In the eighteenth century, most Ukrainians lived in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which was partitioned by Russia, Prussia, and Austria. Following the partitions, Russian authorities began implementing a policy aimed at eliminating the Eastern Catholic Church in territories under their control. This pattern would be repeated in the nineteenth century under the tsars, in the twentieth century under communist rule, and in the present day.
Following the second partition, Catherine II moved to suppress the Union in Ukrainian lands in 1794. In 1839, Tsar Nicholas I carried out a similar suppression in Belarus and Lithuania. Only one Greek Catholic eparchy remained within the Russian Empire: the Eparchy of Kholm.
Russian authorities sought to bring the eparchy into conformity with Russian Orthodox practice by changing its liturgy, training loyal clergy, and installing obedient bishops. In 1836, Bishop Pylyp Shumborsky was ordered to introduce Russian liturgical practices, but he refused, even after being summoned to St. Petersburg. His successor, Ivan Mykolai Kalynsky, also resisted. The authorities repeatedly obstructed his episcopal consecration, and he was eventually arrested and exiled to Siberia, where he died in 1866.
Father Josyf Voynitsky, who subsequently administered the eparchy, supported the imperial policy. Military force was used to suppress Greek Catholic resistance. In 1868, Bishop Mykhailo Kuzemsky arrived from Galicia, but continuing conflicts led him to resign and return to Galicia in 1871.
The administration then passed to Father Markel Popel, whom Rome did not recognize. In 1872, a reunification committee was established in St. Petersburg, bringing together Popel and imperial church and police officials. Its purpose was to incorporate the Greek Catholic eparchy into the Russian Orthodox Church.
Resistance among the faithful remained strong. In the village of Drelów, parishioners refused to convert to Orthodoxy and faced severe punishment. Men, women, and children were subjected to beatings, and some died from their injuries.
A week later, the campaign reached Pratulin. Father Leontiy Urban was sent to implement the changes, but the women of the village had hidden the church keys. On January 24, 1874, two companies of soldiers under Lieutenant Colonel Stein arrived. The faithful gathered around their church and refused to surrender it.
The authorities promised the tsar's favor if the people converted and threatened punishment if they resisted. The faithful remained steadfast. They knelt and began singing hymns, saying among themselves that it was sweet to die for the faith. At midday, Stein ordered the soldiers to open fire.
Wincenty Lewoniuk, aged 25, was the first to die. Before his death, he opened his shirt to reveal the cross on his chest. Daniel Karmasz, aged 48, held the parish cross. When he fell, Ignacy Franczuk picked it up. Lukasz Bojko, aged 22, had rung the church bell to summon the faithful to defend their church.
Among the other martyrs were Konstanty Bojko, a respected farmer; Konstanty Lukaszuk, who left behind a wife and seven children; and Bartlomiej Osypiuk, who prayed for those who had shot him before dying of his wounds. Mykyta Hryciuk, only 19 years old, had expressed his hope of being found worthy to die for the faith.
Filip Geryluk encouraged the faithful to stand firm. Ignacy Franczuk, a father of seven, had said goodbye to his family before leaving home, expecting not to return. Jan Andrzejuk, the parish cantor, was wounded and died shortly afterward. Maksym Hawryluk and Michal Wawryszuk died of their wounds, while Onufry Wasyluk was remembered as a faithful Catholic.
Thirteen men died in all. The youngest was 19 and the oldest 50. The soldiers buried them without a religious ceremony and prevented their families from attending. About 180 others were wounded, while more than 580 people were deported to Siberia.
In February 1875, Popel formally petitioned for 120 Greek Catholic parishes to be incorporated into the Russian Orthodox Church. The tsar approved the measure that spring, and the Kholm Eparchy was officially dissolved. Seventy-four priests were deported to Siberia, while another sixty were expelled to Galicia, then part of the Austrian Empire. The eparchy was incorporated into the Orthodox Diocese of Warsaw, with Popel becoming its vicar.
Yet the suppression of the eparchy did not end the faith of its people. Catholic priests from Podlasie, Galicia, and the Poznan region continued serving the faithful secretly for more than thirty years. In 1905, a decree of religious tolerance allowed the people of Podlasie to return openly to the Catholic Church.
On October 6, 1996, Pope John Paul II beatified the thirteen Martyrs of Pratulin, recognizing their witness as a defense not only of their parish church but of the whole Church entrusted to Peter.
In 1997, the Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church established January 23 as their feast day. Today, a shrine in Kostomłoty honors their memory, and part of their relics are preserved there.
Key:
1794 — Catherine II suppresses the Union in Ukrainian territories under Russian control.
1839 — Suppression of the Union in Belarus and Lithuania under Tsar Nicholas I.
1868–1871 — Bishop Mykhailo Kuzemsky serves as the last Greek Catholic bishop of Kholm.
January 24, 1874 — Thirteen Greek Catholic faithful are martyred at Pratulin while defending their church.
1875 — The Kholm Greek Catholic Eparchy is forcibly incorporated into the Russian Orthodox Church.
1905 — The decree of religious tolerance allows the faithful to return openly to the Catholic Church.
October 6, 1996 — Pope John Paul II beatifies the thirteen Martyrs of Pratulin.
1997 — The Synod of Bishops of the UGCC establishes January 23 as their feast day.
