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= Catholic Church in Lithuania =

For some time until the end of the 20th century, Kaunas was the centre of modern Lithuanian Catholicism, because the Catholics in Vilnius were divided due to national divides, which were sometimes enflamed by the occupational Soviet authorities.

History
Saint Casimir (Kazimieras, 1458–1484) is the only canonized saint of Lithuania. He is the patron of the country and Lithuanian youth. Archbishop Jurgis Matulaitis-Matulevičius (1871–1927) was beatified in 1987.

Resistance to Communism
The Catholic Church is an influential factor in the country, and some priests actively led the resistance against the Communist regime and, after independence was regained, in support of traditionalism, especially in ethical questions.

The nationally renowned anti-Communist resistance shrine, the Hill of Crosses, upon which thousands of Latin Rite crosses of all sizes have been placed, is located near the city of Šiauliai. Erecting Latin crosses on the hill was forbidden by the Czarist Russian Orthodox authorities in the 19th century. Later, in the 20th century, the Soviet authorities also forbade such explicit religious symbols. The crosses were removed in 1961 with tractors and bulldozers, but despite Soviet prohibitions, Catholics continued to put small crucifixes and larger crosses on the Hill of Crosses. Pope John Paul II visited the hill during his visit to Lithuania, primarily because it was a sign of anti-Communist Catholic resistance, as well as a Catholic religious site. Lithuania was the only majority-Catholic Soviet republic.

The Catholic Church in Lithuania has after independence continued to campaign against liberal and socialist measures, especially in ethical questions.

Also during the Communist time, Apostolic Visitors were designated by the Holy See for the Lithuanian Roman Catholics in diaspora.

Long 19th century (1795–1914)
In 1798, the dioceses of Vilnius and Samogitia are included in the newly-created archdiocese of Mohilev.

The relations between the Catholic Church and Russia were defined by the rules issued by Empress Catherine II of Russia from as early as 1766, which governed the Catholic parish of St. Petersburg, and the 1772 decree and 1773 ordinance. Catherine II applied these rules and regulations to the Lithuanian Catholic Church since 1795. Czarist Russia tried to rein in the governance of the dioceses and weaken its ties with the Holy See as well as the Catholic Church in Poland. Catherine II forbade the publication of papal writings without the government's consent, abolished the autonomy of monasteries by forbidding them to maintain relations with their centers abroad, appointed bishops herself, abolished the diocese of Vilnius, which it joined with Curonia, thus creating the diocese of Livonia. She ordered the confiscation of many Church lands, which she distributed to Russian officials and military personnel.

The Russian authorities converted many Catholic churches, mainly in the Vilnius diocese, into Orthodox ones or closed them down, while the construction of new churches was forbidden. Tsar Paul I of Russia, the son of Catherine II, was more favorable to the Catholic Church, and sought to reorganize the organization of the Catholic Church in the Lithuanian lands that Russia had annexed. In 1798, the metropolitan archdiocese of Mogilev was established, under whose jurisdiction were assigned the restored dioceses of Vilnius and Samogitia, which until then belonged to the ecclesiastical province of Gniezno.

Užnemunė was a part of Lithuania that was ruled by Prussia from 1795 until 1807. There, the Catholics initially belonged to the dioceses of Vilnius and Samogitia until 1797. That year, because the Prussians did not want Catholics within the Kingdom of Prussia to be ruled by bishops residing in the Russian Empire, the Diocese of Vygriai was created. Its first bishop was Mykolas Pranciškus Karpavičius. The diocese of Vygriai contained 14 deaneries, of which ethnically Lithuanian were those of Alvitas, Prienai, Zapyškis, Simnas, Virbalis and Vygriai. When Užnemunė belonged to the Congress Poland, which an autonomous unit within the Russian Empire, the boundaries of the diocese were redrawn in 1818, when the Białystok region was separated, while the Łomża county was added, with the episcopal center moved from Łomża to Seinai and the diocese being named the Diocese of Seinai, sometimes also known as that of Augustavas, and subordinated to the archdiocese of Warsaw. The first bishop of Seinai was Jan Klemens Gołaszewski while the famous bishop Antanas Baranauskas was its bishop in 1897–1902. Within the diocese, the Seinai Priests' Seminary operated in 1826–1915 and 1918–19, where many notable Lithuanians studied.

The Collegium of Justice, established in St. Petersburg, was to manage the administrative affairs of the non-Orthodox religions, which included Catholics, but Metropolitan Stanisław Bohusz Siestrzeńcewicz, the archbishop of Mogilev, disapproved of this. Using the favor of Tsar Paul I, he saw to it that in 1798 a separate department for the management of Catholic affairs was established. Tsar Alexander I of Russia established a Roman Catholic college instead of this department and the college fuctioned until World War I. The Russian government interfered in the governance of the Catholic Church by appointing bishops and restricting their activities through various decrees and laws. Bishops were forbidden to correspond with the Pope without the authorities' permission, to travel outside the diocese, to establish new parishes or to change the boundaries of existing ones, to assign pastors or vicars to them, to accept candidates for priestly seminaries, to establish religious societies at churches, to print church calendars and other religious books.

After the uprisings of 1831 and 1863, the tsar's repression against the Catholic Church intensified, monasteries were closed en masse. These monasteries were previously very involved in religious and cultural activities throughout the former Lithuanian lands and were responsible for many schools, libraries, and charity institutions. In the Samogitian diocese alone, 46 monasteries were closed in 1832–93. Throughout Lithuania, a total of 352 monasteries were closed. The monastery buildings were turned into barracks, military hospitals, Russian schools and some Catholic churches were turned into Orthodox churches. Before World War I, a mere 6 monasteries were left throughout the Lithuanian dioceses: Franciscan monasteries in Gardinas and Kretinga, Benedictine in Vilnius and Kaunas, Catherinist in Krakės and Marianist in Marijampolė.

In 1841–42, the Russian authorities confiscated church property - the lands of dioceses, chapters, seminaries, parishes and charitable institutions. Salaries were assigned to the clergy in order to make them dependent on the Russian government. The Governor-General of Vilnius, Mikhail Muravyov, closed 32 parish and filial churches and 52 chapels, forbid the building of new churches and the repair of old ones, about 100 Catholic churches were converted into Orthodox churches. The Russian government began to control the priests even more, disallowing the priests from leaving their parish without the permission of the county's military commander and bishops were forbidden to visit their diocese's parishes without the authorities' permission. The Bishop of Samogitia Motiejus Valančius was forbidden by the Russian authorities from visiting his parishes in general. In 1863, without the permission of the Apostolic See, the Tsarist authorities moved the center of the Samogitian diocese, its chapter and seminary from Varniai to Kaunas. Not a single cleric was allowed to enter the seminary from 1863 to 1870.

In 1832, Tsar Nicholas I of Russia forbade priests from preaching freely, with the text of each sermon having to be approved by a government-appointed censor. According to the decree of 1868, vicars and priests of filial churches were forbidden to preach. Church processions, walking the Stations of the Cross in the Calvaries, namely Vilnius' Kalvarijos, Vilnius and Žemaičių Kalvarija, erecting wayside crosses, and selling devotionals were prohibited. In 1865, the Governor-General of Vilnius Konstantin von Kaufmann issued an order requiring the use of Russian in official correspondence with the bishop's office. Printing in the usual Lithuanian characters was prohibited by the Lithuanian press ban.

In 1842, all non-state gymnasiums were closed. In 1864, all parish schools were closed, with state schools established instead, where Russians were appointed as teachers. Within the Samogitian diocese in 1853, there were 197 parish schools, 5,910 students. Due to the efforts of the Orthodox Metropolitan bishop of Lithuania Yosyf Semashko, a brotherhood was established to spread Russian Orthodoxy, where each of its members was obliged to convert at least 3 Catholics per year. At the end of the 19th century, there were already 4 Orthodox dioceses in the Lithuanian governorates, whose bishops lived in Vilnius, Pažaislis Monastery, Gardinas and Suvalkai.

During the years of Russian rule, a struggle began within the Catholic Church for the rights of faith and Lithuanian national identity, which were persistently defended by Bishop Motiejus Valančius. Valančius urged not to use Lithuanian books in Cyrillic script, not to allow children to go to public schools and to protect the rights of the Church and believers. Monasteries and religious brotherhoods operated illegally in Lithuania, and the activities of the Tertiaries became more active. Lithuanian books were printed in Prussia and secretly smuggled into Lithuania by the Lithuanian book smugglers. In 1878, the Russian authorities repealed the ban on building crosses. In 1897, the Tsarist government cancelled the order forcing Catholic students to go to Orthodox churches during Russian public holidays as well as the ban on building churches. So, new churches were built all over the country, mostly funded by donations from peasants. In 1897–1914, 14 churches were built in the dioceses of Samogitia, Vilnius and Užnemunė. In 1904, the Lithuanian press ban was lifted which meant the return of the freedom of the press in Lithuanian characters. In 1905, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia announced a constitutional form of government, freedoms of religion, conscience and personal liberties. The Catholic Church finally regained freedom of activity and belief, which allowed it to expand its activities in various areas. The Catholic public press organization Society of Saint Casimir was established for the publication of books and newspapers. In 1908, priest Povilas Januševičius, the society's representative, and 170 Lithuanian pilgrims visited the Pope. The educational societies of Saulė (organization) (Kovno Governorate), Žiburys (Suvalki Governorate) and Rytas (Vilnius Region), which took care of establishing Lithuanian Catholic schools. Religious brotherhoods were created and there was a revival of the legally functioning monasteries. The Lithuanian national revival ists fought for the rights of the Lithuanian language within the Church, with a particularly fierce struggle for the Lithuanian language rights happening in the Vilnius Diocese. In 1906, Jonas Basanavičius wrote a memorandum to Pope Pius X and cardinals called De Lingua Polonica in Ecclesiis Lithuaniae (Apie lenkų kalbą Lietuvos bažnyčiose; translated: about the Polish language in Lithuania's churches), which was about the Polish clergy's abuses against Lithuanians in the churches of Vilnius diocese; the memorandum also demanded the establishment of an independent ecclesiastical province of Lithuania with Vilnius as the metropolitan center.

1816: The Lithuanian Friars Minor Province is joined to the Russian Province, which oversaw 46 monasteries in total.

1827: 45 monasteries and 6 residences belonged to the Dominican Lithuanian St. Guardian Angels Province.

The Dominican friar Dominikas Sutkevičius prepared the Lithuanian-Polish (c. 1835) and Lithuanian-Latin-Polish (c. 1848) dictionaries, neither of which was published, in Palėvenė.

1855–1859: the Dominican friar Rapolas Jasikevičius published in Palėvenė a four-volume collection of sermons in Lithuanian.

In Paparčiai (Kaišiadorys), there was a Dominican novitiate, a parochial school, and library. An unknown author wrote an unpublished book about the history of Lithuania.

Throughout the 19th century, the Russian Imperial authorities forcefully closed down Dominican monasteries. In the closed down Dominican Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Vilnius, the Institute of Philosophy and Theology, a library, and a pharmacy were operated.

1850–1875: The Samogitian Bishop Motiejus Valančius worked succesfully in the spreading faith, sobriety, and literacy among Lithuanians.

20th century
1917: Pope Benedict XV announced Lithuania Day, during which donations were collected for the people of Lithuania who suffered from the war.

The Vatican recognized Lithuania's independence de jure in 1922.

1926: the ecclesiastical province of Lithuania was established. The ecclesiastical province of Lithuania included the Archdiocese of Kaunas and the Dioceses of Kaišiadorys, Panevėžys, Telšiai and Vilkaviškis.

1927: a concordat was signed between Lithuania and the Holy See.

1931: An independent Lithuanian Commissariat was established for the Franciscans.

1935: The Dominican Lithuanian Saint Guardian Angels Province was restored with its center in Raseiniai.

1946: The Lithuanian Franciscan Province in the United States of America was established. It has continued operating ever since.

1948: All Franciscan monasteries were closed down and the independent Lithuanian Commissariat for Franciscans was closed down.

1961: Bishop Julijonas Steponavičius was exiled from Vilnius Diocese.

1984: Commemoration of the 500th anniversary of Saint Casimir's death.

1987: Commemoration of the 600th anniversary of the baptism of Lithuania. Archbishop Jurgis Matulaitis was declared Blessed.

1988: His Eminence Vincentas Sladkevičius was elevated to cardinal.

1989: the Vilnius Archcathedral was returned to the faithful.

1990: The Supreme Council – Reconstituent Seimas adopted the Restitution Act, where the Catholic Church's position in Lithuania was restituted. The Franciscans resumed their activities in Lithuania.

1991: restoration of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Republic of Lithuania. The ecclesiastical provinces of Vilnius and Kaunas were established in Lithuania.

1992: The creation of two ecclesiastical provinces - the Kaunas ecclesiastical province, which includes Kaunas archdiocese and dioceses of Šiauliai, Telšiai and Vilkaviškis, and Vilnius ecclesiastical province, which encompasses the Vilnius archdiocese, dioceses of Kaišiadorys and Panevėžys. The Dominican Order resumes its activities in Lithuania. The Dominican General Vicariate of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia was established in the Church of Saints Philip and James in Vilnius.

1993: Pope John Paul II visited Lithuania.

21st century
2001: Archbishop of Vilnius Audrys Juozas Bačkis has been elevated to cardinal.

2003: The decade anniversary of Pope John Paul II's visit to Lithuania is celebrated.

2004: The Franciscan Lithuanian Saint Casimir Province was reestablished.

According to the Lithuanian census of 2011, there were about 2.35 million Catholics in Lithuania.

As of 2018 in Lithuania, there were:


 * 10 non-state Catholic schools and 13 state Catholic schools
 * 9 primary and preschool Catholic education institutions
 * 33 (not counting their branches, divisions, representative offices) Catholic organizations, societies, communities and movements
 * 10 Catholic museums and cultural centers
 * Around 20 care institutions, charity and support funds and retreat houses

As of 2018, Church baptized about 25,000 children yearly in Lithuania, while about 7 thousand couples get married in the Church.

2018: Pope Francis visited Lithuania.

There are many institutes of consecrated life: 12 for men and 41 for women.

2020: There are 35 Franciscans of perpetual vows, including 32 priests, 2 deacons, 2 friars.

2021: There were 6 Dominican friars in Lithuania.

In 2000, there were 2,752,500 Catholics, which was then 79% of the total population. According to the 2021 census, this percentage had fallen to 74.2% and there were 2,085,000 Catholics.

Catholic Monasticism
The Lithuanian Friars Minor (Franciscan) Province was created in 1530. The Lithuanian Friars Minor Province stops existing in 1570.

Dominicans in the eastern Slavic lands united into the St. Hyacinth province in 1612.

In 1642, the Dominicans established a Rosary brotherhood in Raseiniai. That same year, the Dominicans built Stations of the Cross in Žemaičių Kalvarija.

In 1644, a Dominican vicariate was founded, which belonged to the Polish Province.

The Dominican Lithuanian Saint Guardian Angels Province was founded in 1647 and included 12 monasteries. The province was centred on the Church of the Holy Spirit in Vilnius.

In the 17th century's second half, the Dominicans built the Stations of the Cross in Vilnius.

In 1699, the Dominicans built a shelter for the poor, and a primary school in Raseiniai.

The Lithuanian Friars Minor Province is recreated in 1731.

Catholic churches in Lithuania


The first churches appeared in Lithuania before the introduction of Christianity – they were built by merchants and craftsmen from other countries who lived here. After the baptism in 1387 the number of churches in Lithuania began to grow notably. In the middle of the twentieth century there were as many as 885 Catholic churches and chapels in Lithuania.

The first church in Lithuania, supposedly, was built by the Grand Duke Mindaugas in the thirteenth century. It was Vilnius Cathedral, which in its long history has been repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt. The oldest surviving stone church is St. Nicholas, built in the 14th – 15th centuries. It stands in Vilnius and visitors admire its Gothic and Romanesque features. St. Anne's Church is a masterpiece of late Gothic. The Chapel of the Gate of Dawn storing the icon of the Holy Virgin Mary, Mother of Mercy in Vilnius has many features of late Renaissance and is one of the holy places in Lithuania most visited by pilgrims. Impressive architectural work of baroque is St. Peter and Paul Church in Vilnius. The oldest wooden church of Lithuania is in Palušė, Ignalina district.

Catholic organizations in Lithuania

 * Ateitis: Catholic children and youth organization, member of Fimcap