. He carried out his pastoral work in Kazakhstan, working in places with a diaspora of persons from Germany and Poland. An heroic and solitary work, maintaining only sporadic contact with his Province. With the new political context in 1991, he was joined by Fr. Krzystof Kukulka, who after the death of Fr. Odoryk, found it more opportune to move to nearby Uzbekistan, to begin, in the name of the Order, his pastoral work. He was soon assisted by other confreres. Besides his missionary activities, the friars are involved in several charitable work. Recently an interesting project was inaugurated with a Centre of Dialogue with Islam at Buchara. The missionary efforts of the friars in this country earned the recognition of the Holy See, which in 2005 established an apostolic administration, entrusting it to a new bishop and confrere, Fr. Jerzy Macuklewicz.. Hungary. The tradition of the presence of Franciscans in this country goes back to the 13 th century. Before the Second World War the Hungarian Province numbered 50 friars, but in 1949 they were literally wiped out by the Communist authorities. With the reopening in 1989, three friars re-inaugurated the Franciscan life in the friary at Miskolc. In 1990, with the backing of the Minister General, it was decided to seek the help of the Polish Provinces for the re-organization of the Province. During the years , six Polish friars finished their formation in the seminary at Egger in order to work in that country. In the following years, the friaries at Nyirbator, Egger, Szeged, and Arad in Transylvania (Romania) were returned to the friars. At present 17 religious are living and working in the Province, of whom four friars are from the Romanian Province and three from Poland. Conclusions From the panorama presented, one can form a rich and diverse picture of the situation with its lights and its shadows; a two-dimensional evaluation of our missionary work in both the new and restored presences. The presences opened recently in the countries of the former Soviet Union were born at the time of Perestroika with all that this entailed. This approach appeared suddenly and was unexpected, but it offered to the Catholic Church and the Order a inique occasion to begin the work of evangelization among the people of Eastern Europe and in countries of Asia. This situation demanded an immediate and rapid response to seize the opportunity of the moment; this factors explains why many friars who responded generously to the call to mission did not have an adequate preparation and did not think of being involved in these projects for a lengthy period of time. Partly it was a return to the places where Franciscans had been in the past; partly it was a venture into places and cultures which were entirely new. As a result of this twofold context, two diverse ways emerged of doing mission. 1. The first way is found in those countries closet to Western culture and to the Catholic faith (Belarus, Ukraine, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria) where the work involved the refounding or strengthening of the structures of Church and/or Order with activities focused on parochial and sacramental ministry. 2. The second way is used in the territories long affected by atheism and the Islamic presence (Russia, Kalmuchia, Uzbekistan) where attention was placed rather on witness and the meaningfulness of our presence, in the press, in intercultural and inter-religious dialogue.

8 Durino the past 15 years, both modes of doing mission mentioned above: Restauratio Ordinis et Plantatio Ordinis, have gone through their initial phase and with time and experience have succeeded and have developed more recently in line with the demands of the current situation and of our charism. Among the lights of these two modes, the following can be listed: - The generosity of so many friars of the Polish Provinces who left to be involved in these missions (130); - The capacity to learn quickly the languages required and to enter into the local cultures; - The structures of the Order created in a brief amount of time (2 custodies and 5 delegations); - The establishment of truly international and intercultural communities; - Local vocations (about 40); - The creation of structures for formation in collaboration with other circumscriptions; - The beginning of inter-religious dialogue wiht the Orthodox, the Muslims (on the level of charitable works). Among the shadows we find: - The very uncertain and unpredictable socio-political situation; - The lack, at the beginning, of an preparation of the missionaries and projects, and as a result, the lack of community-level projects and their coordination; - The insufficient responsibility at times on the part of the Mother Provinces in respect to the works undertaken; - The small degree of understanding and support on the part of the Order (that is, the poor coordination on the part of the Secretariate for the Missions). Lights and shadows are certainly mixed together, but the many positive aspects offer much hope and strengthen the desire to continue on the road marked by the generosity of so many friars, especially of the Polish Provinces to offer their availability in these new frontiers of Evangelization and the Plantatio Ordinis. Lucjan BOGUCKI Kazimierz MALINOWSKI Marek SIKULA