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| SHORT HISTORY | ||||
Founded in 1850, the Assumptionists have been engaged in a variety of dis- tinguished global endeavors including projects in numerous parts of Eastern Europe and Russia. Between 1905 and World War I a few Assumptionists established themselves in St. Petersburg, Odessa, Kiev, Moscow and Vilna. One of the best known of these early pioneers was Fr. Pius Neveu, who arrived in St. Petersburg in 1906 to become chaplain at the Good Shepherd Cancer Hospital and Orphanage. From there he moved to the Donetz mining region in the Ukraine and took up work in the town of Makeyevka a year later. Fr. Neveu managed to remain at his post throughout the tumultuous period leading up to the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, despite imprisonment and the threat of the firing squad. Even after the Bolsheviks assumed power, Fr.Neveu continued to hold services in the church of Makeyevka, despite the Commu- nist threat to convert his church into a movie theatre. Because the Catho- lic Church in Russia was without a Bishop, Pope Pius XI decided that Fr. Neveu would assume that charge. He was secretly consecrated Bishop in Moscow in 1923, where he carried on his work until 1936, most of these years without an Assumptionist companion. The situation for Assumptionist missionaries in Russia was dramatically changed by President Franklin Roosevelt. After long negotiations with Mr. Litvinov, the Commissar for Foreign Affairs, President Roosevelt secured the right for an American clergyman to enter Russia as chaplain to the diplomatic colony (Roosevelt-Litvinov Agreement, November 16, 1933). Fr. Leopold Braun, an Assumptionist, was the first to enter Moscow under the new agreement. He arrived there on March 1, 1934. Since the signing of the Roosevelt-Litvinov Agreement, eleven Assumptionists have held this position. Deeply influenced by their contact with the Russian people, each of these in returning home has found ways to tell the story of his experience. Through public lectures, articles, books (1), teaching, etc., they have expanded their own understanding of Russia and sought to instruct others about this fascinating and mysterious country. Perhaps the most tangible sign of Assumptionist involvement in Russia is a substantial collection of original Russian icons. See more about Icons at: www.stannestpat.org/icons.htm |
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Assumptionists
Leopold Braun March 1, 1934 December 27, 1945 Antonio Laberge October 26, 1945 January 28, 1949 Jean de Matha Thomas May 23, 1947 September 1, 1950 Louis Robert Brassard January 20, 1950 February 13,1953 Georges Bissonnette January 25, 1953 March 5, 1955 Louis Dion January 25, 1959 September 22, 1961 Joseph Richard August 25, 1961 September 26, 1965 Eugene LaPlante September 14, 1965 August 28, 1968 Louis Dion August 18, 1968 August 27, 1971 Joseph Richard September 2, 1971 April 4, 1976 Philip Bonvouloir April 1, 1976 July 1979 Eugene LaPlante July 1979 September 18, 1983 Robert Fortin September 12, 1983 March 14, 1986 Norman Meiklejohn March 3, 1986 June 1999 |
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