Bishop Ján Eugen Kočiš (25 June 1926 – 4 December 2019) was a Slovak-Czech Ruthenian Greek Catholic hierarch, who served as a titular bishop of Abrittum and an auxiliary bishop of the Ruthenian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Czech Republic from 24 April 2004 until 7 October 2006.

Life

Bishop Kočiš was born as a youngest child among 8 children in the Greek-Catholic family of Juraj Kočiš in the

Michalovce District Michalovce District (''okres Michalovce'') is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the e ...

of the Eastern Slovakia, but he grew up in

Trebišov Trebišov (; ; ) is a small industrial town in the easternmost part of Slovakia, with a population of around 25,000. The town is an administrative, economic and cultural center with machine (Vagónka) and building materials industries. History Th ...

. After his graduation of school education, he completed his study as the teacher in the Pedagogical College in

Michalovce Michalovce (; , , Romani language, Romani: ''Mihalya'', Yiddish language, Yiddish: מיכאלאָווצע ''Mikhaylovets'' or ''Mykhaylovyts''; ) is a town on the Laborec river in eastern Slovakia. Originally named after the Archangel St Michael ...

(1942–1946) and worked in this profession a one year in Malá Tŕňa. In 1947 he joined the Theological Seminary in

Prešov Prešov () is a city in eastern Slovakia. It is the seat of administrative Prešov Region () and Šariš. With a population of approximately 85,000 for the city, and in total more than 100,000 with the urban area, it is the second-largest city i ...

, where he studied until prohibition of the Greek-Catholic Church in Czechoslovakia in 1950 and the beginning of religion persecution. Kočiš was clandestinely ordained as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

on 1 January 1951, a short time before his was forced to make a compulsory service in the military camps for forced labour (1951–1953). After ordination he served as a clandestine priest, but officially worked as a baker, excavator driver, worker, until his arrest and imprisonment in 1958 by the Communist Czechoslovak State Security for four years. Then he was released, but with prohibition to live in Slovakia and remained in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. In this time, on 3 December 1967, he was clandestine

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

to the

Episcopate A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

by Felix Maria Davídek (but this consecration, among others, made by this bishop, wasn't recognised by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

). With The

Prague Spring The Prague Spring (; ) was a period of liberalization, political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected Secretary (title), First Secre ...

and a period of political

liberalization Liberalization or liberalisation (British English) is a broad term that refers to the practice of making laws, systems, or opinions less severe, usually in the sense of eliminating certain government regulations or restrictions. The term is used ...

in Czechoslovakia, Msgr. Kočiš returned to an active pastoral service as a close cooperator to Ján Hirka. Also from 1991 until 1993 he served as a parish priest in

Ďurďoš Ďurďoš () is a village and municipality in Vranov nad Topľou District in the Prešov Region of eastern Slovakia. History In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1363. Geography The municipality lies at an altitude of 175 me ...

. In January 1993, he was appointed as a vicar for the Greek-Catholics in the

with the residence in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

and with the creation of the Ruthenian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Czech Republic in 1996, he became a

Protosyncellus A protosyncellus, protosynkellos or protosyngel () is the principal deputy of the bishop of an eparchy for the exercise of administrative authority in an Eastern Orthodox or Eastern Catholic church. The equivalent position in the Western Chris ...

of this ecclesiastical structure. On 24 April 2004 Msgr. Kočiš was appointed and on 15 May 2004 was

"sub conditione" to the

episcopate A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

as an auxiliary bishop of the Ruthenian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Czech Republic and the titular bishop of Abrittum. The principal

consecrator A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches ...

was Bishop

Đura Džudžar Đura Džudžar (born 22 April 1954) is a Serbian eparchial bishop of the Greek Catholic Eparchy of Ruski Krstur since 2018. He was previously titular bishop of Acrassus (2001-2018), auxiliary bishop of the Ruthenian Eparchy of Mukachevo ( ...

. After his retirement in 2006 he returned to his native Slovakia and resided in

. He died on 4 December 2019.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kočiš, Ján Eugen 1926 births 2019 deaths People from Pozdišovce Czechoslovak prisoners and detainees Slovak prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of Czechoslovakia Czech bishops Bishops of the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church Slovak Greek Catholic bishops Slovak Eastern Catholics Czech Eastern Catholics 20th-century Eastern Catholic bishops 21st-century Eastern Catholic bishops