The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-02-20
'Lithuania Entombed By War
Looks For a Resurrection"
BY REV. ANTHONY J. MIC1UN1s


This delayed acceptance Of the
Faith was due to the conditions
Of the times. On the one hand, the
Lithuanians were surrounded by q
decaying Eastern church, which
could not offer them q substantial
faith, while, on the other hand,
those who came to them IN the
guise, of apostles turned out to be
predatory bearers Of sword and fire.
These-the Teutonic knights Of the
late fourteenth and early fifteenth
centuries-could make no perma-
nent appeal or convincingly pres
ent the message Of Christianity. SO
more propitiouS times had to be
awaited.
But once gathered into the fold
Of the Catholic Church, the Lithu-
anians held steadfast to the Faith.
weathering all storms. The first Of
these storms came toward the end
Of the fourteenth century, when
the Tartars launched their sweep
across Europe. Lithuania per-
formed q signal service to the
Church, as well as to Europe, at
large, when, under Vytautas the
Great, in 1889, 1t withStood the on
rush Of these Asiatics, an invasion
which, had 1t succeeded, would have
seriously arrested Western civiliza-
ton. The defense of this further
most Catholic outpost Of Europe
was blessed by Boniface TX as q
holy war In defense Of q Catholic
people. ...
Performers" d.
A second great threat to the Faith
in Lithuania came, in the sixteenth
century, with the Protestant revo-
luton, which attempted to pene-
trate Lithuania itself - but with
out success. True, the nobility and
landed gentry, for opportunistic
reasons, took to Professionalism, but
1t did not appeal to the peasants.
The wealthy, worldly-minded and
ambitious land barons attempted to
compel their subjects to forsake
Catholicism and, following the pat
tern of all "reformers," engaged IN
a systematic persecution and ami
hilation of all adherents to the
Faith.
The Hierarchy, gravely concerned
over these conditions threatening
the. Faith, and alarmed by short
age of priests, invited the JeSuits
from abroad, and in 1879, in the
Episcopal city of Vilnius, estab-
lished the Academy. This institu-
ton was approved by Pope Gregory
XIII, and granted all the privileges
enjoyed by Catholic universities.
The Academy exercised inestimable
influence in checking the spread Of
the revolt. BY 1903 1t had become
a -fledged university, only to be
liouidated in 1882 by the Russian
Tsar as an undesirable" influence.
The most trying period for the
Catholic Church in Lithuania
lasted from 1895 to 1914, during
which time Lithuanian remained
subjugated to Russian rule. The
usurper Immediately sought to rob
the Lithuanians of their Faith and
nationality. At first, the subjected
peoples were enticed by promises OF
reward to forsake one heritage or
the other. When this failed, per.
secution began.
Those whom the tyrants could
not persuade" were banished to
Siberia by the thousands. Those
trying times bring TO light the
heroic apostOlate Of one Religious.
a Marian Father. Christopher evir-
mickas, who had been banished TO
Siberia In Ie46. and who &c: fifty
two years laboTed In ITkutsk.
Russian Converts
Other priests voluntarily pene-
tFated the depths OF Russia In order
10 preach Catholicism 70 the oTth0-
dox and schismatlc Russians. In
certain blshopFlcs Of Russia, the
percentages Of Lithuanian priests
was a. high a. sixty, while the con-
version, though secret, OF q great
number Of Russian tntelllgentsia,
was due 10 Lithuanian priest
IN isos, the Russian Government
closed all Catholic schools N LAihHs
ania. Having oitlawed IRE printing
0f al books. except ~ Russian
characters Russian police and sol
dlaFa apled on WoFNklpe1 lest they
he found praying o. singing fEeel
prayer o. hymn. books pfiu1e4 ~
forbidden characters,
Churches we're el0nad, ana 30 neR
salsr,sn.hea mllfswna A. - lsf8lIf fl1a