80 Years Since Soviet Authorities Imprisoned Five Ukrainian Greek Catholic Bishops

April 11, 2025, marks 80 years since Soviet authorities imprisoned five Ukrainian Greek Catholic bishops: Metropolitan Josyf Slipyj and Bishops Nykyta Budka, Mykola Charnetsky, Hryhoriy Khomyshyn, and Ivan Latyshevsky. These imprisonments were part of a broader campaign by the Soviet regime against the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which it viewed as a threat to its control over religious and national identity in Ukraine.

The arrests of bishops and clergy were planned in March 1945. A month later, on April 11, coordinated raids took place in Lviv and Stanislav (now Ivano-Frankivsk). St. George’s Cathedral in Lviv was surrounded early in the morning. The NKVD conducted searches and arrested Bishops Slipyj, Budka, and Charnetsky, taking them to the prison on Lontskoho Street in Lviv and later transferring them to Lukyanivska prison in Kyiv. That same night, Bishops Khomyshyn and Latyshevsky were arrested in Stanislav and also transported to Kyiv.

Thus began a long period of physical deprivation, abuse, interrogation, and torture, lasting until the summer of 1946, when a tribunal was finally held. Bishop Hryhoriy Khomyshyn, 78 years old at the time of his arrest, could not survive the abuse. He died in Lukyanivska prison. His burial place remains unknown.

After the tribunal, the other bishops were sentenced and exiled to Siberia and Kazakhstan. Metropolitan Slipyj was sentenced to 8 years in Siberia, but his imprisonment ultimately lasted 18 years. Bishop Nykyta Budka also received an 8-year sentence in Karaganda, but reportedly died of a heart attack in the camp in 1949. His burial place, too, remains undetermined.

Bishop Mykola Charnetsky was sentenced to 6 years in prison but ended up being exiled to 30 different camps and prisons. He was finally released to Lviv in 1956. Bishop Ivan Latyshevsky was sentenced to 10 years in exile in Kazakhstan. He returned home to Stanislav in 1955, gravely ill.

These imprisonments were not just about restricting physical freedom — they were also an attempt to silence voices, crush identity, and suppress the conscience. By arresting the bishops, the Soviet regime not only took away their freedom—it sought to strip them of their dignity and erase their legacy.

The suffering of these bishops and clergy reflects the broader struggle of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church to preserve its faith and identity under oppressive regimes. Their resilience and steadfastness in the face of persecution serve as a testament to the enduring strength of spiritual conviction. Micah 6:8 reminds us that justice, mercy, and humble service are central to living out faith.

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