The History of the Roman Catholi

According to tradition, the introduction of Christianity to Rus' is associated with St Andrew the Apostle who preached the Gospel among the Scythians in the 1st century AD. Historical chronicles mention his journey to the river Dnipro. While preaching the Gospel along the Black Sea coast, St. Andrew also founded parishes and built churches among the northern Slavs. Unfortunately those churches were destroyed in the 3rd century AD during raids by nomadic Gothic tribes. Christian communities survived only in the Crimea. These communities were strengthened in the late 1st century by Pope Clement I, a disciple and successor of St Peter the Apostle, while exiled to those territories. As an exile, Clement started to preach the Gospel among the Greek slaves. Later, the teachings of Christ spread also to the eastern Slavic tribes. Pope Clement I died a martyr's death in Crimea in the year 100 AD. In 860 AD his relics were found by ss. Cyril and Methodius and brought to Rome.

The labors of the Latin missionaries bore fruit. The first Christian prince (kniaz') on the Ukrainian territories is considered to have been Prince Askold who became a Christian in 867 AD. After Askold was treacherously murdered a church was built on the site of his grave. It was called the church of St. Nicholas perhaps an indication that Askold's Christian name was Nicholas. There is some evidence to suggest that the prince took the name of Nicholas in honour of Pope Nicholas who was actively engaged in the conversion of the Slavs and promoted the translation of the Bible into Slavic languages by ss Cyril and Methodius.

During the reign of Prince Ihor up to the middle of the 10th century, the Christian community grew and built churches. Slavic missionaries converted Ol'ha the widow of Prince Ihor in 954/955 AD. She sent emissaries to the German Emperor Otto I requesting him to send bishops and priests to Rus'. A bishop was nominated for Rus' in 960 AD. His name was Libucius and he came from the monastery of St. Alban in Moguncia. This bishop died in 961 and a German-Latin mission arrived in Kyiv headed by Archbishop Adalbert (later canonized as a saint) from the monastery of Treviso. In 974, Ol'ha's grandson Jaropolk send emissaries to the German Emperor Otto II and in 977 he sent emissaries to the Pope. In the same year, Pope Benedict VII sent his emissaries to Prince Jaropolk. This was the first embassy from Rome to Rus'. A Latin diocese was established in Kyiv under Archbishop Boniface (later canonized as a saint) which existed until 979 AD.

Kyivan Rus' accepted Christianity as its official religion in 988 AD. In spite of the fact that during the time of kniaz' Volodymyr the Great the Kyivan metropolitanate was subordinate to the Patriarch of Constantinople, the Church in Kyivan Rus' was still part of the universal Catholic Church. This is evidenced by the fact that in 988 AD envoys from Rome arrived at Korsun bearing the relics of ss. Clement and Titus to present to kniaz' Volodymyr. Pope John XV also sent envoys to Kyivan Rus' in 991 AD. In the year 1000, envoys from Pope Sylvester II brought the relics of ss. Vitus, Apollinarius, Benedict and other saints to the many churches that were being built in Rus' at that time.

Official Christianity strengthened the power of the kniaz and transformed Kyivan Rus' into a great European state. Apart from the ecclesiastical and political connections which Kyivan Rus' maintained with the Apostolic See and the West from the reign of Volodymyr onwards, there were also dynastic ties, particularly through kniaz Yaroslav the Wise, whose four daughters married the Catholic kings of Norway, Hungary, France and Germany. From the 10th to the 15th century, Kyivan Rus' recognized the authority of the Bishop of Rome and even after the schism of Celularius in 1054 AD, the bishops of Kyivan Rus' did not take up any particular position regarding the divided church.

The text was translated into English
by Daria FEDEWYTSCH-DICKSON
(Melbourne, Australia)

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