1. The First steps

Ceslaus Sipovich was born on 8 December 1914 into a farming family at Dziedzinka, a small village in the north-western corner of Belarus which at that time formed part of the Russian Empire. As the result of changes brought about by the First World War and the Russian Revolution, the territory of Belarus was partitioned in March 1921 by the Treaty of Riga between its neighbours. Its western regions came under the Polish rule, and the eastern part became the Belarusian Soviet Republic, a constituent part of the Soviet Union. It was a cynical deal which paid no regard to the interests of Belarusians. The Poles who were in a stronger position than the Soviets, but who had only recently regained their independence, were afraid of having a large ethnic minority within their borders and carved up for themselves only that portion of Belarus which they thought they could easily assimilate. In the words of the Polish politician Stanislaw Grabski, they "cut out the Belarusian abscess".

The great majority of Belarusians (over 70 percent) were Orthodox, with a sizable minority (about 25 percent) Roman Catholics, most of whom lived in the western regions which after 1920 came under Polish rule. The Orthodox were mainly descendants of Catholics of Byzantine rite or, as they were known, Greek Catholics or Uniates. In 1839 the Greek Catholic Church in Belarus was suppressed by the Russian authorities and forcibly incorporated into the Russian Orthodox Church. Some of the Greek Catholics, in order to safeguard their faith,  secretly managed to change their rite, thus increasing the number of Roman Catholics in Belarus. It is hard to say whether the ancestors of Ceslaus Sipovich were among them, but his parents, Vincent (1877-1957) and Jadviha, née Tychka (1890-1974) were both Catholics of Roman rite. They had eight children, of whom five – four boys and one girl, – survived, Ceslaus being the eldest. The life of a Belarusian peasant was not easy, and children were expected at an early age to start to help their parents with the farm work. Ceslaus was no exception, and from that time on, throughout his entire life, he retained a love and respect for manual labour, especially that of a farmer. According to his younger brother Peter, the decisive influence in the formation of his character was his mother. Although without any formal education, she knew how to instil in her children the love of their native language. She was endowed with a lively intellect and considerable poetical talent. Her songs and poems were learnt by others by heart, thus becoming part of local village folklore.

According to the testimony of Bishop Sipovich himself, he felt an inclination towards the priesthood from early age. The inclination became firm resolution when in November 1928 he joined the "juniorate", a kind of monastic "minor seminary" for potential candidates for religious life at the monastery of the Belarusian Marian Fathers in the nearby town of Druia (pronounced "Drooia") on the river Dzvina, which marked the frontier between the Polish Republic and Latvia. The boys continued to attend school, but were subject to monastic discipline under the supervision of a priest of the Congregation, allowances being made for their age and necessity of study.

The first year in the "juniorate" for Sipovich was spent in preparation for entering the High School (the so called "gimazjum") run by Marian Fathers. It was a fee-paying coeducational school, – a feature rather unusual at that period, – with fees varying according to whether children came from the families belonging to the Druia parish or from elsewhere. There were also non-Catholic pupils, in particular children of Druia Jewish families, but their fees were accordingly higher. Apart from day pupils there were also boarders. The boy boarders lived at the monastery under the supervision of a priest. The boarding house for girls was run by sisters of the Eucharist, a female congregation founded by Blessed George Matulewicz, of whom more below.

The idea of a Belarusian monastic foundation in Druia came from Blessed George Matulewicz (1871-1927), who was Bishop of Vilna in the years 1918-1925. A Lithuanian, conscious of his national identity, he spent most of his life in Poland, where he was highly respected as an exemplary priest, full of apostolic zeal and deeply concerned with social justice. In 1909 he secretly joined the Marian Fathers, a religious congregation founded in the 17th century in Poland, but which at that time was on the point of extinction because of the policy of the Russian government which did not allow Catholic religious orders to accept new candidates. Matulewicz became Superior General and gave the Marian Congregation a new constitution, adapted to the necessities of the time. He also established a novitiate in Fribourg in Switzerland, far from the eyes of the Russian secret police. After the retreat of the Russians during the First World War, the Marian Fathers came into the open and established their houses in Poland and Lithuania. In December 1918 Matulewicz became Bishop of Vilna. This city was a bone of contention between newly independent Lithuania and Poland, and became eventually part of the latter. The situation of Matulewicz was delicate. A Man of God, he wanted to be the pastor and father to all members of his flock, and maintained that his field of action was the Kingdom of Christ, and not human politics. Unfortunately the fact that he was Lithuanian made him suspect in the eyes of the Polish authorities and nationalistically disposed clergy. What angered them most, however, was the bishop's attitude towards Belarusians, who formed the largest part of the faithful of his diocese. Belarusians were in a difficult position. According to the Polish policy of an "ethnically-uniform state", they were due for assimilation. The Catholic Church was expected to play an important role in this process of assimilation. In the words written in 1923 by the representative of the Polish government in Vilna Province, Walerian Roman, the Catholic Church was expected to be the most powerful factor "in polonising the local population with hitherto undefined national identity". Matulewicz could not permit such a blatant use of the Church for political ends. But he could do little to prevent it. His efforts to satisfy the legitimate religious demands of Belarusians brought accusations of encouraging "Belarusian nationalism".The establishment of a strong Belarusian religious centre in the form of a House of Belarusian Marian Fathers seemed to be the best solution in the circumstances. This was done in May 1924 in Druia. The first superior was Father Andrew Tsikota (1891-1952), an exemplary priest and able administrator. He was soon joined by other Belarusian priests, among them Father Joseph Hermanovich (1890-1978), a well known Belarusian poet and the favourite teacher of Ceslaus Sipovich. Marian Fathers were also in charge of the Druia parish, which covered several neigbouring villages and hamlets. The monastic church of the Holy Trinity served as the parish church. At the beginning of 1930 the parish had 5024 parishioners, of which 3274 were Belarusians. The remaining 1754 comprised 206 members of the Polish frontier guard unit, 34 Lithuanians, 3 Latvians, 2 Russians and 1509 Poles (including 1163 polonised Belarusians)[1].

Despite the fact that the overhelming majority of the faithful in the Druia parish were Belarusians, the Marian Fathers had to exercise considerable moderation in their work, hoping thereby not to antagonise the authorities. Thus schooling in their high school was conducted in Polish, and Belarusian was not even taught as a subject. In fact pupils were forbidden to speak among themselves in Belarusian during the breaks. Similarly, in the parish church two out of three sermons every Sunday were preached in Polish, and only one, at vespers, in Belarusian. At the same time the fathers never made any secret of the fact that they were Belarusians; they  spoke Belarusian among themselves and with the faithful, and used that language to teach the catechism to peasant children who in any case did not understand Polish. But even this discreet attitude failed to placate the Polish civil and ecclesiastical authorities. The Belarusian Fathers were subjected to all kinds of harassment, unfounded accusations and attacks in the Polish press. The situation deteriorated after 1925, when Poland signed a concordat (treaty) with the Holy See. According to the terms of the concordat the episcopal see of Vilna was raised to the dignity of archbishopric and became the centre of the new metroplitan province. In practice this meant that in the Polish-Lithuanian quarrel about Vilna the Holy See recognised the claims of the former. The position of Bishop Matulewicz became untenable. In July of that year he tendered his resignation and was replaced eventually in 1926 by Romuald Jalbrzykowski (1876-1955), a Pole who showed neither sympathy with, nor understanding of, the needs of Belarusian faithful in his diocese. The Belarusian fathers in Druia soon began to feel the change. Their offer in 1926 to extend their pastoral work was rejected. In 1929 Jalbrzykowski appointed a special commission to investigate their various alleged misdeeds, including their alleged attempted poisoning of Jozef Borodzicz, a Polish priest, originally from the diocese of Vilna, but since 1912 belonging to the Italian diocese of Ventimiglia and residing in San Remo. Every summer he spent his "holidays" in the Vilna diocese where, with the tacit consent of civil and ecclesiastical authorities, he conducted a campaign in defence of "Polish borderlands" which according to him were in peril. As a special target he singled out the Belarusian Marian Fathers in Druia. In June 1929 he made an attempt, allegedly with the permission of Archbishop Jalbrzykowski, to start building a new church in Druia in opposition to the already existing parish church. Pressed by Tsikota, Jalbrzykowski had to admit in writing that he had given no permission to Borodzicz, and ordered the latter to leave Druia immediately. At the same time, however, he appointed a commission to investigate Borodzicz's accusations against the Marian Fathers. The commission was compelled to concede their absurdity, but the true reason for all this disagreeable affair was made manifest by the subsequent demand by Jalbrzykowski that Druia should divest itself of its Belarusian character and admit two Polish priests. Father Andrew Tsikota, in his comments to the Superior General of the Congregation of Marian Fathers on the findings of the commission, put it succinctly when he said: "The only crime, which we freely acknowledge, is that we are Belarusians". In 1930 Belarusian sermons in the Druia church were abandoned under threat of violence on the part of fanatical Polish nationalists. The decision to stop preaching in Belarusian was praised by Jalbrzykowski, as well as by the Polish Marian Father, Kazimierz Bronikowski, who early in 1930 was sent to Druia by the Superior General Peter Buchys "to investigate the nationalism of the Druia Marian fathers, which nationalism is said to disturb the peace of Druia parishioners"[2]. In 1929 Father Vitalis Khamionak was dismissed from the post of teacher of religion in the Druia schools, and in his place was appointed a Polish diocesan priest, who, in the words of Bronikowski, "began to undo the Belarusian work of Father Vitalis by telling the children stories with religious content from Polish history".

About the same time the Belarusian Marian community in Druia had been weakened by the departure of some of its members for missionary work among Russians in Harbin in Manchuria. They were victims of the then fashionable policy of "conversion of Russia". According to its proponents, after the fall of Communism in the Soviet Union (in which they did not doubt) the Russian Orthodox Church would be weak and demoralised. This would present a unique opportunity for the Catholic Church to extend her frontiers eastwards right to the heart of Russia. The most prominent exponent of this idea was Bishop Michel d'Herbigny, a learned French Jesuit, Rector of the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome, who knew how to gain the confidence of the Pope Pius XI. In 1925 a special Commission "Pro Russia" was established, first as part of the Congregation for Eastern Churches, and from 1930 as an independent department of the Vatican, directly responsible to the Pope. Like a new Napoleon, d'Herbigny was preparing the spiritual conquest of Russia by amassing his troops on the borders of the Soviet Union. One such bridgehead was the Jesuit House in Albertyn in Western Belarus which was then under Polish rule. At the same time the affairs of the Eastern (Byzantine) rite in Western Belarus were placed under the jurisdiction of the Commission "Pro Russia". This fact dismayed Belarusians who saw their hopes for a revival of their Greek Catholic Church dashed. It also antagonised Poles who considered Belarus to be their "sphere of influence" and did not take kindly to the idea of Belarusians being russified by... the Vatican.

Another place which attracted the attention of Commission "Pro Russia" was Harbin, the capital city of the Chinese province of Manchuria. Out of a population of half a million nearly one third were Russians, mostly refugees from the Communist regime in their country. This was the largest compact Russian community outside Russia. The Russian Orthodox Church was well organised, with one archbishop, two bishops and some 250 priests. For d'Herbigny it must have seemed the ideal place to start missionary efforts.

Matulewicz died early in 1927 and was succeeded as Superior General of Marian Fathers by his friend and companion Francis Buchys (1872-1951). A Lithuanian, he spent many years before the First World War in St Petersburg, first as a student and later as professor of Fundamental Theology and Vice-Rector of the Catholic Theological Academy. It was there that he became attracted to the idea of "conversion of Russia". To the end of his life he was unwilling to concede that Belarusians were a separate nation. On 11 December 1930 in the report to d'Herbigny of his conversation with the secretary of the Polish embassy to the Holy See he wrote that "White Russians (i.e. Belarusians) and Little Russians (i.e. Ukrainians) are all Russians: the (Russian) emperors of old confirmed this in the enumeration of their titles"[3]. With ideas of this kind it was almost inevitable for him to become a firm supporter of the Commission "Pro Russia". He sensed in d'Herbigny a kindred spirit, while the latter found it convenient to use him by entrusting him with various tasks to accomplish. It did not take much time for him to become a d'Herbigny man. On 18 April 1929 he wrote to Father Abrantovich: "Father Bishop d'Herbigny is really favourably disposed towards you, Druia, and towards me. In the present circumstances, considering our actual needs, this cannot be a matter of indifference to us. In all circumstances he is a dignitary worthy of respect  and a valiant worker for a great cause". Abrantovich, who was at that time already in Harbin, perhaps could have done with a slightly less favourable disposition from this "dignitary worthy of respect"... One of the first acts of d'Herbigny in 1930, after the Commission "Pro Russia" had become an independent department in the Vatican, was the procurement of episcopal dignity of Byzantine rite for his protegé, and his appointment as Apostolic Visitor for Russians in Western Europe. It was obviously a reward for services rendered, for, as the subsequent events showed, there was no need for such an appointment. Buchys, who was born and brought up in the Roman rite, was nearly 60 years old at the time of his consecration. Father Cyril Korolevski, a keen observer of the Vatican Ostpolitik, wrote about this new Byzantine rite bishop, who, incidentally, in order not to frighten the Orthodox Russians, began to use his second name, Peter, instead of the Latin Francis: "To provide greater solemnity in the divine service... d'Herbigny had Father Peter Buchys appointed Titular Bishop of Olympos... He scarcely knew the Byzantine liturgy, but d'Herbigny was sure that he would set out to it resolutely... He really remained a Roman Catholic in his mentality and practiced the 'biritual' system. He could never get accustomed to his new functions which were almost purely ornamental – and almost stopped exercising them"[4].

Long before these events took place, on 6 April 1927 Buchys wrote to the Commission "Pro Russia", – or rather to the Oriental Congregation in Rome, of which the commission then formed part, – stating that when Matulewicz was in Vilna, he "became convinced that our Belarusian members are a more apt instrument for the conversion of Russians than our brethren of any other nationality[5] . For this reason, although our Congregation already had in Poland a novitiate in Rasna, Archbishop Matulewicz, with the gracious consent of the Holy See, established in Druia, which is situated in the archdiocese of Vilna, another novitiate to prepare Belarusians for their special task". This statement raises the question whether Matulewicz was completely sincere with the Belarusians in regard to the aims of Druia. In his letter of 8 June 1923 to the Holy See, requesting permission to establish in Druia a Marian monastery and novitiate "for Belarusians, who in their majority are schismatics and till now have had no religious (institutions) of their own"[6], there is no mention of Russia or a special role for Druia in converting that country. On the other hand, on 19 April 1926 he wrote to the Polish Marian Father W. Jakowski: "With regard to the Belarusian question there is no need to worry. Our people (i.e. Belarusian Marian Fathers – A.N.) will surely do no harm to Poland. They are getting ready for mission work in Russia, and only wait for the opportune moment... Only a few of them will remain in Poland to take care of the parish and to prepare candidates for Russia"[7]. As far as Buchys was concerned, he had no doubts about the real aims for which Druia was established. On 17 August 1928 Fabian Abrantovich, the first of the Druia Fathers to be sent to Manchuria, wrote from Rome to Tsikota: "According to George (Matulewicz – A.N.) of blessed memory, Russia will not be converted by Poland or Lithuania, but by Belarus, i.e. Druia, which was founded by him specially for this purpose. Druia must justify his hopes, otherwise its existence has no sense, it will be closed... If we resisted and refused to go, that would be the end of us. That is roughly what I was told by Father General (Buchys – A.N.) before his departure...". A few years later, if one believes Buchys, it was no longer Matulewicz, but the Pope himself who set out the aims for Druia. In 1932 Tsikota asked Buchys that one of Druia clerics studying at the Russian College in Rome should be ordained in the Roman, and not the Byzantine rite. Buchys's answer on 13 April 1932 was quick and unequivocal: "Thomas Padziava with your consent was accepted in the Russian college on condition, that after completing his studies he would work for the conversion of Russians... Your request was contrary to the scope set out by the Holy Father for the Druia monastery". According to hisbiographers, d'Herbigny was adept in passing off his own wishes as those of the Pope. It looks like Buchys was not slow in adopting the methods of his protector.

Coming back to the year 1927, a little more than a month after he wrote his letter, Buchys received an an swer from the Oriental Congregation. In it he was asked to give his opinion on the suitability of Father Fabian Abrantovich, who was then a novice at Druia, for the post of "prelate for Russians of Byzantine Rite in Harbin, outside Poland".

Father Fabian Abrantovich (1884-1946) was considered one of the most prominent Belarusian priests of his time. Born in Navahradak which then belonged to the diocese of Minsk, he was educated in the Seminary and Imperial Catholic Theological Academy in Petersburg, and then Louvain University, where he obtained his doctor's degree in Philosophy. In 1915 he became a teacher in the Catholic Seminary in Petersburg and in 1918 – rector of the Seminary in Minsk until it was closed by the Communists in 1920. Incidentally, one of the teachers in the Minsk Seminary was Fr Tsikota, the future superior of Druia. After 1920 Abrantovich lived first in Navahradak and then in Pinsk. In 1925 Pinsk became the centre of a new diocese, comprising roughly those parts of Minsk diocese which fell within borders of the Polish state. It was there that he received for the first time the proposal to go to Harbin. By that time Abrantovich realised that there was no future for him in Poland. On the other hand the idea of leaving Belarus and going to Manchuria, and in particular abandoning the Roman rite, in which he was born and brought up, did not appeal to him. Thus it may be that the wish to avoid being sent to Harbin was one of the factors which made him decide to join the Marian Fathers in Druia. He reckoned without Buchys. In August 1927 Abrantovich finished his novitiate, and in December was summoned to the Vatican Nunciature in Warsaw, where the proposal of going to Harbin was renewed. He was given a few months to settle his affairs, and in August 1928 was on his way to China. Incidentally it was generally assumed that Abrantovich, as head of the only Catholic "Ordinariat" (i.e. diocese) for Russians, would become a bishop. Instead, he received the grand but meaningless title of archimandrite, a kind of honorary abbot. When two years later Buchys became a bishop, the event did not pass unnoticed among Belarusians. Father Adam Stankievich wrote on 15 July 1930 to Father Uladyslau Talochka: "It would be interesting to know what will Buchys do now. Abrantovich probably did not suspect that he had a rival in his (i.e. Buchys's – A.N.) person". And he sums up the whole affair with a Russian proverb, which may be roughly translated as: "They gave me away in marriage without my knowing it; I was not even present".

At the end of 1927 there were seven priests in Druia, of whom one, Francis Charniauski, was still a novice. As soon as the news of Abrantovich's appointment to Harbin became known, he left Druia, not wishing, as he explained later, to finish up there too. In 1929 two clerics from Druia were sent to the newly opened Russian College in Rome, and three more in the following year. They were destined for work among Russians, but Druia was obliged to pay for their education. Thus Harbin became a heavy burden for Druia, preventing it from developing work among Belarusians. What had happened was exactly what Tsikota feared when he wrote on 28 July 1928 to Abrantovich: "If there (i.e. in Harbin – A.N.) must be a Marian establishment supported by Druia – and that is what the Poles think, for I cannot understand otherwise the words spoken to me by His Excellency the Archbishop of Vilna (i.e. Jalbrzykowski – A.N.), 'Offer yourselves for the conversion of Russia', – then I think that we are not obliged to make such a sacrifice, and God does not require it from us". Tsikota's suspicions that the Poles were among those responsible for sending Abrantovich away to Harbin, was indirectly confirmed by Buchys who in his letter of 18 April 1929 to the latter wrote: "Among the discontented was one who wished to send the Dear Father (i.e. Abrantovich – A.N.) as far as possible from Druia, and for this reason he supported your candidature". It is not fanciful to suppose that the "discontented one" was none other than Archbishop Jalbrzykowski.

The Poles had little sympathy with the aims and methods of the Commission "Pro Russia". However, Harbin presented them with an opportunity to remove some troublesome Belarusian priests who might prove an obstacle to their policy of poloning Belarusian Catholics.

The Commission "Pro Russia" itself had no interest in, or understanding of, the particular spiritual needs of Belarusians, and regarded them only as useful tools for the "conversion" of Russia. This was felt by many Belarusian priests who were concerned about the religious state of their people. One of them, Kazimier Kulak, wrote on 15 December 1931 to Buchys: "For the Union action to succeed it is essential that those who are supposed to benefit from this action, i.e. Belarusians and Ukrainians, had confidence in it. In the meantime this confidence is diminishing every day, and not because of the fear of polonisation and latinisation on the part of the Poles, but of russification from... Rome!... A group of well known Belarusian priests – 5 or 7 persons – were thinking of adopting the Eastern rite, joining one of the religious congregations – Basilians or Marians, – and starting together the work for the Union in our country. However, if there is no action Pro Alborussia, but only Pro Russia, then why bother? To be sent to convert the Chinese, while our own people are perishing under the onslaught of sects and atheism?"

Ironically, early in December 1927 the Druia Fathers were ready to start work in the Byzantine rite with the view of restoring the Greek-Catholic Church in Belarus. Three priests were chosen initially for this project, namely Abrantovich, Charniauski (after he had finished his novitiate) and Hermanovich. With the appointment of Abrantovich to Harbin and the resignation of Charniauski, the project had to be abandoned. Tsikota wrote to Buchys on 7 January 1928: "This affair is very painful for our monastery and for the Church in our country. We are so few, and even what we have is taken away from us... There remains nothing for us, except getting ready for this task (i.e. Union work in Belarus – A.N.) in the future, leaving to the Most High and Good God, when it would please Him to call from among us other workers to His harvest".

It can be said that the events of 1928 marked the beginning of the decline of Druia. This, however, was not evident at the time to a 14-year-old boy who knew nothing about the politics and machinations behind the scenes. He might even have felt a sense of pride that it was Druia which had been chosen to play such an important part in the work of "conversion of Russia". At the same time the dignified deportment of the Belarusian Marian fathers in the face of Polish political pressure, and their dedication to their pastoral work seemed only to strengthen his affection and respect for them.

Life in the juniorate was not easy. Rise at 4 a.m., Mass, breakfast, school from 6.30 to 12.30, lunch, short recreation with manual work, preparation of lessons, supper, recreation, evening prayers and bed at 7.45 p.m. The conditions of life were spartan. The church was unheated and freezing cold in winter. Food was plentiful but simple. There was usually buckwheat porridge and tea for breakfast; lunch consisted of two courses, with dessert only on great feasts. After lunch recreation was usually spent in manual work such as chopping wood for heating in winter. There was not much free time, but boys did not seem to mind: most of them came from peasant families and were used to hard work.

On the whole, according to Sipovich, despite the hardships it was a happy time. This was to a large extent due to Father Joseph Hermanovich, a priest with a merry twinkle in his eyes. He joined the Marian Fathers in 1924, after ten years of pastoral experience in various parishes of the Vilna diocese, where he encountered strong opposition from the Polish clergy when he tried to preach in Belarusian and establish Belarusian schools. A man of friendly disposition and simplicity, he could be hard and uncompromising in defending the principles in which he believed, in particular when it came to the question of the legitimate rights of the Belarusian people. Hermanovich was a born teacher who, in the words of Ceslaus Sipovich, "knew how to educate boys, excite their interest, and especially how to make them love their native tongue"[8]. He was also a talented poet and writer, signing his works with the pen-name "Vintsuk Advazhny" or just the initials "V. A.". It was under these intials that his book of poetry, Belaruskiia tsymbaly (Belarusian Dulcimer) appeared in Vilna in 1933. In the preface to the book his great friend, Father Adam Stankievich, wrote: "It appears that V. A. is the only Belarusian writer who today, however much he might want to, cannot reveal his own name, and must hide under the above initials. Such are the socio-political circumstances in which we live"[9]. The circumstances referred to were the fact that many of Fr Hermanovich's poems had a strong Belarusian patriotic character and might have been used by Polish nationalists against Druia, had they known that the author was a member of that community. The second reason was that most of the poems were initially published in the newspaper Belaruskaia Krynitsa. Founded by Catholic priests, but run by laymen, it incurred the displeasure of Archbishop Jalbrzykowski for its independent Belarusian character, the advocacy of closer cooperation with the Orthodox and social justice. In 1928 he forbade the faithful to read the paper, and the priests to write to, or in any way to cooperate with it on the grounds that the paper promoted religious indifferentism and... communism. The order was ignored by the faithful, but the priests were forced to comply, at least outwardly, for the fear of being suspended a divinis. Some of the more enterprising among them found a way round this senseless and unjust prohibition.

The years spent in Druia in close contact with Father Hermanovich were pobably the most formative period in the life of Ceslaus Sipovich. In 1932 this period ended abruptly when Father Hermanovich left Druia for Harbin on the orders of Buchys. More than thirty years later Bishop Sipovich remembered the moment of departure of his beloved teacher: "After so many years I cannot forget the sad and moving moment when we said goodbye to dear Father Joseph in Druia... Our hearts ached not only because of the departure of a man dear to us, who for many of us had become asecond father, but also because our country was losing another priest and patriot, with no one to take his place"[10].

On the occasion of his departure the Belarusian Catholic paper Chryscijanskaja dumka  (Christian Thought) expressed the feelings of all Belarusian Catholics when it wrote: "On 14 May this year... another Marian father, Joseph Hermanovich, the prominent Belarusian priest and writer, left Druia for Harbin. Many well known Belarusians, as well as students, came to the railway station in Vilna to say good bye to Fr J. H. The parting was doubly sad: firstly because the journey is long and dangerous; and secondly because Fr J. H. was leaving for missions in a faraway country at the time when there is much missionary work to be done in Belarus which has been neglected for centuries"[11]. Father Hermanovich was accompanied to Harbin by a lay brother, Anthony Aniskovich.

The year 1932 marked another crisis in Druia: out of five students sent to the Russicum in Rome, three abandoned their studies and left Druia in an atmosphere of recriminations and mutual accusations. Extreme caution must be exercised in drawing any conclusions in such cases, but the general impression is that the main reason was the breakdown of communications between the young people and the superior, Father Andrew Tsikota.

The complex figure of Tsikota, the first Belarusian Marian Father, is central to the whole history of Druia. Opinions about him are divided. Most of them are positive. There even are some people who consider him to be the most faithful follower of blessed George Matulewicz. He was a man of unshakeable faith and sincere piety, a brilliant preacher and speaker, able organiser and administrator. According to eyewitnesses, he had an astonishing capacity for hard work, never wasted time, and slept no more than 4 hours a night. At table he showed great moderation, and consequently was thinner than the other fathers. But there are also some disturbing features. Dr Joseph Malecki, who was a boarder in Druia in 1920s, wrote that Tsikota always knew everything about the boys – boarders and members of the juniorate, – and was tireless in discovering their smallest transgressions. Father Thomas Padziava, who was one of the first pupils in Druia and entered the novitiate in 1926, in his reminiscences about Father Tsikota is more explicit. According to him, Tsikota "was always exactly informed, one does not know how and by whom, about the whereabouts of each pupil and what was he doing there. He always appeared when he was least expected but where he was needed to forestall a dangerous situation. No boy succeded in writing a letter to a girl, or receive one from her, without such a 'document' falling immediately in the hands of Father Andrew. On entering the room he used to go directly the the place where this unfortunate work of youthful imagination was hidden, as if he had put it there himself. He reached unerringly to the pocket which contained the love letter"[12]. Father Padziava writes about it approvingly, but to an outside observer it may suggest something far from admirable... It seems that boys from poor families, who could not afford school fees, were required instead to do work in the monastery. Malecki was one such boy. He writes: "His (i.e. Tsikota's – A.N.) attitude towards me was not the most friendly, because he thought that I was not working hard enough, while in my opinion I was working pretty hard; he often threatened me with demands for payment for school, which for me was not easy". Later Malecki wrote that he was able to finish school only thanks to the help of Father Hermanovich.

The first two decades of the 20th century were a period of Belarusian national revival, both political and cultural. The focal point was the newspaper Nasha  Niva which appeared in Vilna from 1906 till 1915, when it fell victim of the First World War hostilities and was closed. The appearance of the great poets and writers, such as Ianka Kupala, Iakub Kolas, Maksim Bahdanovich, Ales Harun, Iadvihin Sh., and many other writers lead to the rapid development of modern Belarusian literary language. This process culminated in the appearance in 1918 of the first Belarusian Grammar, by B. Tarashkevich. It was followed in 1920 by Maksim Haretski's History of Belarusian Literature which even npw retains iits value. Ten years earlier, in 1910, Vatslau Lastouski published his History of Belarus.

Belarusian Catholics, and in particular Catholic priests, played an important part in the Belarusian national revival. Of course, their primary concern was to defend the right of Belarusians, in the face of strong opposition from the Polish clergy, to hear the Message of Salvation in their native tongue. But there were also among them talented poets and writers. Such were Jan Siemashkievich (writing under the pen-name Janka Bylina), Alexander Astramovich (Andrej Ziaziula), Ildefons Bobich (Piotra Prosty) and the greatest of them all, Constantine Stepovich (Kazimier Svajak). Tsikota, while student of the Catholic Theological Academy in St Petersbourg in 1913-17, was a member of the Belarusian circle there alongside Adam Stankievich, Vincent Hadleuski, Anthony Niemantsevich, Viktar Shutovich, Michael Piatrouski and others. Some of them became known in 1920s and 30s for their contribution not only to religious but also to general national life. Unlike them, Tsikota seemed to keep in mind always article 180 of the Marian Constitution which forbids members "to be involved in any administrative, political or national activities... They must stand apart from and above all political and party affairs, and their concern must be the cause of Christ and the Catholic Church". However, in religious matters he was not slow to make his voice heard. Thus his signature figures under the letter of Belarusian priests of 18 May 1925 to the Conference of Polish Bishops on the problems of pastoral care of Belarusian Catholics in the Polish Republic. In November 1926 Tsikota, on behalf of all Druia fathers, presented a Memorandum to the Union Conference of Polish bishops of the Eastern provinces, outlining a plan for pastoral and missionary work among Belarusian population. The plan was rejected by all bishops present. As years went by, his time was taken more and more by the affairs of Druia and, later, the whole Marian Congregation. Consequently less was heard about him in the Belarusian community. It seems therefore that Tsikota's biographer Thomas Padziava was unfair to those whom he calls "Belarusian nationalists", who, according to him "formed a wall of silence around the person of Father Andrew"[13], apparently because Tsikota founded in Druia a Polish, and not Belarusian, school. Having said that, it must be stated that the Congregation of Marian Fathers was Tsikota's spiritual home. The following Christmas greeting to Abrantovich, written on 15 December 1937, sheds interesting light on his frame of mind: "I pray God that the monastic vows which were born together with Christ in the manger in Bethlehem, may become for you the source of light, strength and joy, and that you may find in them one hundred times more than in what you have left in the world". This loyalty to the Marian Congregation sometimes seemed to influence his judgements. Thus on 8 January 1928 he wrote to Buchys about Charniauski, who left Druia without finishing his novitiate: "Charniauski abandoned the novitiate of his own accord. Monastic life would be difficult for him. He lacks the spirit of piety, obedience, modesty; is attracted to secular life and does not show due caution when talking with women". It seems that all these flaws in Charniauski's character were suddenly discovered after he had decided to leave the Marian Congregation: only a few weeks earlier he had been proposed for an important and responsible job. Incidentally Father Charniauski died in 1979 in the United States at the ripe age of 85, respected and loved by all who knew him and experienced his goodness and generosity.

In short, Andrew Tsikota was a strong character who often inspired respect and admiration, but perhaps lacked the warmth of Hermanovich. His single-mindedness must have made it difficult for many people to get on with him.

Ceslaus Sipovich retained a strong admiration for Tsikota till the end of his life. It was his dream to write a book about him, for which he was collecting material for years. It may well be that his unquestioning loyalty to the Congregation of Marian Fathers, which sometimes clouded his generally sound judgments, was due to Tsikota's influence. Perhaps it was fortunate that in 1928, when Sipovich joined the juniorate, the man in charge of the education of youth was not Tsikota, but Hermanovich.

On 21 July 1933 at the General Chapter of Marian Congregation in Rome Tsikota was elected Superior General for the next six years. In normal circumstances Buchys would have been reelected for a second term, but he asked to be excused on the grounds that he would like to give more time to his work in the Commission "Pro Russia". Two months later, in October 1933, d'Herbigny fell into disgrace and was banned from Rome for the rest of his life. Buchys at that time was in the United States, and it seems that no one took the trouble to inform him about what had happened. Deprived of his protector, he became something of an embarassment: no one knew what to do with him. After six years in the wilderness, in 1939 he was again elected Superior General of the Marian Fathers and remained in this post almost to his death in 1951.

After the fall of d'Herbigny, the Commission "Pro Russia" was stripped of practically all its powers and became a department of the Secretariat of State dealing only with the Roman (Latin) rite Catholics in the Soviet Union, while the affairs of Catholics of the Byzantine and other Eastern rites throughout the world were entrusted to the competence of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches.

While not denying Tsikota's outstanding qualities as organiser and administrator, his election seemed to have been a compromise between Poles and Lithuanians, neither of whom wished to see a member of the other group at the head of their Congregation. For the Poles the election of Tsikota presented an additional advantage, because as Superior General he had to reside in Rome. Thus by being promoted to the high post he was effectively removed from Druia. After his departure there remained in Druia only three priests, none of whom was considered capable to be the superior. A Polish Marian Father, Wladyslaw Lysik, was appointed to this post. Archbishop Jalbrzykowski had his way at last.

All these momentous events did not at first affect Ceslaus Sipovich who interrupted his studies for one year and on 1 August 1933, having "put off all worldly care", entered the novitiate of Marian Fathers. On 15 August 1934 he made his first monastic vows and then returned for another year to school to finish his secondary education. In autumn 1935 he was ready to begin his philosophical and theological studies in preparation for the priesthood. Thus began a new chapter in his life.

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