Today, there is an Orthodox and Catholic Grodno diocese. They are located in the city of Grodno in Belarus. Each of them has its own history of formation and formation. Catholics and Orthodox today coexist quite peacefully with each other, but there were other times. You can learn about all this from the material below.
The formation of the Catholic diocese
The modern Grodno Catholic Diocese has its roots in the distant past, during the time of the Lithuanian prince Jagiello. It is with him that the spread of Catholicism in Belarus begins. The Union of Brest in 1596 contributed to an increase in the number of believers. Of course, everything was not so easy and smooth, but by 1791 the number of Catholics had increased. This was also facilitated by the Jesuit schools, which provided a fairly good education at the time.
Whatever it was, but in 1773 the first Catholic diocese was created in Belarus. During its existence, it was often renamed, divided. That was until the Soviet Union appeared. During this period, as is known from historical reports, any religion was banned, it was fought in every possible way.
Only in 1991 did the Diocese of Grodno take on the form that we now know. She was isolated from the Minsk-Mogilev diocese.
Diocese today
Today, deans and parishes of the Grodno diocese are quite numerous. It is believed that by the number of parishioners it is the largest among Catholics in Belarus. In the diocese there are the following deans:
- Oshmyany;
- Ostrovetsky;
- Berestovitsky;
- Volkovysky;
- Western and Eastern Grodno;
- Dyatlovsky;
- Lida
- Ivyevsky;
- Mostovsky;
- Radunsky;
- Novogrudok;
- Sopotkinskiy;
- Slonim;
- Smorgon;
- Schuchinsky.
The Grodno Diocese also has a Catechism Institute in the city of Grodno and a seminary, which is located there, in its reign. In each of the above deans, there are at least six to eight parishes.
The formation of the Orthodox diocese
In addition to the Catholic diocese, in the city of Grodno there is also an Orthodox diocese. It was formed in 1900 on January 23. The Grodno Orthodox Diocese was separated from Vilna and Lithuania. It was under their command that she was until 1900.
If we talk about the history of the emergence of Orthodoxy in this place, then the chronicles narrate that stone temples appeared here in the twelfth century. The oldest that have survived to this day are the Upper and Lower Churches.
Initially, this place belonged to the Kiev Metropolis, and in the fourteenth century passed under the rule of the Lithuanian-Novogrudok Metropolis. Its center was in Navahrudak. The Union of Brest redrawn some Orthodox plots, and after its adoption, this department of the Metropolitanate became Uniate. This continued until the eighteenth century, when the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth survived several sections. Orthodoxy began to gradually return to these places.
The first calls were the request of the Orthodox to restore the church and re-consecrate it to St. Sophia Cathedral. This happened in 1804. Then, in 1843, a convent was built in Grodno. During this period, the diocese had churches, monasteries, church schools in its reign.
Already in 1923, some of this diocese was transferred to the Polish Orthodox Church. This was the beginning of the loss of controlled churches. Some of them were given to Catholics, and some simply closed. This period was marked by a glance in Orthodoxy: the service was read in Polish.
The history of the diocese until 1992 is rather chaotic. She several times passed from one subordination to another, only in the early nineties of the last century she began to recover.
Diocese today
Today it is the Volkovysk and Grodno diocese of the Belarusian Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church. In its territory, it is quite extensive and includes the entire western part of the Grodno region. These are the following areas:
- Grodno
- Berestovitsky;
- Volkovysky;
- Zelvensky;
- Mostovsky;
- Svislochsky;
- Schuchinsky;
- Voronovsky (part).
The diocese also includes a nunnery, which was built in honor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Malomozheykovskaya church (consecrated in the same honor).
Conclusion
So, a short material is presented about when and how the diocese of Grodno was formed, which we see today. A long story filled with various events and changes is quite interesting to study. Both the Catholic part of the population and the Orthodox today have their deep roots, which should be read. Today, every believer must respect and know the history of the formation and formation of his religion, as well as not repeat the mistakes of the past and be worthy of the decision of another to follow a different denomination.