Kaunas Priest Seminary ( lt, Kauno kunigų seminarija) is the largest seminary in
Lithuania serving the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kaunas
The Archdiocese of Kaunas ( la, Archidioecesis Kaunensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Lithuania. The episcopal see is in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. The archdiocese's moth ...
. It is part of the Faculty of
Theology
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
of
Vytautas Magnus University
Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas (VDU)) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania. The university was founded in 1922 during the interwar period as an alternate national university.
Initially it was known ...
. Its current rector is
Aurelijus Žukauskas. As of 2007, the seminary had 35 students. It traces its history to 1622.
History
The
Diocese of Samogitia
The Archdiocese of Kaunas ( la, Archidioecesis Kaunensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Lithuania. The episcopal see is in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. The archdiocese's ...
did not have its own school for priests. Therefore,
Bishops of Samogitia sponsored students at the
Jesuit Academy in Vilnius, which was established in 1570. In 1622, Bishop
Stanisław Kiszka decided to sponsor a separate seminary in
Varniai
Varniai (; Samogitian: ''Varnē''; pl, Wornie) is a city in the Telšiai County, western Lithuania. In the Middle Ages the city was known as Medininkai ( Samogitian: ''Medėninkā'').
It was established in the 14th century, on the bank of th ...
, the seat of the diocese. In 1628, the seminary moved to
Kražiai
Kražiai ( Samogitian: ''Kražē''; pl, Kroże) is a historic town in Lithuania, located in the Kelmė district municipality, between Varniai (32 km) and Raseiniai (44 km), on the Kražantė River. The old town of Kražiai is an arche ...
where it shared premises with the
Jesuit Kražiai College until 1745. Bishop decided to move the seminary back to Varniai. There he built a brick house dedicated to the seminary's needs. From 1850 to 1862, 333 men were ordained as priests. In 1862, the seminary had 120 students.
Žemaičių kunigų seminarija
/ref>
After the January Uprising of 1863, the seat of Bishop Motiejus Valančius
Motiejus Kazimieras Valančius ( pl, , also known by his pen-name ''Joteika'' and ''Ksiądz Maciek''; 1801–1875) was a Catholic Bishop of Samogitia, historian and one of the best known Lithuanian/Samogitian writers of the 19th century.
Biogr ...
was moved from Varniai to Kaunas on December 3, 1864. The Seminary was offered the monastery of Cistercians and St. George Church in Kaunas. From 1863 to 1870 the seminary's capacity was limited, since officials of the Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
did not permit new enrollments.
Antanas Baranauskas
Antanas Baranauskas ( la, Antonius Baranovski, pl, Antoni Baranowski; 17 January 1835 – 26 November 1902) was a Lithuanian poet, mathematician and Catholic bishop of Sejny. Baranauskas is best known as the author of the Lithuanian poem '' An ...
taught there for some time, initiating lectures using the Lithuanian language
Lithuanian ( ) is an Eastern Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the official language of Lithuania and one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.8 mill ...
. Many of its students were active in Lithuanian book smuggling. In 1884 its students began printing ''Lietuva'', a Lithuanian-language newspaper, edited by . Fearing persecution by the Tsarist authorities, seminary leaders closed the newspaper. In 1888 a secret Lithuanian society was established, which was transformed into the St. Casimir Society in 1889. In 1892 Maironis
Maironis (born Jonas Mačiulis, ; – 28 June 1932) was a Lithuanian Roman Catholic priest and the greatest and most-known Lithuanian poet, especially of the period of the Lithuanian press ban. He was called the Bard of Lithuanian National Revi ...
was appointed a professor there and this move had a major impact on usage of the Lithuanian language. After Maironis left for St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, Adomas Dambrauskas-Jakštas was appointed as the chaplain and continued Maironis' work. In 1909 Maironis was appointed as the rector of the seminary. At that time the seminary was completely Lithuanian.
During World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the seminary moved to Vašuokėnai estate near Troškūnai
Troškūnai (; pl, Traszkuny) is the second smallest city in Lithuania. It is located west from Anykščiai.
History
Troškūnai first mentioned in historical sources in 1506, the estate of Troškūnai (or estate of Smėlynė) existed in 16t ...
and the building in Kaunas was converted to a military hospital. Between 1926 and 1940, 3,078 students graduated from the Seminary. After Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union, all other priest seminaries in Lithuania were closed. The number of students was at first limited to 150; the limit gradually decreased to 25. Most of the seminary buildings were confiscated; the Church of the Holy Trinity was turned into a warehouse; a library containing some 90,000 volumes was destroyed; and many priests were deported to Siberia. Between 1945 and 1981, 428 priests graduated. After Lithuania declared independence in 1990, the seminary reacquired its former buildings, which were restored before the visit of Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
in 1993.
Studies
The seminary's current program consists of five years of undergraduate studies beginning with preparatory courses in Šiluva
Šiluva is a small town of less than 700 inhabitants in Lithuania. It is located in the region of Samogitia. It is a major site of Catholic pilgrimage in Lithuania.
History
Šiluva was first mentioned in 1457 in relation to the building of th ...
. Its graduates receive a degree from the Vytautas Magnus University
Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) ( lt, Vytauto Didžiojo universitetas (VDU)) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania. The university was founded in 1922 during the interwar period as an alternate national university.
Initially it was known ...
, where they may pursue graduate and post-graduate studies. Its curriculum aims to develop students' spirituality, humanism, and intellectual abilities, and prepare them for pastoral duties.
Former rectors
*Hieronim Raczkowski Hieronim is the Polish form of Hieronymus and may refer to:
*Adam Hieronim Sieniawski (1576–1616) (1576–1616), Polish–Lithuanian noble
* Adam Hieronim Sieniawski (1623–1650) (1623–1650), Polish noble
*Dominik Hieronim Radziwiłł (1786– ...
* Gasparas Cirtautas
* Antanas Karosas
* Jonas Mačiulis-Maironis
References
External links
History on official site
{{authority control
Educational institutions established in the 1620s
Priest Seminary
Catholic seminaries in Lithuania
Religion in Kaunas
1622 establishments in Europe
History of education in Lithuania