For over 60 years, Jews have been asking to recognize Ukrainian Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky as Righteous Among the Nations – history

We remember Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky — a renowned Ukrainian, recognized as a savior of Jews both in the Jewish community of Ukraine and in Israel. However, he still does not hold the title of Righteous Among the Nations.

The story of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky is shared in our section “!! History and Facts” because his life and activities are crucial for understanding the relationships between Ukrainians and Jews, as well as recognizing the role he played in saving Jews during the Holocaust. This story helps uncover significant pages of our shared history, strengthening mutual respect and support between peoples, while also supporting the effort to present the past objectively and honestly, free from distortions and propaganda.

Original – in “Ukrainian Jewish Encounter” (UJE).

Andrey Sheptytsky — one of the spiritual authorities of the Ukrainian nation. A count by birth, one of the wealthy people of Galicia, he dedicated himself to serving the Lord and reached the rank of Metropolitan. The true test of his leadership came during a time when totalitarian regimes — Nazi Germany and the Communist Soviet Union — tried to establish control over Galicia. Sheptytsky had the greatest spiritual influence as head of the Greek-Catholic Church in the region during the time of the Shoah.

Officially adopting the same position as most (except one) Christian churches of Europe, i.e., welcoming the new Nazi government, Metropolitan Sheptytsky unofficially played an active role in saving Jews.

In his inner circle — at least seven Righteous Among the Nations, and Israel does not deny Sheptytsky’s role in saving Jews.

Dozens of Nominations for Righteous Among the Nations

The Ukrainian Jewish Encounter (UJE) has a comment from the Holocaust History Memorial Complex “Yad Vashem” (Jerusalem) regarding the issue of awarding Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky the title of Righteous Among the Nations.

This issue has been a topic of debate in the Ukrainian-Israeli dialogue for many years, and since 1964, when the rabbi David Kagane, saved by the Metropolitan, first submitted an application to “Yad Vashem” for Sheptytsky to be awarded this high honor. This was shared with us by Dr. Yuriy Skira for UJE, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Ecumenical Studies at the Ukrainian Catholic University.

After Ukraine gained independence in 1991, the restored Jewish community of Ukraine repeatedly submitted requests to “Yad Vashem” to recognize Sheptytsky as Righteous Among the Nations.

This idea was initiated and supported by several representatives and leaders of Jewish organizations in Ukraine since the early 1990s, according to the co-chairman of the Vaad of Ukraine, Yosif Zissels. In particular, collective letters were sent to “Yad Vashem”. It is also known that the Ukrainian-Jewish Relations Society in Israel, led by Alexander Feldman and Yakov Suslensky, had previously, in the early 1980s, submitted an application to “Yad Vashem” to posthumously award Metropolitan Sheptytsky the status of Righteous Among the Nations.

What “Yad Vashem” Says

Recall that, according to the legislation of the state of Israel, the title of Righteous Among the Nations is awarded to non-Jews who saved Jews during the Holocaust, did not gain any material benefit from it, and understood that they were saving Jews, fully aware of the possible grave consequences for themselves. The decision to award this high title is made by the “Yad Vashem” commission, which includes Holocaust survivors, historians, rabbis, etc. The decision is confirmed by the Supreme Court of Israel.

“To date, no documents have been found that would record direct orders from the head of the Greek-Catholic Church regarding providing assistance or sheltering Jews. This is explained by the danger of the time and the consequences for people if such things had fallen into the hands of the German Security Police. According to testimonies, the Metropolitan gave oral requests to his assistants regarding the hiding of Jews,” says Y. Skira.

Despite this, as UJE was told by “Yad Vashem”,

“In 2012, the ‘Yad Vashem’ commission dedicated a whole meeting to reviewing the case of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, thoroughly studying all documents and testimonies. The commission concluded that Sheptytsky provided shelter to Jews in his residence during the Holocaust.”

As human rights defender Myroslav Marynovych writes in his article “Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky: A Test for Europe”,

“Andrey Sheptytsky, with the Greek-Catholic Church he led, notably with his brother Klyment Sheptytsky, abbot of the Holy Spirit Uniates Monastery, developed a whole network for rescuing Jews condemned to destruction under the Nazi occupation. It is estimated that about 200 Jews were saved by them, risking their own lives and the life of the Church as a whole.”

Nonetheless, “Yad Vashem” believes there are obstacles to recognizing him as Righteous Among the Nations.

As Yuriy Skira recalls, during the first review of Sheptytsky’s case in “Yad Vashem” in the 1960s, the obstacle was the fact that if the head of any church is recognized as Righteous Among the Nations, it would imply that the entire church participated in saving Jews.

However, this cannot be said about any Christian denomination. Only Jehovah’s Witnesses refused to swear an oath to Hitler as a whole community during the Shoah. For this, they were equated with enemies of the regime, arrested, and held in concentration camps where they wore a separate badge: a purple triangle. In other Christian churches, there were both Righteous and those who supported Hitler’s regime, whether sincerely or just for appearances.

Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky also wrote congratulatory letters to Hitler. In response to the inquiry from the “Ukrainian-Jewish Encounter,” “Yad Vashem” responded,

“The commission considered Sheptytsky’s initial support for Nazi Germany and his role in encouraging Ukrainians to join auxiliary forces, which later participated in the killing of Jews. Weighing these complex historical factors, including Sheptytsky’s significant influence as a Ukrainian national leader at the beginning of the war, despite his subsequent change in position, the Commission confirmed its previous decision not to award him the title of Righteous Among the Nations.”

How Metropolitan Sheptytsky Saved Jews During the Shoah

UJE previously reported on the Shoah and the rescue of Jews in Western Ukraine. According to Yuriy Skira,

“Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky involved only his closest associates in the task of sheltering Jews, meaning people he could trust with such a complex and dangerous task.”

This primarily includes the Metropolitan’s secretaries, Fathers Ivan Kotiv and Volodymyr Hrytsay, selected monks and nuns from the Studite Monastic Order, and some nuns from various orders and congregations, such as the Order of Saint Basil the Great.

Anatoliy Podolskyi, historian and head of the Ukrainian Center for Holocaust Studies, states that “when the Nazi occupiers arrived, Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky was in Lviv and made contact with the occupiers. It is important to understand that in 1939, after two years of Soviet crimes in Galicia, few thought the German regime would be as criminal as the Soviet one.”

When the Metropolitan understood the dire situation for Jews, he began participating in their rescue.

“In 1942, he wrote a letter to Himmler, defending the Jews. The Germans wanted to arrest him, but the Metropolitan’s influence in Lviv was immense,” notes A. Podolskyi.

Also, according to newly declassified documents from the Vatican archives in 2020, at the beginning of World War II, Sheptytsky wrote a warning to Pope Pius XII:

“Jews are the first innocent victims.”

This was reported at a seminar for the project Echoes and Reflections, dedicated to the Shoah.

Myroslav Marynovych comments on this issue in a scientific article:

“The history of Sheptytsky’s relationship with OUN and UPA deserves careful and unbiased study, the time for which has only now come, when the ‘crooked mirrors’ of totalitarian ideologies have finally broken. Clearly, there we will also find some tactical miscalculations by Sheptytsky, but, as I firmly believe, we will not find any indulgence of retribution heroism, as sometimes happened even in the case of the clergy of both sides. This is confirmed by numerous cautious messages from the Metropolitan, and, surprisingly, by a lingering suspicion among the Galician Ukrainians of that time that his restrained position was motivated by pro-Polish sympathies.”

Myroslav Marynovych recalls the scientific studies of Dr. Julian Bussgang.

“Dr. Bussgang rightly pointed out that ‘Sheptytsky’s support for the newly formed Ukrainian government was not unconditional. In his addresses at the time, the Metropolitan clearly outlined the conditions under which the Church would support this government’s activities: (1) when its decrees do not contradict God’s laws, (2) when the state will wisely exercise its power, and (3) when the state administration takes into account the needs of all inhabitants of the country, regardless of religion, nationality, or social status.’

Righteous Among the Nations in Sheptytsky’s Circle

According to the research of Yuriy Skira, among the people who received the title of Righteous Among the Nations and worked closely with the Metropolitan to save Jews, the following should be noted:

• Mother Yosifa (Viter) — longtime abbess of the Holy Protection Women’s Monastery of the Studite Order;
• Blessed Priest Martyr Klymentiy (Sheptytsky) — Metropolitan’s brother, abbot of the Holy Spirit Uniate Monastery of the Studite Order;
• Hieromonk Mark (Stek);
• Bishop Nikanor (Deineha) — assistant bishop of the Lviv Archdiocese of the Greek Catholic Church during the underground period, and the only Greek Catholic bishop on the list as of 2024;
• Hieromonk Daniil (Tymchyn);
• Schemonk Luke (Shyian) and Theodosiy (Tsibrivsky).

Also, the godson of Sheptytsky is the Righteous Among the Nations Vasyl Popel from Boryslav, who, with his family, saved the Lipman family. This family is featured in one of the films from the series “The Word of the Righteous.”

“I fully support the idea that Metropolitan Sheptytsky should be recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. He has earned this title many times. This is not only my opinion but also the position of the Jewish community of Ukraine, which awarded Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky the title of Righteous of Ukraine. I believe the new generation of researchers in ‘Yad Vashem’ will come to this conclusion,” says A. Podolskyi.

He believes that the reason Sheptytsky has not been recognized as Righteous Among the Nations is related to the absence of punishment for the crimes of Leninism, Stalinism, and the Gulag, unlike the crimes of Nazi socialism.

“The lack of a unanimous international position regarding the crimes of Stalinism affected the decisions of people in ‘Yad Vashem’. This became the reason that allowed Russia to attack Ukraine today. In my opinion, this war should accelerate the decision-making process in ‘Yad Vashem’ in favor of Metropolitan Sheptytsky as Righteous Among the Nations,” concludes A. Podolskyi.

Author – Margarita Ormoцadze – Original – in “Ukrainian Jewish Encounter” (UJE).

Margarita Ormoцadze is the co-founder/producer of the project “The Word of the Righteous” (Word of the Righteous), which tells the story of Ukrainians who saved Jews across Ukraine during the Holocaust.

NAnews – Israel News‼️: The story of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky is an important part of the shared historical memory, highlighting his significant role in saving Jews during the Holocaust.

In the section “!! History and Facts” we emphasize how his work contributes to strengthening mutual respect between Ukrainians and Jews, as well as helping to understand the past correctly, without distortions and propaganda. Learn more about the Metropolitan’s contribution to saving the Jewish people and his complex role in history.