Neounia is one of the common names of the new unified church, which was introduced by the Polish Roman Catholic bishop on the Ukrainian and Byelorussian lands of Poland during the interwar period. This church had a number of other names: Catholicism of the Eastern Rite, Eastern Rite, Biblical union. Officially, it was called the Parishes of the Catholic Church of the Eastern Catholic Rite or of the Roman Catholic Church of the Eastern Rite. The Church, through which the Vatican (...) sought to convert the "united East" into the bosom of Catholicism, was often referred to as a "government union", since it was in some cases facilitated by local government officials. The unofficial name - neounya - contrasted with the "old union" proclaimed in Brest in 1596. (shrink)

Orthodox church life in Ukraine from the summer of 1941 to the spring of 1944 was characterized by a sharp confrontation between two Orthodox churches, administrative centers of which were located in Volyn, in Lutsk and Kremenets. The Autonomous Orthodox Church was headed by an archbishop Alex. After his tragic death on May 7, 1943, the APC remained virtually without a chapter, since at this time the occupation authorities abolished the traditional system of church management. The Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (...) throughout its time was headed by an archbishop, and from May 1942 Metropolitan Polycarp. (shrink)

Born in 1918, Poland - the Second Commonwealth - was a multinational and multi-denominational state. In 1931, out of 32, 1 million of its Poles were 65%. The largest national minority was Ukrainians, followed by Jews, Belarusians, Germans. Other national groups accounted for about 1% of the total population.

As the massacre of the Greek Catholic Church was going on, as the Lviv Cathedral was held in March 1946, much has been written by historians, religious scholars, publicists, and theologians. The archival documents that became available for research cover not only new facts pertaining to this event, but also reveal the strategic and tactical plans of the senior state and party leadership of the USSR, their direct participation in the implementation of this action.