The Basilian Monastery of Saint Josaphat in Volodymyr is a UGCC cloister that grew up on the site of the ancient church of Saint Paraskevia, where the hieromartyr Josaphat Kuntsevych received the Sacrament of Baptism. The modern monastery took over an old Lutheran kirche and the pastor’s residence — and turned them into a Greek Catholic spiritual centre of a city where Orthodoxy, the Union and Catholicism intertwined for centuries. [1][2]
At a glance
- Full name: Basilian Monastery of Saint Hieromartyr Josaphat (Order of Saint Basil the Great, UGCC). [1]
- Address: city of Volodymyr-Volynskyi, Volyn Oblast. [1]
- Buildings: the former Lutheran kirche (consecrated 1927) and the pastor’s house (1938–1939). [1]
- Blessing for the monastery: Cardinal Myroslav-Ivan Liubachivskyi — 1 October 1992; Liubomyr Huzar — 23 September 1996. [1][2]
- Historical background: the Basilians were in the city after the suppression of the Jesuits from 1784; they worked until 1840. [2]
History of the cloister
From old Volodymyr: the Paraskevia church and Josaphat’s baptism
On the site where the cloister stands today there existed the church of Saint Paraskevia — it was here, as the documents testify, that Saint Josaphat Kuntsevych received baptism. The memory of that shrine became the spiritual foundation upon which the Volodymyr Basilians unfolded their mission after the UGCC emerged from the underground. [1][2]
The Basilians of the 18th–19th centuries
In Volodymyr-Volynskyi the Basilians were known as early as 1784, after the suppression of the Society of Jesus: the then Jesuit residence in the city was handed to the Basilians (those buildings now belong to the OCU). The monks carried out pastoral and educational work until 1840, when, as a result of the transfer of the Uniate orders into Orthodoxy, the Basilians ceased their ministry in Volodymyr. [2]
The “House of the Melnyks”: the underground and the 1990s return
In the Soviet decades the Greek Catholics of Volodymyr held on through the Melnyk family — in the underground their home served as a monastery, a church, and even a seminary. It was thanks to this family and to the superiors of the Order that the buildings of the former Lutheran parish were obtained: the masonry kirche, built in 1923–1927 and consecrated on 16 October 1927, and the pastor’s house of 1938–1939. [1]
On 1 October 1992 Cardinal Myroslav-Ivan Liubachivskyi blessed the founding of a monastery and church of Saint Josaphat on the site of the ancient Paraskevia church; on 23 September 1996 Blessed Liubomyr (Huzar) gave his blessing for the existence of a monastery of the Order of Saint Basil the Great in Volodymyr. [1][2]
A Lutheran kirche as a church
At the end of August 1993 the kirche — a large masonry structure built on the voluntary donations of the Lutherans of the Volodymyr region — was handed to the Greek Catholic community. Together with the pastor’s house it forms today’s cloister complex: the church, the monastery and the utility premises, reflecting the layered church history of the city. In Soviet times the building housed the city council and the registry office. [1]
Shrines and ensemble
- The church of Saint Josaphat — the former Lutheran kirche, with an illuminated altar and a modern iconostasis within the Latin interior. [1]
- The pastor’s house — the administrative part, holding the archive and the monastery’s utility rooms. [1]
- The memory of Kuntsevych’s baptism — the place where the ancient Sacrament was served, becoming the cloister’s “spiritual charter”. [2]
Spiritual significance
The cloister of Saint Josaphat is a special dialogue of epochs: it was here that Josaphat received baptism, the Basilians worked from 1784, and after the war the Melnyk family made an underground church that became the support of the future revival. The Basilians returned not to ruins but to their own inheritance — to a place where the faith was handed from hand to hand like a testament. [1][2]
Practical information
- Address: city of Volodymyr-Volynskyi, Volyn Oblast (the buildings stand in the historic centre). [1]
- Getting there: to Volodymyr by train or bus; the kirche is within walking distance of the station. [1]
- Services: the Basilian schedule; there is no sisterhood monastery here (this is a men’s community of the OSBM). [1]
- Hospitality: it is advisable to come after contacting the UGCC eparchy; the monks gladly tell the story of the reconverted church. [2]
- Nearby: the former Basilian monastery of the Jesuit age (today the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ) and other sights of old Volodymyr. [1]
Frequently asked questions
Are the Basilians of 1784 the same monastery?
Historically yes: the Basilians began their mission in the city after the Jesuit order’s suppression; the present cloister keeps the succession of those Basilians but was established in new Lutheran premises. [1][2]
Why is the church in a former kirche?
For lack of free Greek Catholic buildings, the monastery received the Lutheran kirche and pastorate, which in fact preserved the form of a church in their entirety. [1]
What is remembered about Kuntsevych’s baptism?
It was on the site of the cloister that the Sacrament of Baptism was ministered to the future hieromartyr Josaphat — a key note of the Volhynian history of Christianity. [1][2]
How are the Melnyks connected with the monastery?
Their underground home was at once church, monastery and seminary; members of the family helped the Basilians obtain the present buildings. [1]
Conclusion
The Basilian Monastery of Saint Josaphat is an example of how underground faith replenishes the circle of history: the baptism of Josaphat Kuntsevych, the Basilian 18th century, the martyrdom of the Volodymyr cloisters in the underground and the creative reconversion of the Lutheran kirche have created a shrine where one lives with a sense of the living chain of grace. [1][2]