[ad_1]
Inauguration of the Lithuanian chapel In the crypts of St. Peter’s Basilica in 1970. Several hundred honorable guests from 12 countries, high-ranking St. Throne and Italian officials attended.
The official program of celebrations lasted three days, from July 6 to 8. 500 Lithuanians from Europe, North and South America, Australia came to the celebrations. The first World Congress of Lithuanians even took place in Rome on that occasion.
This year, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Lithuanian Chapel, due to the vagaries of the pandemic, such celebrations could not be organized. Subject to restrictions imposed by the Italian government, only eleven people could be invited to the Chapel of Lithuania.
The miracle of Lithuanian freedom.
The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Lithuania at St. Throne Petras Zapolskas ITLIETUVIAI.IT said that the Lithuanian chapel at the Vatican is a miracle that had profound meaning at that time and now.
“Chapel of Saint Lithuanian Peter’s Basilica symbolizes the miracle of Lithuanian freedom. This chapel is important to all Lithuanians, because during the occupation it was one of the most important symbols abroad, which proved that the state is alive so much in the spirit of its people as in its symbols. The Chapel of Lithuania is one of the symbols of our freedom struggles, and the freedom struggle never ends, “said Ambassador to St. Throne P. Zapolskas.
Photo by ITlietuviai.it / Commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Lithuanian chapel in the Vatican
The Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania to Italy, Ričardas Šlepavičius, also spoke of the Lithuanian Chapel as a miracle and a wonderful example of Lithuanian unity at ITLIETUVIAI.IT.
“50 years ago, in 1970. On July 6, a miraculous event occurred. In Rome, St. The Lithuanian chapel was consecrated in St. Peter’s Basilica, the most important Catholic shrine in the world. Thanks to all the efforts and donations of Lithuanians in the world and especially in the United States, we have a Lithuanian island in one of the most sacred places for us, “said Ambassador R.Šlepavičius.
A surprising lesson in unity
“Imagine the situation at the time: bleak Soviet times, Lithuania as a state is not, if ever will be, an existential issue.” There was a captive Lithuania in Lithuania and a free part of Lithuania in the diaspora, which believed so strongly in two ways: religious and state, that it was able to implement such a project, that it would be incredibly difficult to implement even today. In just three years, Lithuanians in the world organized permits, works, donated funds, “said the ambassador about the establishment of the Lithuanian Chapel at the heart of Catholicism, when Lithuania had virtually no state or voice, and the Internet and social media they did not exist.
“The Lithuanian chapel is a very profound symbol. The expression of our unity, the Lithuanians, shows our organizational capacity, the strength of our character, that we are and will not disappear, that the Lithuanian nation is and is free,” said the ambassador. R.Šlepavičius.
According to the diplomat, the fact that a small group of people can participate in the celebrations does not detract from the celebrations.
“Although today’s conditions did not allow a larger group of people to gather for this celebration, the festive atmosphere and historical significance of today’s moment did not affect him in any way. What matters is not the number of people, but the opportunity for reflection, “said the ambassador.
The Director of the Administration of the Secretariat of the Holy See, Msgr. Rolandas Makrickas emphasized that we, the Lithuanians of the world, can only be proud of having a chapel close to our hearts near a few countries and urged not to forget the lessons Lithuanians who founded the chapel half a century ago.
Photo by ITlietuviai.it Lithuanian Chapel in the Vatican
“We can be glad that in this largest Catholic shrine, decorated with masterpieces by the world’s most famous artists and remembering the most important Christian events and church personalities, we have a chapel that reminds us of our little country and its history. The story of the creation of this chapel 50 years ago surprisingly brought Lithuanians from Lithuania and the world together. Lithuania experienced times of Soviet oppression, separated from the world. However, Lithuanians around the world, especially in the United States, have found a surprising way to create a small Lithuania here, on the majestic St. Street in St. Peter’s Basilica, “said Msgr. R.Makrickas.
But how did it happen that during the occupation, the name of Lithuania, which had been erased from the world map and had no voice, and the symbolic images representing the greatest and most painful moments in its history were immortalized in one of the most sacred of the world?
The chapels donated a dollar
The answer is with the united efforts of the Lithuanian diaspora. The answer is especially relevant in the current context, when Lithuanians who have left their homeland to create life in other countries are no longer increasingly heard as “they” but as “us”. When the Lithuanian diaspora is increasingly talked about in the world’s political arena as an asset that can contribute to the creation of a modern, bold and innovative Lithuanian state and to the promotion of its name in the global space. Capable, as Msgr. R.Makrick said, out of love, dedication and wisdom to create lasting and meaningful things.
The High Rank of the Vatican Msgr. During the ceremonies, R. Makrickas said that the chapel was founded thanks to the emigrant bishop Vincent Brizgis and the Lithuanian clergy who lived and worked in Rome and the Vatican, as well as many Lithuanian victims of the diaspora.
He realized that at that time the Lithuanians were not yet the richest in America, and in revealing the files, it shows that people donated very little, but many.
If many Lithuanians around the world spent a few dollars, marks and liras in financing the Lithuanian chapel, then the Lithuanian diplomats and the clergy of the diaspora and especially the important acquaintances of the Lithuanian priests living in Rome at the Vatican made an invaluable contribution to make the idea come true.
The amazing power of desire and the network of communication.
In implementing the idea of the Lithuanian Chapel, Archbishop Paulius Kazimieras Marcinkus, the then Secretary of the IOR of the Vatican Bank, intervened with the Vatican authorities. The installation of the chapel was carried out without problems thanks to the close contact of the Rector of the Lithuanian College in Rome, the Rector of Lady Tulaba, with the Vatican.
Photo by ITlietuviai.it / In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Lithuanian Chapel, the participants prayed to Pope Saint Tomb of Paul VI
Stasys Girdvainis, Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania to the Holy See, also contributed to the bold and uninterrupted project to build the chapel. Unfortunately, the diplomat was unable to see the opening of the chapel, he died only a few weeks before the ceremony.
“Probably the most important Lithuanian sponsors in the chapel project were two influential Italian cardinals, Cardinal Giuseppe Guzzaro and Cardinal Antonio Samorè, called friends of Lithuania,” said Msgr. R. Makrickas.
The personal secretary of Cardinal Antonio Samorè, then prefect of the Congregation for the Sacraments, who had direct contact with the pope, was Mgr. Lithuanian. Vincas Mincevičius. It was Bishop V. Mincevičius was the main coordinator in all matters related to the chapel. Through his personal secretary sword. A.Samorè remained in contact and strongly supported the Lithuanian bishops on their visits to the Vatican.
The Lithuanian chapel project at the Vatican also had another influential intercessor: Italian Cardinal Giuseppe Pizzardo. This cardinal, very close to the Pope, especially in the early years after the war, supported the homeless Lithuanian priests and helped them establish the papal church of Saint Casimir College. Kard G. Pizzardo barely managed to participate in the consecration of the Lithuanian chapel and died less than a month later.
The foundation of the chapel was given by Pope St. Paul VI and her inauguration ceremonies came to the chapel, blessed her, gave her a candlestick, a candle, and lit it herself.
“You, dear and faithful Lithuanians, have chosen this place for a fraternal and spiritual meeting, to perpetuate your religious and historical traditions, to express your faith in Christ, to confirm your attachment to the Church and to this Apostolic Throne, to console your souls with prayer and hope, to pray for Saint Peter. You, his compatriots and compatriots who have dispersed throughout the world, “said the Pope at the opening ceremony of the Chapel of Lithuania. Paul VI
The catacombs are a metaphor for Lithuania at the time.
The artistic concept of the chapel, spread by symbolic images of the state and history of Lithuania, was also created by Vytautas Kazimieras Jonynas, an artist living in New York.
Bronze Vytis adorns the doors of the Lithuanian Chapel, each Lithuanian Catholic hangs on each altar and has its own Vilnius Gate of Dawn mosaic, the bas-reliefs represent the state’s historical creators and the Church of Lithuania in Lithuania, martyrs , historical events and places, of King Mindaugas’ The repression of the Soviet era of faith and the prayers of the martyrs in exile in Siberia.
Photo by ITlietuviai.it The memory of the victims of the Kražiai massacre was also honored in the Lithuanian chapel
According to Saulius Augustinas Kubilius, a Vatican radio journalist, ITLIETUVIAI.IT has chosen light travertine for the interior reliefs of the chapel, not by chance.
“This stone reminded V. K. Jonynas of the tufa rock where the catacombs were removed. The catacombs, as a symbol of the suffering Church, were intended to recall the situation in Lithuania at the time, to testify that the nation, which is being driven out by its occupant from its sanctuaries in Lithuania, can focus on Christianity. In the caves of the Basilica of the Peter Basilica, to create a sanctuary to which the vision of the entire Christian world is directed, “said S.A. Kubilius.
Pope Saint John Paul II is a frequent visitor to the Lithuanian island.
“We must not forget that Pope John Paul II, after his election to the Apostolic See in 1978, stopped praying here in our chapel before giving the first apostolic blessing,” recalled Mgr at the celebrations in the Lithuanian chapel. R.Makrickas.
Elzė Simonkevičiūtė-Di Meglio, the president of the Italian community in Italy, told the ITLIETUVIAI.IT portal that, although due to strict restrictions, the festivities were modest, but emotionally very strong.
“After St. Mass we prayed to Saint Virgin Mary, we sang the National Anthem, and we went to pray at the two coffin coffins in the basilica: The coffins of John Paul II,” said E. Simonkevičiūtė-Di Meglio.
Although the symbolism of the Lithuanian chapel transcends the boundaries of religion, Vatican Radio journalist S. Kubilius emphasized that its spiritual significance should be more appreciated.
“Lithuanian tourists arriving in Rome from all countries, as well as from Lithuania, often begin their visit to the Eternal City precisely from a visit to this chapel”, ITLIETUVIAI. S.A. Kubilius reported. –
According to the concept of the creators of the chapel, the names of the martyrs of the Lithuanian bishops had to be written on the wall of one of the chapels. I don’t know why this plan could not be implemented. However, relics of some saints and martyrs were placed on the altar in the chapel. They could complement each other, further strengthening the importance of the chapel and promoting the spirituality of visitors. I think this is vital to the future of all of us in several ways: diasporas, states, glorifying Lithuania’s name in the global space. “
[ad_2]
