Archimandrite Leo Haroshka,
MIC (born Leŭ Jurjevič Haroška, be, Леў Юр’евіч Гарошка,
russian: Лев Юрьевич Горошко; 26 February 1911, the village of
Traščycy,
Hrodna
Grodno (russian: Гродно, pl, Grodno; lt, Gardinas) or Hrodna ( be, Гродна ), is a city in western Belarus. The city is located on the Neman River, 300 km (186 mi) from Minsk, about 15 km (9 mi) from the Polish b ...
Province,
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. ...
(nowadays
Karelichy District
Karelichy District ( be, Карэліцкі раён) is a district (rajon) in Grodno Region of Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республи ...
Hrodna Region,
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
) - 8 August 1977,
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
) was a Belarusian Catholic priest of the Byzantine rite, religious and social activist, researcher of the history of religion in Belarus and one of the founders of the
Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library in London. His pseudonyms are LA Іskra, Anatoí Žmienia, Prakop Cavalieri and others.
Early life
Father Haroshka was born into a poor Orthodox family with
Uniate
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of t ...
roots.
He studied at the
Navahrudak
Novogrudok ( be, Навагрудак, Navahrudak; lt, Naugardukas; pl, Nowogródek; russian: Новогрудок, Novogrudok; yi, נאַוואַראַדאָק, Novhardok, Navaradok) is a town in the Grodno Region, Belarus.
In the Middle ...
Belarusian school, after in 1936 in the
Ukrainian Catholic University
The Ukrainian Catholic University ( ua, Український Католицький Університет, ''Ukrains'kyy Katolyts'kyy Universytet'') is a Catholic university in Lviv, Ukraine, affiliated with the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. ...
, and then went to study in
Innsbruck, however, due to insufficient knowledge of the Latin language was not able to continue studies.
Already a Catholic, he was ordained in
Lviv
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukrain ...
in 1937, and he served as a Greek Catholic priest in
Pinsk
Pinsk ( be, Пі́нск; russian: Пи́нск ; Polish: Pińsk; ) is a city located in the Brest Region of Belarus, in the Polesia region, at the confluence of the Pina River and the Pripyat River. The region was known as the Marsh of Pinsk ...
. In 1942 exarch Anton Niemancevič appointed him to the Board of Governors of the re-established
Belarusian Greek-Catholic Church. He worked as a teacher and took part in the All-Belarusian Congress in
Minsk
Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...
in 1944.
Life in Exile
Since 1944 he was in exile; in 1946 he was appointed head of the Belarusian Catholic Mission in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. Haroshka published a magazine Božym Šliacham and several religious brochures. In 1959 he joined the Order of Marian.
In 1960 Bishop
Ceslaus Sipovich
Ceslaus Sipovich ( be, Чэслаў Сіповіч, Łacinka: Česłaǔ Sipovič) (December 8, 1914 – October 4, 1981) was a bishop of the Belarusian Greek Catholic Church and a notable Belarusian émigré social and religious leader.
Earl ...
appointed him rector of the Belarusian Catholic Mission in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. He joined the
Association of Belarusians in Great Britain
The Association of Belarusians in Great Britain ( be, Згуртаваньне беларусаў у Вялікай Брытаніі, ''Zhurtavańnie bielarusaŭ u Vialikaj Brytanii'') is the oldest Belarusian organisation in the United Kingdom un ...
and served as its board member and deputy chair.
Haroshka’s sizeable and “valuable” book collection became one of the building blocks of the
Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library in London, which was initiated with his involvement in 1969 and officially opened in 1971.
Guide to the Library
Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library and Museum
Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library and Museum (Belarusian: ; also referred to as Skaryna Library and ''Skarynaŭka'') in north London, England, is the only library outside Belarus to collect exclusively in the field of Belarusian studies. It wa ...
From 1970 he lived in Rome and headed the Belarusian section of Vatican Radio
Vatican Radio ( it, Radio Vaticana; la, Statio Radiophonica Vaticana) is the official broadcasting service of Vatican City.
Established in 1931 by Guglielmo Marconi, today its programs are offered in 47 languages, and are sent out on short wave, ...
.
Death
Haroshka died on 8 August 1977 in Paris at the time of surgery. He is buried at the St Pancras and Islington cemetery
St Pancras and Islington Cemetery is a cemetery in East Finchley, North London. Although it is situated in the London Borough of Barnet, it is run as two cemeteries, owned by two other London Boroughs, Camden (formerly St Pancras) and Isling ...
in North London alongside a number of other prominent Belarusian figures.
Notable works
Garoshka’s academic works cover multiple areas and include:
* philosophical and theological “Soul” («Душа») (1948)
* scientific “The Origins of man in the light of modern facts” («Паходжаньне чалавека ў сьвятле сучасных фактаў») (1948)
* historic “St Euphrosyne - Pradslava of Polatsk. A patron of Belarus” («Сьв. Ефрасіньня-Прадслава Полацкая. Патронка Беларусі») (1950),
* historic “Belarus in dates, numbers and facts” («Беларусь у датах, лічбах, фактах») (1953),
* linguistic “Distinct characteristics of Belarusian language” («Своеасаблівасьці беларускае мовы») (1951)
* historic “Under the sign of "Russian” and “Polish” faiths” («Пад знакам „рускае“ і „польскае“ веры» (1954/55),
* historic “The causes of Polonisation in Belarus” («Прычыны паланізацыі на Беларусі») (1955)
* a Greek-Latin - Church Slavonic - Belarusian dictionary
* a compilation of Belarusian sayings and proverbs with over 20000 entries.
Apart from the academic papers, he wrote dozens of stories under pen-name Anatoí Žmienia.
References
External links
* http://adradjency.narod.ru/duhounae/garoshka.html
* https://web.archive.org/web/20120206181204/http://baranavichy.at.tut.by/malecki_bel.html
* http://www.slounik.org/146820.html
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haroshka, Leo
Belarusian Eastern Catholic priests
Converts to Eastern Catholicism from Eastern Orthodoxy
Former Belarusian Orthodox Christians
People from Grodno Region
People from Novogrudsky Uyezd
1911 births
1977 deaths
Burials at St Pancras and Islington Cemetery