"Once when
I used to work for the sugar refinery my boss yelled
at me, "You are the enemy of the people. You hinder
us in building communism"
The Banner editor Vasyl Korshak talked to the living
witness of numerous historical events who saw how communist
authorities tried to strangle natural yearning of people
for God. This person with God's help was strong enough
not to reject the eternal God and His Son Jesus Christ
in times when the church was persecuted by the ruthless
atheist regime.
This is Stepan Ksiondzyk that lives in Kremenets, Ternopil
region and serves in the local congregation of the Ukrainian
Lutheran Church.
- Stepan Hryhorovych, tell our readers about yourself.
- I was born 1947 in the village of Horenka that is
15 km away from Kremenets. My parents were firm Christians.
They belong to the Orthodox Church. From the early childhood
I had an inbred sense of God's love… In 1954 I went
to school. That was the time of persecution for the
church. Parents of the students who were going to the
church were often asked to come to school to talk. Later
they were fined. Many parents gave up and said that
their children would not go to church any longer, but
not mine. Each time during such a conversation my parents
used to say, " He went to church and will continue
doing that". I was punished for this and had to
stay in the third grade for two academic years. I was
a good dutiful student. Since I was a member of the
church they gave me a bad mark for behavior and kept
me for two years in the third grade.
When I graduated from my school in 1964, my school characteristic
contained reference that I belonged to the church. Consequently
I could not continue my education. Doors of the higher
educational establishments were closed for me. Even
the vocation school did not enroll me since I was not
a member of the Young Communists organization (komsomol).
They would not hire me for any decent job, only to do
the dirtiest work.
-What did you do then?
- I was enrolled to serve in the army. For two years
I served in Tomsk, Russia working for the munitions
factory. I operated a boring mill. Vigilant commanding
officers noticed my unusual behavior. They searched
me and found a cross. The whole case became public.
The officer in charge of political issues questioned
me and he asked me where I was from. By the way his
last name was Haiduk. (It is a Ukrainian name). I told
him I was from Ternopil region. He remembered that there
is Pochaiv monastery there. His mother once visited
it and liked it there very much. The officer asked me
to tell him about the monastery and my impressions of
it. The Soviet officer wanted me to communicate with
his mother. I agreed. I met his mother and often talked
to her. I told her about the Lavra (monastery), about
the Holy Scripture. This saved me. And the whole case
was not reported to higher authorities although I worked
at the secret munitions factory. That officer invited
me to his house for dinner on religious holidays. Then
I talked with his mother. No one knew of it.
- In the times when the Church was persecuted by
the communist regime even communists and officers like
Haiduk you told us about deep in their hearts they did
believe in God?
- I'm not sure if he was a believer but his mother liked
our conversations. My parents used to mail icons to
me and I presented her with them. So, it was not that
bad in the army. When I came home from the army I again
face the problem: how I should live. Before the army
I started learning the Old-Slavonic alphabet. So, when
I returned I finished studying it. At that time in the
Orthodox church worship services were conducted in Old-Slavonic.
So learned the order of service as well as hymns. I
served in the church and worked at the sugar refinery.
Once my chief at the general staff meeting yelled at
me, "You are an enemy of the people. You interfere
with communism building!"
- Stepan Hryhoirovych tell us about your service
in the church.
- At that time there was a problem with people in the
church. There were no young people who would be able
to sing. People were afraid to go to church knowing
what awaited them. At that time the religious congregation
had to have at least twenty members in order to get
registered. People did not want their names on the list
since it was submitted to the local authorities and
was made public. Respectfully when you turned to the
authorities for help, they used to say, "Turn to
the congregation and may it help you". Since 1970
I served as a deacon at the church of St. Nicholas in
the town of Kremenets. According to the orthodox canons,
when a Bishop conducts the liturgy, two deacons are
to help him. With the Bishop I visited churches in our
region, in Ukraine and even in Russia.
People who used to work for the church were not treated
fairy by the state. Among those working for the church
only a sexton, a cleaner and a stoker had the right
to receive state pension. Priests, deacons and Psalm
readers were registered at the Eparchy (to get their
working experience). Thus, they received their pensions
not from the state but from the Eparchy where churches
paid offerings.
I would like to tell you how we remodeled the church.
The church I used to serve became in an accident condition.
The roof was ready to collapse. Members of the congregation
did not have any right to remodel the facility. Everything
was done in order to ruin the church building. We went
to Ternopil, Kyiv and Moscow to get permission for remodeling.
Then the congregation decided to do the work secretly.
Local authorities in villages were not as pedantical
as in towns. People worked at nights with closed doors.
Construction materials were also brought at night. WE
plastered walls, painted them and gilded the iconostasis.
However, the local authorities came to know about the
remodeling. We were called to the militia (police) department
for conversations and we were threatened… Our churchwarden
Protsidym was 88 years old. He was questioned at the
police where we got construction materials. But what
such an old person could tell? They decided to question
me instead. I was a member of the congregation. So,
I was 33 when they first interrogated me. I thought
I would not leave that building alive. They took me
to the basement and started psychological pressure.
I could hear awful groans and moans from the cells I
passed by. The head of the police department was Martynenko.
He hit me on my head with rubber knuckleduster so that
it was swollen but there were no bruises. That night
my hair turned grey. I was only 33 when it happened.
But they let me go and people helped me to get home.
Martynenko warned me that if I did not quit the church,
next time I would not leave that building and they would
rot me in prison. However, God made that Martynenko
died in a month although he was a young man. His family
asked to have his funeral in church. As a Christian
I forgave him when I left the basement where they beat
me up. After that we were left alone.
- I know that there was a church in your home for
a long time. Tell us about it.
- An underground church in my home started its activity
in 1972. What was its purpose? The atheist authority
forbade church weddings. If people had their wedding
ceremony in the church and it became known, they were
immediately fired. For instance one teacher from Kremenets
participated in baptism ceremony as a sponsor. After
that she lost her job. We used to conduct wedding ceremonies
at night. We would light a couple of candles to be able
to read the Bible. The police came to know about these
events. So, they prohibited us to do so. Each congregation
had its register book. It had the records of weddings,
baptisms, and funerals. If you did not register this
or that activity in this book you could be prosecuted.
So, we managed to consecrate an altar through the Eparchy
located in Lviv, Western Ukraine at the cathedral of
St. George with the help of monks from the Pochaiv Lavra
(Monastery). It was named after St. Nicholas. Since
then at nights we had weddings, baptisms in my home.
Sometimes with special permissions of the Bishop I personally
conducted the ceremonies. Everything was done secretly.
Even high authorities would come to have their children
baptized. There were cases when the wedding crowns were
put on heads of the couple although traditionally the
crowns are kept over the heads of the groom and bride.
But there was no one to do that since only the young
couple the priest participated in the ceremony. The
home church existed for more that 20 years. When I joined
the Ukrainian Lutheran Church, I borrowed from the home
church crosses, chalice, icons, everything that is needed
for the worship service in the congregation. This continues
up till now.
- Stepan Hryhorovych, how did you join the Ukrainian
Lutheran Church?
- I worked for the bus enterprise. The Lutheran congregation
in Kremenets used to rent a worship facility there.
It was interesting for me to see a Lutheran worship
service. That day Roger Kovacini conducted the liturgy.
I liked it very much. I was impressed how closely the
communion followed the Gospel (1Cor. 11:23 ). If I knew
the Lutheran church from my young age, I would have
joined it since then. Since that time I became a member
of the Kremenets congregation of the ULC. I particularly
like that the worship service is in Ukrainian. When
I used to serve at the Orthodox church, I once suggested
Bishop Serhiy to read Epistles and Gospel in Ukrainian
so that people can better understand the Word. He did
not say anything to me but looked at me sternly. After
that priests treated me differently. When the Bishop
was not around everything was as usual. But in his presence
other priests kept aloof from me.
Each Sunday and on holidays I helped with the worship
service in the ULC congregation.
- Stepan Hryhorovych, tell our readers about your
family.
- My father died 20 years ago, my mother passed away
last year on Annunciation day, brother Petro - on December
18, 1974. Together with my wife Nadia I live in Kremenets.
We have been married for 35 years. Our daughter got
married and immigrated to the US. I have 3 grandchildren.
I would like to use this opportunity and personally
express my gratitude to Bishop V'yacheslav Horpynchuk
for the help I received after I was beaten up and injured
and badly need appropriate medical treatment.
§ Thank you for the interesting interview. May our Lord
strengthen you and give you health to continue serving
His church.
ARTICLES
& INTERVIEWS
Ukrainian Lutheran Church - 2004
www.ukrlc.org
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