Antoni Fijałkowski (13 July 1798 – 11 February 1883) was a Roman Catholic archbishop of the Archdiocese of Mohilev from 1872 until his death in 1883. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Kamianets-Podilskyi from 1860 to 1872, and as auxiliary bishop of the same diocese (and titular bishop of Thennesus) from 1858 to 1860.

Biography

Fijałkowski was born to Antoni and Anna Fijałkowski (). After completing gymnasium, he studied at the , graduating in 1820 with a

magister degree A magister degree (also magistar, female form: magistra; from , "teacher") is an academic degree used in various systems of higher education. The magister degree arose in medieval universities in Europe and was originally equal to the doctorate; ...

in both laws (canon & civil law), as well as a candidate degree in philosophy. After obtaining this degree, he began attending the seminary in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

on 8 September 1820. After obtaining a magister degree from the seminary, he was ordained a priest on 31 May 1824. He then obtained a doctorate of both laws from the University of Vilnius in 1825, after defending his dissertation ''De fatis authenticae et exegeseos Apocalipsis''. In the same year, he was appointed by as professor of the diocesan seminary in

, where he taught dogmatics and French. He was made professor of dogmatic theology and church history at the University of Vilnius on 4 August 1828. In 1831, Fijałkowski was appointed canon of the

cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

at Vilnius. Afterwards, he worked as a professor of dogmatic theology, moral theology and

pastoral theology Pastoral theology is the branch of practical theology concerned with the application of the study of religion in the context of regular church ministry. This approach to theology seeks to give practical expression to theology. Normally viewed as ...

at the Theological Academy in Vilnius; he was appointed as its rector in 1839, after the resignation of . He held the rectorship until the Academy was transferred to

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, becoming the Saint Petersburg Roman Catholic Theological Academy. He was appointed a prelate of the cathedral chapter of Vilnius on 11 September 1843. He was also appointed vicar capitular of the Diocese of Vilnius on 18 February 1846 and administrator of the Archdiocese of Mohilev on 23 October 1855. On 27 July 1858, Fijałkowski was appointed auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Kamianets-Podilskyi and titular bishop of Thennesus. He was consecrated on 11 October of the same year by Wacław Żyliński. He was then appointed bishop of Kamianets-Podilskyi by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

on 11 March 1860. On 11 February 1871, he was appointed by Pope Pius IX as archbishop of Mohilev; his appointment was approved by the Tsar of Russia on 14 April 1872, and he received his

pallium The pallium (derived from the Roman ''pallium'' or ''palla'', a woolen cloak; : pallia) is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the pope, but for many centuries bestowed by the Holy See upon metropolitan bish ...

on 4 June 1872. He oversaw the formation of a theological seminary in Saint Petersburg, which was opened in 1879 and taught various subjects primarily in Latin, though some courses were taught in Polish and Russian. He died on in

; his funeral was held at the Church of St. Catherine.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fijalkowski, Antoni 1798 births 1883 deaths 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Russian Empire Bishops appointed by Pope Pius IX