St. Josaphat

 First published in the November 6, 2022 Bulletin of St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church, Delray Beach, FL

 Have you ever wondered why the Nicene Creed refers to “one, holy, catholic church” and not “one, holy, Roman Catholic church?” It’s because the Roman Catholic church, while the largest of the catholic churches, is actually only one of twenty-four catholic churches. All of these churches are united under the Pope, but have their own rites and liturgies. Some of them have always been united with the Roman church; others were once separate. They all date back over a millennium, at a minimum, and represent their particular region’s original Christian tradition. These churches grew out of the liturgy and traditions of ancient church of Constantinople, of churches formed in what is now  Egypt, Ethiopia, Syria, Iraq and even India. 

Our Saint of this Week comes from one of these churches, grouped together under the term “Eastern Rites,” and was an influence at the time that church reunited with Rome. 

John Kuncevic was born in Vladimir, a village in Volyn in what is now Ukraine in about 1580. His parents belonged to the Eastern Rite Church of Kyiv which was then separated from Rome. At the time of John’s life, the area was part of a Polish kingdom which was Roman Catholic, and there was a move toward reunification with Rome. When John was 18, the Union of Brest was signed, which brought the church into full communion with Rome. Many were against the Union, but many refused to recognize the union. John, however, accepted it, and entered the Basilian Monastery of the Holy Trinity in Vilno, taking the name of Josaphat. He was ordained a priest in 1609. He revived devotion to the Mother of God, and reformed the monks.  

 Change is often difficult, and, as time went on,  there were still members of the Orthodox community who were against the reunification with Rome, and they worked to reverse it. Josephat, however, continued to work for the reunification.  On May 12, 1623, a mob hostile to reunion attacked Josephat with axes and gun, brutally murdering him. 

The early church theologian Tertullian held that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of Church growth. One of the fruits of Josaphat’s murder was the conversion of his assassins to the Roman union.  In May 1643, twenty years later, Pope Urban VIII declared him "Blessed." He was canonized by Pope Pius IX on June 29, 1867. 

            On November 12, 1923, three hundred years after his death, Pope Pius XI declared St. Josaphat the heavenly Patron of Reunion between Orthodox and Catholics.

            The body of St. Josaphat was finally laid to rest at the magnificent altar of St. Basil in St. Peter's Basilica on November 25, 1963, at the express wish of Pope John XXIII.