Belarusian Greek Catholic Church
| Belarusian Greek Catholic Church | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Catholic |
| Orientation | Eastern Catholic, Byzantine Rite |
| Governance | Apostolic visitor |
| Leader | Mitred Archpriest Sergiusz Gajek |
| Associations | Congregation for the Oriental Churches |
| Region | Belarus |
| Headquarters | Marian House, Finchley, ENG, UK |
| Members | c. 7000 |
The Belarusian Greek Catholic Church (Belarusian: Беларуская грэка-каталіцкая царква, BHKC), sometimes called, in reference to its Byzantine Rite, the Belarusian Byzantine Catholic Church, is the heir within Belarus of the Union of Brest. It is listed in the Annuario Pontificio as a sui iuris Church, an Eastern rite particular Church in full union with the Catholic Church.
The Christians who, through the Union of Brest (1595–96), entered full communion with the See of Rome while keeping their Byzantine liturgy in the Church Slavonic language, were at first mainly Belarusian (Litvin). Even after further Ukrainians joined the Union around 1700, Belarusians still formed about half of the group. According to the historian Anatol Taras, by 1795, around 80% of Christians in Belarus were Greek Catholics, with 14% being Roman Catholics and 8% being Orthodox.
The partition of Poland and the incorporation of the whole of Belarus into Russia led, according to the Russian Orthodox Church, many Belarusians (1,553 priests, 2,603 parishes and 1,483,111 people) to unite, by March 1795, with the Russian Orthodox Church. Another source seems to contradict this, since it gives the number of parishes that came under Russian rule in 1772 only as "over 800", meaning that many priests and people remained in communion with Rome.
After the unsuccessful 1830-1831 November Uprising against Russian rule and the subsequent removal of the predominantly Roman Catholic local nobility from influence in Belarusian society, the three bishops of the Church, along with 21 priests, convoked in February 1839 a synod that was held in Polatsk on 25 March 1839. This officially brought 1,600,000 Christians and either 1,305 or some 2,500 priests to join the Russian Orthodox Church.
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