The St. Euphrosynia Belarusian Orthodox Church is a

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 R ...

ian

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek language, Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the Eastern Orthodox Church, entire body of Orthodox (Chalced ...

church in

South River, New Jersey South River is a borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 16,008,Euphrosyne of Polotsk Euphrosyne (; grc, Εὐφροσύνη), in ancient Greek religion and mythology, was one of the Charites, known in ancient Rome as the ''Gratiae'' (Graces). She was sometimes called Euthymia (Εὐθυμία) or Eutychia (Εὐτυχία). Fa ...

History

After the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Belarusian parishioners came together and worshiped in

Displaced Person Forced displacement (also forced migration) is an involuntary or coerced movement of a person or people away from their home or home region. The UNHCR defines 'forced displacement' as follows: displaced "as a result of persecution, conflict, g ...

-Camps in

Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...

, Michelsdorf and

Backnang Backnang (; swg, Bagene) is a town in Germany in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, roughly northeast of Stuttgart. Its population has increased greatly over the past century, from 7,650 in 1900 to 35,761 in 2005. Backnang was ceded to W� ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Some of the church members were able to move to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and moved to South River, New Jersey, where already a Belarusian community existed. In 1951 a parish council was elected, with Father Nikolai Lapitzki selected as its first pastor. The parish celebrated their first worship in the second floor of the Conklin Methodist Church, a local church, whose Rev. G. Nelson Moore allowed to use it. The Church Council became a member of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America. In 1953 the parish bought a former Jewish

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...

on Whitehead Avenue and converted it into an Orthodox Christian Church. In addition, the Church acquired a piece of land on Hillside Avenue for use as a parish cemetery. Belarusian monument in South River

On a hilltop behind the St. Euphrosynia Belarusian Orthodox Church, a large memorial was installed bearing the official seal of the

Byelorussian Central Council The Belarusian Central Council ( be, Беларуская цэнтральная рада, in lacinka: Biełaruskaja centralnaja rada; german: Weißruthenischer Zentralrat) was a puppet administrative body in German-occupied Belarus during World ...

(Bielaruskaja Centalnaja Rada, or BCC) reads, "glory to those who fought for freedom and independence of Byelorussia." The stone memorial is topped by a large iron cross, which has a small double-barred cross at its center, which represents the Cross of Saint Euphrosyne and is a central element of the medieval Belarusian coat of arms,

Pahonia The coat of arms of Lithuania consists of a mounted armoured knight holding a sword and shield, known as (). Since the early 15th century, it has been Lithuania's official coat of arms and is one of the oldest European coats of arms. It is als ...

Saint Euphrosynia Belarus Orthodox Church Cemetery

Notable burials

Radasłaŭ Astroŭski Radasłaŭ Kazimiravič Astroŭski ( be, Радасла́ў Казі́міравіч Астро́ўскі; pl, Radosław Ostrowski; russian: Радосла́в Казими́рович Остро́вский ''Radoslav Kazimirovich Ostrovskiy'' ...

(1887–1976), president of the Belarusian Central Rada and Nazi collaborator *

Jan Stankievič Jan (Janka) Stankievič (also called Ian Stankevich, be, Ян Станкевіч, pl, Jan Stankiewicz; 26 November 1891 – 16 August 1976) was a Belarusian politician, Nazi collaborator, linguist, historian and philosopher. Biography Jan S ...

(1891–1976), politician, linguist, historian, Nazi collaborator, and philosopher *Emanuel Jasuik (1906-1977), former Mayor of Stolpce, Poland, CIA informant, and Nazi collaborator

References

{{coord, 40.440214, -74.365210, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-NJ, display=title 1953 establishments in New Jersey Belarusian-American history Churches in Middlesex County, New Jersey European American culture in New Jersey Churches in South River, New Jersey