Siostry Bazylianky
ul. Bukowiecka, 8
03-676 Warszawa
Tel./Fax: (48) 226 783 031
bazylianki@gmail.com
History
At the Chapter of Basilian Nuns held
in 1902, the nuns from the Javoriv monastery expanded
their ministry to Przemysl, present day Poland, to establish
an internat (boarding house) for students of Rusyn heritage
attending the women's teacher seminary and technical
schools in the area. In 1904 the nuns found a permanent
location on Kasprowycza Street. Later they purchased
an additional building on Klasztorna Street. Before
World War I about fifty boarders found a haven among
their own Byzantine Catholics.
In 1945, after the storm of World War II,
just a remnant of Basilian Sisters remained in Przemysl.
Three Sisters were resettled in a Latin rite convent
and one stayed in the Przemysl monastery with the Latin
rite Sisters and the orphans placed there. Eventually
the government also confiscated this monastery.
When the monastery in Slovita, Ukraine,
was liquidated in 1947, Mother Ahneta Halamaj and Mother
Elena Sladek escaped to Luban in 1949. In the fifties,
three more Sisters found their way to Poland, two from
Lviv and one from the Slovita monasteries. Father Pushkarskyj,
Provincial of the Basilian monks, delegated to Mother
Onysyma Szuszkiewicz the task of gathering the disbanded
Basilian Sisters. With the blessing of the Archbishop
of Wroclaw, Cardinal Boleslaw Kominek, a novitiate was
opened in Lubonierz, and monastic life began anew.
In the nineties, after the fall of communism,
the Przemysl monastery, which formerly also housed a
dormitory, for girls attending local schools, was returned
in a very dilapidated state and renovations began. A
pastoral and catechetical center was established in
Paslenk. In the Lemko area, a monastery was blessed
in Gorlice. It is the nucleus of Basilian life and activity
in this region.
Ministries
The needs of the present-day Church
dictate the forms of our apostolate. A deep spiritual
life suggests possibilities regarding ways of carrying
out our apostolate, appropriate to our environment.
Our
apostolate includes:
Catechization
Sister-catechists teach funda-mentals
of religion, help children profess and understand
traditions of the Eastern Church, prepare them
to receive Jesus in Holy Communion. Sisters teach
in schools, kindergartens as well as homes. As
a rule, their work would be incomplete without
staging nativity plays, concerts, various performances
and competitions. Sisters arrange leisure activities
for the students. |
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Work
With Youth
Every year during summer vacation,
in our Province Sisters organize recollections for the
youth. In addition to spiritual conferences, girls have
leisure time to get to know each other better, to hike
in the mountains, visit churches and relax amidst nature.
Sisters also provide accommodations for girls who come
for higher studies at various institutions.
Parish
Work
Depending upon the needs of a given
parish, Sisters involve themselves in various activities:
they bake “prosphora” (bread for the Eucharist),
serve as sacristans, launder church items and liturgical
garments, endeavor to obtain necessities for the church,
and actively assist with preparation of parish feasts.
Ecclesial
Arts
Natural abilities given each one of
us - these God calls us to discover and develop. Some
Sisters partake in liturgical singing, especially choral;
some write icons, weave “chotky” and others
readily decorate the church for various festivities.
In this manner we, Sisters enrich one another with our
talents.
Fostering
Ecclesial and Folk Creativity
In addition to teaching children religion,
Sisters teach children the Ukrainian language. Teaching
takes place in schools. During language as well as religion
lessons, children learn to understand better achievements
of the church and folk creativity, the culture of their
ancestors. Before Easter Sisters teach children to write
“pysanky” (decorate Easter eggs), sing and
dance “hajivky”(ritual spring dances).
Our
life is one of service and each service contains within
itself Christ’s command, that we serve one another
with love. This then is the principal aim of our apostolate.
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