Jan Sergiusz Gajek ( be, Сяргей Гаек, translit=Siarhiej Hajek; born Jan Gajek on 2 February 1949) is the

Apostolic Visitor In the Catholic Church, an apostolic visitor (or ''Apostolic Visitator''; Italian: Visitatore apostolico) is a papal representative with a transient mission to perform a canonical visitation of relatively short duration. The visitor is depute ...

for

Greek-Catholic 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 ...

Christians on the territory of

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 ...

. He was born into a Polish

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

family in Łyszkowice, central

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, and graduated from a local school and from a gymnasium. In August 1967, Gajek joined the

Congregation of Marian Fathers The Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary ( la, Congregatio Clericorum Marianorum ab Immaculata Conceptionis Beatissimae Virginis Mariae) is a Catholic male clerical religious congregation fou ...

. Between 1967 and 1974, he studied at the

Catholic University of Lublin John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin ( pl, Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawła II, la, Universitas Catholica Lublinensis Ioannis Pauli II, abbreviation KUL), established in 1918. It is the only private college in Poland with the s ...

. In the late 1960s, Gajek became engaged in activities of the exiled Belarusian clergy. He had contacts with the Belarusian cultural and religious centre in London, including 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. Early ...

and Robert Tamushanski. On 23 June 1974, he was ordained to the priesthood, and served for several years in a parish in

Głuchołazy Głuchołazy ( ; german: Ziegenhals, also known by Głuchołazy#Symbol and etymology, other names) is a historic town in southwestern Poland with approximately 13,534 inhabitants as of 2019. It is located within the Nysa County of Opole Voivodesh ...

. The following two years Gajek studied at the Theology Faculty of the Catholic University of Lublin. After that he was sent to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, where from 1978 to 1983 he studied at the Pontificia Instituto Orientale. In November 1983, Gajek became Doctor and returned to Poland. From 1983 to 1999, he worked at the Catholic University of Lublin.

As leader of Greek Catholics in Belarus

In 1994, 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 ...

appointed Gajek Apostolic Visitor for Greek Catholics in Belarus. In 1996, Gajek became

Archimandrite The title archimandrite ( gr, ἀρχιμανδρίτης, archimandritēs), used in Eastern Christianity, originally referred to a superior abbot (''hegumenos'', gr, ἡγούμενος, present participle of the verb meaning "to lead") who ...

and corresponding member of the

Pontifical Academy of Mary The Pontifical Academy of Mary ( la, Pontificia Academia Mariana Internationalis, it, Pontificia accademia mariana internazionale, PAMI) is an international pontifical organization tasked with promoting mariology. The academy is one of the Pon ...

. In 1997, he became adviser of the

Congregation for the Oriental Churches The Dicastery for the Eastern Churches (also called Dicastery for the Oriental Churches), previously named Congregation for the Oriental Churches or Congregation for the Eastern Churches ( la, Congregatio pro Ecclesiis Orientalibus), is a dicaste ...

. Gajek is author of numerous scientific publications on Christianity in the Slavonic East.

Gallery

File:Sergiusz Gajek in 2008.JPG, Father Gajek in 2008 File:Sergiusz Gajek in 2012 march 18.jpg, Father Gajek in 2012

Sources

Biography on the website of the St. Joseph Minsk Greek Catholic Centre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gajek, Sergiusz Living people Belarusian religious leaders Belarusian Eastern Catholic priests Polish Eastern Catholics John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin alumni Polish emigrants to Belarus Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception 1949 births 20th-century Eastern Catholic clergy 21st-century Eastern Catholic clergy Pontifical Oriental Institute alumni