PERSECUTION OF GREEK CATHOLIC CHURCH

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00047R000400200002-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 30, 2003
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: March 12, 1954
• Content Type: REPORT

(FORMATION
INFORMATION REPORT
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY 254
COUNTRY USSR
SUBJECT Persecution of Greek Catholic Church
PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE
ACQUIRED
DATE OF 11
25X1
TM11 OOCYYINT CON TA IMI IMIOIYATION A11[CTIMI TMC NATIONAL 1111NI9
/I TMC YMIT[0 [TA,11, NI THIN TN[ Y[ANINO 01 TITLI IC, ^[CTIONN )Oa
ANN 7*4, or TNC U.S. COO[, AN AY[NONO, IT[ TN AN NYI IIIOY ON N['[.
LATION 0,/ ITO 000,15,1 TO OR N[CIIIT IY AN UMAUTNONII[0 1[1105 IC
INONIOIT!. IT LAW. TN[ 19110DUCTION OF THII ION- 11 ONOHINITID?
25X1
ism
DATE DISTR. /2 Al A i .. 5f
NO. OF PAGES
NO. OF ENCLS.
(LISTED BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
25X1 THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
.25X11.
25X1 "Ponioryany, a town of four thousand, people.
25X1 2. The town had. three chur~hes; one, the Creek Catholic church I
25X1 I with about 24 huriired paris1tr,ere. ~ amtder, a Roman Catholic
25X1 church with eight hundred par ~ki~w:r.r.s,3 and. the third a Jewish Synagogue,
with about one t+Louusan d. nb rs.
3.
25X14. Qparishi-onez? , we-rte ;?eligious dad out of the 24 hundred there
were only about 40 wLLo were pr _Coa*nT .st, but these were young persons.
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25X15-
25X1 8.
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25X1
25X1
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7. Late in 1939 the char ;t; prope ty Of a' cu 40 acres was confiscated by
25X1 the Soviet governrre:.nto TaaxeLL- we ?e levied on the church thereafter,
yid not begin until 1939, at which time the
Soviets were movie.-; ^au :.i~ ?: ,.y ae there ';as a strong support of the
church by the people.
scYrvei;u.snc.e, Many sch? )oi teachers of our town and r ?Cher professional
people were afraid t-. &t: t.: w yh they were afraid to suffer the
consequences.
s ..des, but in, such IY.vj er t'at the people knew that. they would be un&'r
The Soviets began using ir01-,a,g ,d against the church and re.l3gion.
There was also a
tax on the church and on its r;,1lections. Taxes were increase( to the
extent that the church unable to pay, and in i941 told
that if the taxes were not pa.:.d.0bfr held responsible. However,
nothing happened ae the German armr clccupled=to'n in 1941.
25X19. I many of the priests who
25X1 court not pay the taxes were ~ ?restei and taken away, presumably to Siberia.
/CI AC IFlCATII~AIrcrYTnaTr.~~,
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