Rights of Major-Archbishop Joseph Cardinal Slipyj,
only Major-Archbishop in the Catholic Church, challenged
The Ukrainian Catholic Bishops throughout the world received from the Apostolic Delegate of their respective countries of residence a letter challenging the validity of the action taken by Major-Archbishop Joseph Cardinal Slipyj, the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, in sending to his bishops a text of an Archiepiscopal Constitution for the Ukrainian Church for their comments and eventual acceptance. The bishops received the letter in mid-September, but, as in case of the letter from Maximillian Cardinal de Fuerstenberg, Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for Eastern Churches, dated December 1, 1969 and the October 29, 1971 letter from Jean Cardinal Villot, the Cardinal Secretary of State, they maintained silence about it. Nevertheless, news about this most recent letter leaked just as had the news about the earlier letters.
The September letter was forwarded to the Ukrainian bishops by the various Apostolic Delegates at the request of Cardinal Villot by «mandate of the Holy Father» It reads:
It has been brought to the attention of the Holy See that His Eminence Cardinal Slipyj has sent to the bishops of the Ukrainian rite for their comment and for eventual publication the text of an «Archiepiscopal Constitution of the Ukrainian Church.» By mandate received from our Holy Father, His Eminence the Cardinal Secretary of State requests me to bring to your knowledge the followings:
- The drafting as well as the forwarding of that text have occurred without the knowledge of the Hоly See; neither was the same sub-sequenty informed by His Eminence Cardinal Slipyj about the matter.
- No juridical title apt to legitimate such a «Constitution» can be found particularly because the Ukrainian Church is not constituted as a patriarchate, and, as a whole, has no intermediate jurisdictional structure between the episcopal and the papal authority.
- Referring to the Ukrainian Church as «autonomous» is neither juridically perspicuous nor does it conform to the customs of the other Eastern Catholic Churches.
- Consequently, the Holy See cannot accept such «Constitution» as canonically workable.
- On the other hand, the same Holy See would not be opposed to a consultation between the Ukrainian bishops in view of updating the legislation of their Church, particularly for improving the structure of their present episcopal conference. Such a consultation, however, should be made with due respect to the dogmatic postulates of the Catholic Church and without prejudice of the competence of the Holy See and, naturally, in harmony with the work entrusted to the new Commission for Drafting the Code of Eastern Canon Law. In such a consultation the problem of erecting a patriarchate of Ukrainian rite cannot be brought into discussion because of the already known pronouncement of the Holy See upon this matter.
The Major-Archbishop, Joseph Cardinal Slipyj, did not receive a copy of this letter just as he had not received a copy of Cardinal Villot’s letter of October 29, 1971.
The controversy between the Vatican and the Ukrainian Catholic hierarchy commenced with Cardinal de Fuerstenberg’s attempt to invalidate the Fourth Archiepiscopal Synod of Ukrainian Catholic bishops held in-Rome from September 29 through October 4, 1969.
On October 25, 1969, following protocol in practice to that date, Cardinal Slipyj forwarded to the Congregation (of which Cardinal de Fuerstenberg is Prefect) a report of the synod together with a petition to the Holy Father to elevate the Major-Archbishop of the Kiev-Halych Metropolia to the status of a patriarch.
On December 1, 1969, Cardinal de Fuerstenberg replied that no one in the Ukrainian Catholic Church has the right to convoke a «legislative or elective synod.»
A synod of bishops of the Eastern Catholic Churches is no breach in church discipline. It is standard procedure and a practice recognized by the Holy See. The challenged synod was held in accordance with the Decree on Catholic Eastern Churches and the Decree on the Pastoral Office of Bishops. Article 10 of the first mentioned decree states that all rulings of the Council in reference to patriarchs are equally applicable to major-archbishops. The Ukrainians have the only major-archbishop in the Catholic Church. Slipyj was recognized as such on December 23, 1963 by the very Congregation which now challenged his right to call a synod.
Major-Archbishop Joseph Cardinal Slipyj replied to Cardinal de Fuerstenberg`s letter on December 15, 1969. In it he wrote:
The decisions of more than 21 bishops are law to us. Your Eminence can think as he wishes. We have clarified the position of our Church. In fact, therewith, a great gap between the clergy and the people has been closed. The Church has been fortified in the face of the threat of danger from within and from without… I must say that it is not a matter of defending my modest person, the galley-slave archbishop, but of defending the thousand-year rights of our Kiev-Halych Metropolia.
The confused bishops found themselves in a pinch between the endeavors of their Major-Archbishop supported by the majority of the clergy and the laity and the inclination to follow the will of theVatican Mass meetings, rallies, and demonstrations in support of the position of Cardinal Slipyj made them realize that the good of their flock demanded that they uphold the rights of their Particular Church. This helped move them to support the endeavors of the Major-Archbishop.
This development was not in line with Soviet-Vatican diplomacy geared to a dialogue at the sacrifice of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Ukraine. On July 7, 1971, Pope Paul VI wrote to Cardinal Slipyj explaining why «at least at this time» it was impossible to establish a patriarchate for the Ukrainian Church.
Cardinal Slipyj called upon the Ukrainian Catholics throughout the world to accept the Pope’s temporary decision but to continue to strive to implement the synodal system of administration for their Church, with the ultimate goal of establishing a patriarchate. With the world synod of bishops meeting in Rome, the Ukrainian cardinal called the Ukrainian hierarchy to Rome for October 30 and 31, 1971 for the dedication of the renovated Church of SS. Sergius and Bacchus and the celebration of the 375 anniversary of the Union of Brest and the 325 anniversary of the Union of Uzhorod by which the Ukrainian Church reestablished her affiliations with Rome and in which certain rights were guaranteed the Ukrainian Church by the Holy See. Fears arose at the Vatican that this could be an attempt to hold another synod of Ukrainian Catholic bishops. These were heightened by Cardinal Slipyj1s criticism on October 23, 1971 at the World Synod of bishops in the presence of Pope Paul VI. He broke the silence he had maintained since his release from the Soviet Union in 1963 and critically spoke of Vatican-Moscow diplomacy for fifteen minutes. He complained that the Vatican had silenced him for diplomatic reasons. «Because of church diplomacy we are impeded. Ukrainian Catholics have sacrificed rivers of blood and mountains of bodies because of their loyalty to the Church. They still suffer severe persecution. What is worse, there is nobody to defend them. Ukrainian Catholics are ignored as inconvenient witnesses of past evils. We have become an obstacle to church diplomacy….People say that Cardinal Slipyj does nothing for his Church. But, what can he do?
Arriving in Rome for the scheduled celebrations, the Ukrainian bishops received a letter from Cardinal Villot. Dated October 29, 1971, this letter reminded them of the Vatican opposition to the convocation of a «Canonical Synod embracing all the Ukrainian bishops.» Hundreds of Ukrainian Catholics attending the celebrations waited with bated breath. What would the bishops do? They stood their ground. Major-Archbishop Joseph Cardinal Slipyj called a synod and all the Ukrainian bishops at Rome attended it. On November 1, 1971, the Presidium of the Synod issued a press comminique to the effect that «fifteen Ukrainian hierarchs under the leadership of His Beatitude Major-Archbishop Joseph Cardinal Slipyj» on October 31 commenced
«Synodal sessions, and they ask the Holy Father for an Apostolic Blessing for their work.» The blessing did not come. The bishops as a body were never received in audience by Pope Paul VI. The Ukrainian bishops concluded their synodal sessions with the establishment of a Permanent Synod of five members to minister to the needs of the Ukrainian Catholic Church. The bishops agreed that an Archiepiscopal Constitution for their Church should be drafted and submitted to them for consideration.
In the year that passed the Permanent Synod held its first session, a draft constitution was submitted to the bishops for consideration.
As a result of these developments, the Vatican is once again challenging the Ukrainian bishops and opposing their actions. Learning of Cardinal Villot’s letter to the Ukrainian bishops, the Society for a Patriarchal System in the Ukrainian Catholic Church has written every Ukrainian Catholic bishop that the letter they received from the Vatican Secretary of State is now a «public secret» and that a stand worthy of the offices they occupy is expected of them. The Society is making plans for .action to «encourage» the weak of will to stand in defence of the rights of the Ukrainian Catholic Church and the honor and prestige of Major-Archbishop Joseph Cardinal Slipyj.
