The Orthodox Church and Byelorussian people

Mironowicz Antoni

---

Introduction

The tradition of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Central-Eastern Europe has been manifest in all forms of life of diverse nations inhabiting these areas. A particular influence of the Orthodox Church can be seen in the development of educational and religious life. Byzantine material culture had an even greater importance in the history of the nations of Eastern Europe. The range of impact of the Orthodox Church has delineated the borders of civilization between Eastern and Western Christianity. Byelorussian population found itself under the influence of the Orthodox Church and accepted the rich inheritance of the Byzantine-Slavonic civilization.

We would like to present a few articles about the history of the Orthodox Church in Poland and the Byelorussian minority inhabiting Northern-Eastern region of Poland. The fate of this minority is closely connected with the history of the Orthodox Church. Through this publication we would like to bring closer the history of the Orthodox Church in Eastern Europe and to show its influence upon the shaping of the modern Byelorussian nation.

The subject matter discussed in these articles concerns a number of significant problems such as: historical relations between Poland and Byelorussia, the situation of the Byelorussian minority in Poland compared to other national minorities, and the development of the structures of the Orthodox Church in Podlachia. The author is aware that the presented articles do not exhaust the subject matter but only inspire towards a further study. The author hopes that this publication will help to understand better the problems of the Byelorussian minority in Poland and will show the role of the Orthodox Church in shaping the national identity of Byelorussians.