13. The Whole World His Parish

On Wednesday 13 November 1960 there was a Pontifical Divine Liturgy at St Peter's Basilica in the presence of the Holy Father to mark the feast of St John Chrysostom (according to the Gregorian calendar) and the begining of the work of the Preparatory Commission for the Eastern Churches for the forthcoming General Council. The first meeting of the Commission took place on Thursday 14 November. On 15 November Bishop Sipovich was elected head of its Section for Union. During the year that followed various aspects of the relations between Catholic Eastern Churches and those not in communion with the Holy See were considered, with the view of achieving the union of all in One Holy Church of Christ. The subject studied were: The obstacles encountered in the work for Union; Methods employed in Union work; The Rites in the Church; The place of Patriarchs; Doctrinal characteristics of various Eastern Christian Churches not in Union with the Holy See etc. The conclusions were to be later presented for the consideration of the Fathers of the Ecumenical Council who would then publish relevant decrees.

As time went on Bishop Sipovich became more and more involved in the preparatary work for the Council. Apart from his own, he took active part in the work of the Pastoral section. In 1962, when the Council was already in session, he was appointed member of the Commission for the Religious (i.e. monastic foundations).

Important as the preparatory work for the Council was, Bishop Sipovich never forgot that he was a Belarusian bishop for Belarusians. This was incidentally stated in a recommendatory letter of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches in which he was described as "Most Excellent Lord Father D. Ceslaus Sipovich, Titular Bishop of Mariamme, to whom was entrusted direction of the apostolate among the Belarusian faithful of Byzantine rite who reside outside their native country"[39]. The letter, signed by Cardinal Cicognani and Father Coussa, was dated 29 July 1960, i.e. one week before Father Sipovich's episcopal consecration.

Evidently the expression "direction of the apostolate" was too vague, and Bishop Sipovich asked the Oriental Congregation to give him more detailed instruction with regard to his powers and duties. On 25 November 1960 he received an answer from the Congregation, which set out the following points:

"1. Your Excellency must visit your exiled countrymen annually, then report back to the Sacred Congregation with suggestions as  to what is to be done to improve  their spiritual and temporal situation;

2. During such visits Your Excelency will celebrate all offices, public and private, which you may be asked to perform, or feels to be necessary, making also timely exhortations and instructions;

3. With regard to acts requiring jurisdiction in the strict sense (establishing of parishes, opening of seminaries, celebration of marriages, priestly ordinations...) Your Excellency must request the jurisdiction from the local ordinary, or from this Sacred Congregation;

4. Finally Your Excellency will hold yourself at the disposal of this Sacred Congregation for any eventuality".

As can be seen from the above, the real powers of Bishop Sipovich were fairly restricted, in most cases they did not arise from his office but were delegated to him by a local bishop or the Oriental Congregation. Thus much depended on his tact and ability to get on with the church authorities.

The question of Bishop Sipovich's residence was settled in such a way that part of the year he would spend in Rome, and another part in London. The Oriental Congregation would have preferred for him to reside in Rome all the time, but eventually they agreed to the compromise, proposed by Bishop Sipovich who was attached to Marian House. As it proved, the arrangement worked out very well. The Archbishop of Westminster was at that time Cardinal William Godfrey. In 1947, when Sipovich came to England, he was Apostolic delegate to Great Britain. Thus the two men knew each other well, and when Bishop Sipovich paid a visit to Cardinal Godfrey on 21 October 1960, it was a meeting of old friends. There was no need to wait long for the results. When Father Haroshka wrote to the Westminster Curia for permission to resume the publication of the journal Bozhym shliakham in London, he received the answer that there was no objection on their part, provided he had the approval of Bishop Sipovich. Another case was the project of a boarding house for Belarusian boys. It so happened that at that time a house at 41 Holden Road, just across the street from Marian House, was up for sale. All the Belarusian priests then in London – Haroshka, Hermanovich and Nadson – were unanimous in suggesting that the house should be bought by the Belarussian Mission with the view of establishing there a boarding house for boys of Belarusian parentage. The boys would attend local English Catholic schools, but would live in the house in a Belarusian atmosphere and learn the language and culture of the country of their origin. Bishop Sipovich liked the idea and presented it to the Westminster Curia and the Oriental Congregation. Westminster had no objections, while the Oriental Congregation, perhaps as a present to Bishop Sipovich on the occasion of his consecration, gave a grant of the princely sum of ?10,000 for the purchase. The House was bought early in 1961 and was named "Saint Cyril's House" in honour of the 12th-century Belarusian saint Cyril, Bishop of Turau. There was some confusion about the name in the correspondence with the Oriental Congregation which for some unknown reason insisted on calling the newly acquired property "Marian House"...

After his consecration Bishop Sipovich could no longer remain rector of the Belarusian Catholic Mission in London. This was made clear to him by Father Coussa on  6 October 1960. With the consent of the Oriental Congregation Father Haroshka was appointed in his place.

There remained also the question of Bishop Sipovich's title. On 16 September 1960 Bishop Sloskans wrote to the Oriental Congregation, asking to be relieved from the office of Apostolic Visitor for Belarusians on the grounds that Belarusians now had their own bishop. But the Oriental Congregation was not in a hurry to appoint a successor. As late as 25 October 1961 the new head of the Oriental Congregation, Archbishop Coussa (he had become an archbishop in February that year), who was a great authority on canon law, explained to Bishop Sipovich that if he resided in Rome permanently, it would be easier to give him the Visitor's title. In fact among Bishop Sipovich's papers there is no document of his appointment as Apostolic Visitor. For the first time he was called so in the document of the Vatican Secretariat of State of 9 November 1963, appointing him Consultant of the Oriental Congregation. But by then Bishop Sipovich was already Superior General of Marian Fathers and as such permanently resident in Rome. In the official publication of the Oriental Congregation, "Oriente Cattolico" (Vatican 1974, p.180), Bishop Sipovich is described as "Visitatore delegato della Sacra Congregazione per le Chiese Orientali per l'assistenza dei fedeli Belorussi all'estero" (Visitor delegate of the Sacred Congregation for the Eastern Churches for assistance to the Belarusian faithful abroad). The Romanian Bishop Basil Cristea and the Russian Andrew Katkov are described in a similar manner.

Whatever the "job description", Bishop Sipovich took seriously his obligations to visit Belarusian communities throughout the world as instructed by the Oriental Congregation. This required careful planning so as not to clash with his other duties, such as participation in successive sessions in Rome of the Preparatory Commission for the Ecumenical Council. Thus in 1961 on 14-15 January the Bishop was in Nottingham, where he paid a visit to the Bishop of Nottingham, celebrated the Pontifical Liturgy and met members of the local Belarusian community. On 28-29 January he visited Manchester. On 17 February he was on his way to Rome (by train) to take part in the session of the Preparatory Commision. In March he was in Northern France and Belgium, only to return on 16 April to Rome for another session of the Commission; then back in London to settle the question of the proposed boarding house for boys, the pastoral centre in Nottingham etc. On 2-5 June Bishop took part in a "study weekend" at Spode House, organised by the "Eastern Churches Quarterly Group" on the Ecumenical Council, after which he made a brief visit in Nottingham. On 19 June the Bishop was back in Rome for the session of the Commission, but just a few days later, on 28 June he flew together with Mgr Tatrarynovich via Paris and New York to Chicago for the consecration of the Belarusian Greek Catholic church of Christ the Redeemer. The Belarusian Greek Catholic community in Chicago which was founded in 1955, began to develop rapidly after 1958, when Father Uladzimir Tarasevitch, having completed his studies, came back from Rome, and was put in charge of it in place of his uncle, Father John Chrysostom. On 15 December 1959 a building at 3017 Fullerton Avenue was acquired. It was to become  the Belarusian church of Christ the Redeemer, with Father Uladzimir as its first resident pastor. The consecration of the first Belarusian Greek Catholic church in the New World by the first Belarusian Greek Catholic Bishop took place on 2 July in the presence of the Archbishop of Chicago, Cardinal Albert Meyer and a huge gathering of Belarusians from all over United States and Canada. After Chicago Bishop Sipovich visited Belarusian communities in New York and other American cities. On 1 August he flew from New York via London  to Frankfurt and from there by train to Koenigstein for the annual congress "Kirche in Not (The Church in Need)", during which a reunion of Belarusian priests took place. Then back to London, where on 7 September he was visited by his younger brother Peter from Poland, whom he had not seen for 23 years. On 27 September Bishop Sipovich was again in Rome for the session of a Preparatory Commission. After a short visit to Munich on 14-16 October at the invitation of the local Belarusian community to mark the first anniversary of his episcopal consecration in that city, he returned to Rome to report to the Oriental Congregation on the results of his  travels. On 1 November he was in London. On 9-10 December he visited the Belarusian community in Birmingham, and on 13-14 January 1962 – in Bradford, thus completing the round of visits of major Belarusian communities in England.

The years that followed had brought new commitments on top of the old ones.

Incidentally, in June 1961, before going to the United States with Bishop Sipovich, Father Tatarynovich became a "Monsignor": on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of his priestly ordination he was named Domestic Prelate of His Holiness. A few months later he was appointed Belarusian representative on the Pontifical Council for Emigrants. Thus another request of the 1960 Reunion of Belarusian priests was granted.

There were also significant changes in the Oriental Congregation. In September 1960 Mgr Giuseppe Moioli, who was in charge of Belarusian affairs, was appointed Inter-Nunzio to Ethiopia and went there after being consecrated bishop by Pope John XXIII himself. While rejoicing in his elevation, Bishop Sipovich was sad to lose an old and trusted friend who had done much to help Belarusians. In August 1961 Cardinal Cicognani became the Secretary of State, and his place at the Oriental Congregation was taken by Father Acacius Coussa who some six months earlier had been raised to the dignity of an archbishop.

The greatest difficulty in organising pastoral care for Belarusians in different countries was the shortage of priests. Sadly among the few priests that there were, some presented serious problems. One of these was John Sadouski who in 1948 was received into the Church and as a candidate for Marian Congregation by Father Sipovich. In 1949 he went to Rome where, after his novitiate, he began his studies in preparation for priesthood. In 1953 he left the Marian Congregation. Bishop Sloskans admitted him as a cleric of the Diocese of Minsk and found him a place at the French College in Rome. Ordained priest in 1955, Sadouski persuaded Sloskans to let him continue his studies to gain higher qualifications. Five years on, in 1960, and there was no end in sight of Sadouski's thirst for knowledge. Unfortunately there was also no evidence of benefits of his learning to anyone except himself. It seems that Bishop Sloskans who until then supported him, began to have his doubts about him. In autumn 1960 he suggested to  Bishop Sipovich that he should order Sadouski to make a month's retreat and then find him a place somewhere in Germany as an assistant priest. Eventually Bishop Sipovich ordered Sadouski to go to London to help in the work of the Belarusian Catholic Mission there. He came in March 1961. It was decided to put him in charge of the boarding house for boys which was to be opened in September. In the meantime Father Hermanovich went to the United States, telling everyone that he was going to New York to see his uncle who was four years younger than he... In reality he went to explore the possibility of establishing there a Belarusian Marian foundation. Father Nadson went to Nottingham where, thanks to his degree in Mathematics, he obtained a  post at the diocesan college, teaching three days a week, and having the remaining four for pastoral work among Belarusian communities in Central and Northern England.

Less than two months after the beginning of the school year it was becoming clear that Father Sadouski was a disaster. On 4 November he gave an ultimatum to Bishop Sipovich to  find him a place as a chaplain, or he would leave everything and get a job on the London Underground. The Bishop's answer was that he could not reccommend for a chaplaincy a priest who was thinking of abandoning his priesthood. Everything seemed quiet for a while, but on Monday 11 December Sadouski did not appear for Liturgy. Then as Bishop Sipovich wrote in his diary: "About 11 a.m. Father John comes to me, very upset, and puts on my table papers from the Oriental Congregation and Westmnister Curia with the words: 'Here are my papers, I can no longer be a priest'... I try to reason with him... No! Father John remains deaf as a tree trunk. He lowers his eyes and looks down. I ask him what is the main reason for his crisis. 'Obedience is too heavy for me'...". In fact it was not so much obedience as a (not so) young English woman who sang in the Marian House choir. Bishop Sipovich wrote in his diary on that day: "This is a heavy cross for me personally. I accept it, God, as a penance for my sins. Give me strength to carry it with profit for myself and for unhappy John".

The defection of Sadouski necessitated a change of plans. Father Hermanovich was recalled from the United States and put in charge of the boys. Considering his age he needed a younger assistant, so Father Nadson had to resign his post in Nottingham at the end of the summer term 1962 and come back to London. Thus many promising projects had to be abandoned.

Another problem priest was Father Constantine Maskalik. During his three years in Paris (1959-61) he had proved himself completely unfit for a position of responsiblity, and all but destroyed the work which Father Haroshka had built up during the previous twelve years.  The members of the Belarusian community  asked the Church authorities for Father Maskalik to be removed. This was done in September 1962. Bishop Sipovich found for Father Maskalik a place in Rome, where he was to help Mgr Tatarynovich at Vatican Radio as a reader. Once again Father Haroshka was appointed rector of the Paris Mission, combining as well as he could his new duties with those in London. This meant spending much time shuttling between the two cities. Because of the difficulties with Father Maskalik, it was only in May 1963 that Bishop Sipovich was able to make an official visit to the Belarusian community in France.

Many organisations with which Bishop Sipovich was closely connected as a priest, now wanted to pay homage to him. Among them there were the Central Coordinating Committee of Refugee Welfare Organisation, in which for 12 years he had represented Belarusians; The Newman Association; and the Society of St John Chrysostom. The latter was particularily close to his heart, both because of its aims and because he had played the key role in its revival in 1959. On becoming Bishop he was made an honorary Vice-President of the Society and took a keen interest in its activities. It was in connection with this Society that on 2 July 1962 he and  Mgr John Barton paid a visit to Cardinal Godfrey who as Archbishop of Westminster was ex-officio honorary President of the Society. Among the problems discussed was whether the Society of St John Chrysostom could invite non-Catholic speakers. The cardinal was obviously not happy with this idea and tried to avoid giving a direct answer, but eventually agreed when he was assured by Bishop Sipovich that he would be informed beforehand in each particular case. When Bishop Sipovich asked him if he should accept invitations to speak from the Anglicans, the Cardinal wanted to know whether the meetings would take place in a church or in a hall. Sipovich made a note in his diary: "The Cardinal was a little nervous, uncertain of himself. He seemed to be afraid of something, but of what I don't know". Obviously ecumenism was a new concept for many Catholics at that time, and was regarded by them with suspicion.

Another example, illustrating the attitude of Cardinal Godfrey in the question of relations with non Catholics is the following. On 24 July 1962 Bishop Sipovich made a request to the Oriental Congregation for permission to hear confessions and admit to the Sacraments the Orthodox boys of St Cyril's House in London, as well as their parents, should they so desire. His request was forwarded to the Congregation of the Holy Office. On 8 November he received a letter, dated 5 November, from the Oriental Congregation, informing him that the Holy Office "having considered all the circumstances and after having consulted the local ordinary does not think it opportune to grant the requested faculty"[40]. In other words the request was refused. The local Ordinary in question was none other than Cardinal Godfrey. Bishop Sipovich's comment in his diary was "What a pity".

Early in 1965 Bishop Sipovich, who was then Superior General of the Marian Fathers, renewed the same request, not personally but through the Procurator General of the Marian Congregation, Fr Joseph Vaishnora, a Lithuanian, who wrote directly to the Holy Office. On 7 April there came a reply, signed by Cardinal Ottaviani, stating that "The Holy Office has nothing against the said (i.e. Orthodox – A.N.) students being admitted to the Sacraments, this being in accordance with the Decree 'On the Eastern Churches' of the Vatican II Ecumenical Council". This was one of the examples of astonishing change of attitude brought about by the Ecumenical Council in a short time.

Among various groups which wanted to honour Bishop Sipovich there was also the Polish community in London. A reception in his honour was proposed by the "Alma Mater Vilnensis", the association of former students and teachers of the Vilna University. It was supported by other organisations. One of them was the so-called "Association of the Eastern Territories (Zwi?zek ziem wschodnich)", according to which Western Belarus and Ukraine, which before 1939 had been under Polish rule, were nothing more than Eastern provinces of Poland. It was obviously a political ploy to make Bishop Sipovich appear to support Polish claims to Belarusian territories. He told the organisers that he would have to decline their invitation if the Association of the Eastern Territories had anything to do with it.

Incidentally Ludwik Bocianski, the former Polish governor (wojewoda) of Vilna province, who in 1938 expelled the Belarusian Marian priests and students from Druia, was now living in London. Bishop Sipovich wanted to meet him in order to ask certain details of this incident. However, Bocianski told the person who acted as the intermediary: "I have not the courage to meet Bishop Sipovich". He died on 7 February 1970. Bishop Sipovich made the following entry in his diary: "Now he is already before the just judgment seat of God. I wish him eternal peace in heaven, but the sad history connected with him remains and no one can change it".

On 3-7 August 1962 there was a World pilgrimage to Rome of emigres and exiles of various nationalities to mark the tenth anniversary of the Papal Encyclical "Exul Familia (The Family of exiles). Among the participants there was also a group of Belarusians who came from England, France and Germany. The highlights of the pilgrimage were the Way of the Cross at the Coliseum on Saturday 4 August. The meditation at the first station was conducted in Belarusian by Mgr Peter Tatarynovich. On the following day, which was Sunday, there was a  Mass at St Peter's in the presence of the Holy Father, who received gifts from the various national groups. On behalf of the Belarusians the two senior members of their group, Daminik Aniska and Maria Bierbash, gave the Holy Father a Book of Gospels in Belarusian translation. On Monday there was Pontifical Mass at St Paul's Basilica, during which various national groups sang in  their languages. Belarusians sang their religious anthem "Mahutny Bozha (O, God Almighty)". Apart from the official functions each national group had its own particular programme. For the Belarusian group under the leadership of Bishop Sipovich the pilgrimage was a great success, not least thanks to the efforts of Mgr Peter Tatarynovich who was responsible for its organisational side.

The Belarusian priests present at the pilgrimage took this opportunity to hold their annual reunion. The generally happy atmosphere prevailing during the whole pilgrimage was marred by the sad news of the death on 29 July of Cardinal Acacius Coussa, the first Oriental Catholic to become head of the Oriental Congregation. He had been made cardinal only four months earlier, on 19 March. In his person Bishop Sipovich and Belarusians lost another good and trusted friend who understood their problems. His successor was Cardinal Gustavo Testa. Bishop Sipovich left the following account of his visit to the Oriental Congregation on 8 August: " The new secretary, Cardinal Testa, is not in Rome. The assessor (i.e. the second-in-command – A.N.) says that he knows the East, knows the languages... As if he was defending himself from persistent thought: 'How shall we manage now?'... Everyone repeats that Cardinal Coussa 'Vi voleva bene (wished you well)'. It seems to me that even now in heaven with his usual smile he is helping us".

On 24-28 August the Superior general of the Marian Congregation, Fr Stanislaus Skutans, a Latvian, made ae canonical visit of Marian House. It was the first canonical visit since the Marian House became the autonomous religious house of Belarusian Marian Fathers of the Byzantine rite. In Marian documents it was called "Domus Londinensis II (London House II)", while the Lithuanian house and the church of St Casimir at Oval, Hackney was "Domus Londinensis I". The official division of Marian Fathers in London into two separate houses took place in June 1962.

There are a few interesting points in the report of the Superior General's visit. First of all he enumerates the personnel of the house, which according to him were: 1. Bishop Ceslaus Sipovich, in charge of the apostalate among the Belarusian faithful of Byzantine rite outside their own country, resident at Marian House; 2. Father Leo Haroshka, superior and bursar, as well as rector of the Mission (presumably Belarusian Catholic Mission – A.N.); 2. Joseph Hermanovich, councillor, secretary and spiritual director, and housemaster of St Cyril's house for boys; 3. Brother Stanislaus Bahovich, sacristan and cook. Then he continues: "Apart from our members there is Rev. Fr Nadson Alexander, aged about 36, attached to the Belarusian Mission (ad Missionem Alboruthenam addictus), deputy (vicarius) of the rector of the Mission and of the housemaster of the boarding house...". With regard to St Cyril's House the Superior General has this to say: "the house, which is at 41 Holden Road is the property of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches and has been given for the use of Belarusian Marians (Convictus et Domus, quae ad viam Holden Road 41 invenitur proprietatemque S. Congregationis Pro Ecclesia Orientali constituit et ad usum Marianorum Alboruthenorum concessa est)". It was not known what was discussed between Fr Skutans and the Belarusian Marians during his visit. The next canonical visit was on 18-27 March 1965 by the new Superior General who was Bishop Sipovich himself. In his report of this visit there is an interesting passage: "The remark of my predecessor Rev. Fr S. Skutans during the time of his canonical visit, namely that 'it seems to be more opportune, if the Marians themselves assumed the direction of the boarding house in their own hands not only in name, but in fact', is still to come. Most certainly for the development and growth of this House other Marian workers are needed"[41].

The passage quoted by Bishop Sipovich is not found in Skutans's report. However, there seems to be no doubt that the future of St Cyril's House, and who should be in charge of it, was the subject of discussion during his canonical visit. Perhaps it was as well that Fr Nadson, who, according to Skutans, was "attached" to the Mission, knew nothing about it: most probably he would have refused to remain in London. As it is, he is still there in the year 2003, while there is no trace of the Marian Fathers, Belarusian or others...

On 11 October 1962 the long-awaited opening of the Second Vatican Council took place. The next three years, during which the Council was in session, were without any doubt the most important religious event of the 20th century. It had far reaching effects on all aspects of religious life not only of the Catholic Church, but also of many Christians not in communion with her. Among over 2000 Fathers of the Council there was also Bishop Sipovich. He left the following description of the opening ceremony: "When the wave of bishops was moving through St Peter's Square, there was a feeling in people's hearts that this was an unusual moment. The bishops were walking six abreast. I was walking for some time with an Ethiopian and Chinese bishops, and with Polish Bishop Pawlowski, my professor from Vilna... I wanted to pray, but it was difficult. My thoughts got distracted and then concentrated on the mystery we were then experiencing: 'Where there are two or three of you gathered in my name,  I am also with them'... We entered the basilica and took the places reserved for the bishops (without any regard for rank or age)... I was looking at the Holy Father, when he was walking: calm, concentrated, barely acknowledging the applause. The Basilica looked like hanging terraces with large white lilies (the bishops' mitres) growing on them... In the evening we watched the same ceremonies on television... Only a few hours have passed and the great unrepeatable moments already belong to history".

Bishop Sipovich was present at all sessions of the Council and meetings of the commissions to which he belonged. His diary of that period contains detailed accounts of discussions and  meetings with various persons, as well as his personal impressions.

The first session of the Council ended on 8 December. Soon afterwards Bishop Sipovich left Rome for Munich, where on 11 December the Belarusian community held a small celebration in honour of Father U. Salaviej on the occasion of his receiving the title of Mitred Archpriest.

The year 1963 was full of events. On 22 January Cardinal Godfrey, Archbishop of Westminster died. He was conservative in his views and cautious by nature, but behind his reserved exterior there was a man of great goodness and understanding. Bishop Sipovich disagreed with him on many points, but was always grateful for the help and good advice he received when in 1947 he arrived in London as a young priest. Among those present at the funeral of Cardinal Godfrey on 29 January there were also Anglican bishops – a sure sign of the changing times. In this connection an amusing incident happened. Someone pointed out to Bishop Sipovich Mgr J. G. Vance and said that he was an Anglican bishop. The Bishop wrote in his diary: "I ask him where is he Anglican Bishop. Outraged, he asks me how old I am. I say: 48. Then he says: I was Catholic before you were born!".

On 10 February the London Sunday paper The Observer carried the sensational news, later confirmed by other papers, of the release of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Matropolitan Archbishop of L'viv Joseph Slipyi, who was now resting "somewhere in Italy". Slipyi had become Archbishop of L'viv after the death in 1944 of Andrew Sheptycky. In April 1945 he was arrested by the Communists and spent 18 years in Soviet prisons and labour camps. His release and arrival in Italy started all sorts of speculations about a possible change of attitude of the Soviet Communist authorities towards the Church, in particular towards the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church which in 1946 had been suppressed and forcibly incorporated into the Russian Orthodox Church. Of course, nothing of this kind happened, and the harassment and persecution of the Greek Catholics (with the tacit approval of the Russian Orthodox Church) was  if anything, stepped up. On 6 March Archbishop Ivan Buchko told Bishop Sipovich that the Soviet authorities had tried to use the release of Slipyi to establish some kind of contact with the Vatican.

On 21 February Bishop Sipovich had an audience with Metropolitan Slipyi who was living then at the monastery of Grottaferrata near Rome. Among other things Slipyi told him  that after the arrest and death of Fr Niemantsevich, since nothing was heard about Fathers Anoshka and Haroshka, Metropolitan Sheptytsky had appointed Father Velichkovsky, a Redemptorist of Byzantine rite, administrator of the Belarusian Exarchate. He could not say whether Vielichkovsky was a bishop.

Soon after his visit to Slipyi Bishop Sipovich had his first audience with the new head of the Oriental Congregation, Cardinal Testa, about which he wrote on 6 March: "My impression from the first visit to Cardinal Testa is very negative: he does not know our problems and shows no interest in them". Archbishop Buchko had the same opinion about the Cardinal and was particularly unhappy about his attitude towards his subordinates. He suggested that  Bishop Sipovich should stay in Rome till 1 April to wait for the arrival of Archbishop Moioli in order to tell him about what was happening at the Oriental Congregation, and he would refer it to the Holy Father. But Bishop Sipovich declined to take this advice.

Easter, which that year fell on 14 April, Bishop Sipovich spent in London. On 24-28 April he was in Manchester, where he received into the Catholic Church the family of an Orthodox priest. In the meantime Father Haroshka, who was again in charge of the pastoral work among Belarusians in France, was preparing the long overdue official episcopal visit in Paris. It took place on 24-29 May and was a great success. The highlight of the visit was the Pontifical liturgy on Sunday 26 May with a great gathering of the faithful. Among the Belarusians there was the Bishop's school friend from Druia, Victor Zhauniarovich, who was becoming well known as a painter.

Bishop Sipovich and Father Haroshka returned to London on 30 May 1963, when the world was worried about Pope John XXIII who was terminally ill. On Whit Sunday 2 June, after the Pontifical Liturgy there came a telegram from the Vatican with the Papal blessing for Father Hermanovich on the occasion of his golden priesthood jubilee. It must have been one of the last acts of the Holy Father who died on the following day, Whit Monday 3 June.

Thus ended the pontificate of the Good Pope John, which left an indelible mark on the whole Church. One may wonder how it was possible for one man who was not young to achieve so much and in such a short time. The answer must necessarily be "What is impossible for men, is possible with God". And there is no doubt whatsoever that Pope John XXIII was a man of God.

On 19 June 1963 the cardinals gathered in the Vatican for the Conclave. Two days later, on 21 June, the white smoke over the Sixtine Chapel indicated to the whole world that the Church had a new Pope. He was Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini, archbishop of Milan, who took  the name of Paul VI.

In the meantime there were also changes in the air in the Marian Congregation, as they   prepared for the General Chapter and election of new Superior General for the next six years. There were various conjectures about who he would be. Bishop Sipovich wrote in his diary on 13 June: "I spoke with Fathers Sielski and Jasinski (both Poles – A.N.) about the Marian Chapter... Father Jasinski wants the next Superior General to be either a Latvian or a Belarusian, because neither Lithuanians nor Poles would be impartial".

On Monday 1 July there was a telephone call from Father Skutans telling Bishop Sipovich that the General Chapter had elected him Superior General of Marian Fathers and asking him whether he would accept the post. It was lunchtime, and Bishop Sipovich told the news to Fathers Hermanovich and Nadson (Father Haroshka was in Rome at the Chapter). Father Nadson strongly objected on the grounds that as the first and only Belarusian bishop, Sipovich's first duty should be towards Belarusians. However, the Bishop's loyalty towards the Marian Congregation prevailed, and he accepted the nomination, provided the Congregations for the Eastern Churches and for the Religious gave their consent. The necessary consent was obtained with the proviso that, since the Oriental Congregation wanted  Bishop Sipovich to remain Visitor for Belarusians, it was essential for him to have a good Vicar General (Deputy) who could be in charge of the Marian Congregation during his absences. It was thus that on Thursday 4 July Bishop Sipovich landed in Rome and was greeted at the airport by a delegation of Marian Fathers. Before their house the remaining fathers were waiting and, as Sipovich wrote in his diary, "greeted me without great enthusiasm but sincerely".

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