The Greek Catholic Union of the USA (GCU) is the oldest continuous fraternal

benefit society A benefit society, fraternal benefit society, fraternal benefit order, friendly society, or mutual aid society is a society, an organization or a voluntary association formed to provide mutual aid, benefit, for instance insurance for relief fr ...

for

Rusyn Rusyn may refer to: * Rusyns, Rusyn people, an East Slavic people ** Pannonian Rusyns, Pannonian Rusyn people, a branch of Rusyn people ** Lemkos, a branch of Rusyn (or Ukrainian) people ** Boykos, a branch of Rusyn (or Ukrainian) people * Rusyn l ...

immigrants and their descendants in the United States.

History

Founded as the Greek Catholic Union of Rusyn Brotherhoods in the USA (GCU) in

Wilkes-Barre Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the secon ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

on 14 February 1892, it was headquartered for most of the 20th century in the heart of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

's steel valley in

Homestead Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses *Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres *Homestead principle, a legal concept th ...

. In 1987 it moved to a large tract of land in suburban Pittsburgh near

Beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers ar ...

. The society was formed by the union of fourteen independent Greek Catholic lodges. Its early goals included promoting unity, education, and assistance for its members. A junior division for children 6 to 16 was created in 1906 and a gymnastic branch was created in 1911 The order has historically had a close relationship with the

Greek Catholic Church The term Greek Catholic Church can refer to a number of Eastern Catholic Churches following the Byzantine (Greek) liturgy, considered collectively or individually. The terms Greek Catholic, Greek Catholic church or Byzantine Catholic, Byzantine Ca ...

. Many local units, or "Subordinate Lodges", grew out of the Churches parishes and a spiritual advisor is one of the regular officers. This officer takes a pledge in the name of

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

in the

Holy Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

, the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

St. Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-day Demre ...

, the Lodges patron saint and all the other saints. However, there is no fraternal ritual. Membership, in 1979, was limited to members of the Catholic church (in either the

Greek Rite The Byzantine Rite, also known as the Greek Rite or the Rite of Constantinople, identifies the wide range of cultural, liturgical, and canonical practices that developed in the Eastern Christian Church of Constantinople. The canonical hours are ...

Roman Rite The Roman Rite ( la, Ritus Romanus) is the primary liturgical rite of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. It developed in the Latin language in the city of Rome and, while dist ...

) who were of Rusyn or Slav descent, or the spouse of the same. The maximum age was Sixty five. The Union had a consistent membership of about 50,000 from 1965 to 1979. Its current membership is listed as "over 40,000". Its flagship publication was ''

Amerikansky Russky Viestnik ''Amerikansky Russky Viestnik'' (1892–1952) was the longest-running Rusyn-American newspaper in the United States. The paper was the official publication of the Greek Catholic Union of Rusyn Brotherhoods, a fraternal benefit society based in Pe ...

''. GCU was active politically in the early twentieth century, especially in securing a place for Rusyns in the new nation of

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

. Also GCU consistently opposed the notion that Rusyns are

Ukrainians Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian. The majority ...

, arguing instead that they are a distinct nationality. GCU membership peaked in the 1920s at over 130,000 in more than 1,000 lodges throughout the United States. In the 21st century, when Rusyn Americans are well integrated into American society, GCU operates largely as an insurance organization with assets of over $1 billion. It also manages Seven Oaks Country Club and a housing development community on its estate.

References

External links

Greek Catholic Union of the USA Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greek Catholic Union Of The Usa Organizations established in 1892 Czech-American history Slovak-American history Rusyn-American culture in Pennsylvania Rusyn-American history Ethnic fraternal orders in the United States Catholic fraternal orders

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links