Dmitriy Panto
Harbin – a city located in the northeast of China – was founded in 1898 by the Polish engineer, Adam Szydłowski, who was subsequently appointed as its first serving mayor. The city came into existence during the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway, becoming home to people from a diverse set of nationalities and cultures. Owing to its convenient location and international identity, Harbin was able to transform itself into a genuine safe haven for newcomers: a place where practically anyone was able to find shelter and gainful employment.
At the height of its prosperity, at the beginning of the 20th century, Harbin counted among its residents not only about 10,000 Poles but also English, Belgian, Dutch, Jewish, Armenian, and Russians. The railway’s construction, the development of industry, alongside the vast business opportunities pulled in investors and workers from all over the world. The city saw an accelerated development after 1903, after the official opening of the railway line. By 1917, Harbin boasted approximately 100,000 inhabitants, who represented more than 30 nationalities. Following the outbreak of the Russian Civil War and the wave of “White” emigration, Harbin’s importance further grew. By the late 1920s, its population had soared to half a million, later in the 1930s hovering around the one million mark. Due to its strategic positioning, Harbin shifted into a place where the interests and influences of Russia (USSR), Japan, China, the United States, and European countries intersected.
Cultural Center of the Far East
With the passage of time, the city became a true cultural focal point of the Far East. On account of its unique history and identity, Harbin was often referred to as the last pre-war European city. Its subsequent decline was precipitated by the Japanese occupation, as by 1945 it had virtually ceased to exist in its previous form, being then taken over by the Red Army, which subsequently handed it over to the Chinese communist authorities.
Harbin’s cultural diversity was directly reflected in the religious life of its inhabitants. The city was home to Orthodox Christians, Catholics, Muslims, and adherents to the Jewish faith along with Protestants and Buddhists. The sheer diversity of Harbin’s places of worship made a deep impression on visitors to the city. There were to be found over twenty Orthodox churches (among them one cathedral), two Catholic churches and two chapels (a gymnasium and seminary chapel), two mosques, three synagogues, and a Lutheran church, among others. The position of the Catholic Church in Harbin was complex and at times stirred up heated emotions among the faithful. Several competing visions of the church – the nationally focused, those inclined towards missionary goals, and those with a more universalist outlook, came to clash with one another there. Harbin also came to function as a kind of laboratory where the Holy See was able, by way of newly created structures, experiment with the unification of different branches of the Church. However, let us first take a more detailed look at the principal centers of Catholicism in Harbin.
A Divided World
The area upon which Harbin was founded, fell under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Apostolic Vicariate, which traditionally lay within the missionary interests of the French. At the end of the 19th century, owing to geopolitical factors, the Holy See saw fit to divide this vicariate into two regions: Southern and Northern Manchuria. From the Vatican’s point of view, the territories occupied by the Russian Empire presented a problem, since all Catholics there came under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Mohilev. Consequently, when these lands were still in the process of being conquered — at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries — they were treated as missionary territory. As a result, Catholics (mainly Poles) were forced to turn for religious services to the French missionaries, as no Polish parishes had yet come into existence in Harbin. An anecdote relayed by the engineer Kazimierz Grochowski well illustrates this situation: “It is known that once a Polish engineer longed to get married at the French mission. With the bride and groom speaking only Polish, Russian, and German and the missionary knowing only French and Chinese, the most important person in this ceremony turned out to be a Chinese ‘boy’ who knew a little Russian — and thanks to him, the wedding ceremony was completed successfully.”
In order to satisfy the religious needs of Polish Catholics, military chaplains started to arrive in Harbin in the early part of the 20th century. First among them was Father Adam Szpiganowicz, who initiated the efforts to build a church, by organizing a committee to gather together funds for this specific purpose. A plot of land was granted to the church by The city in 1904. At that time, services were conducted by the Father Stanisław Ławrynowicz, the parish priest from Vladivostok, who visited intermittently. It should be stated that in 1906, when construction began, Catholics in Harbin numbered about 4,000. The church was dedicated to Saint Stanislaus, and on Sunday, October 7, 1906, Father Dominik Przyłuski conducted a Mass during which the cornerstone was blessed. Because of the generous donations from the local Catholic community, the construction process was rapidly brought to a conclusion, with the church being consecrated on August 1, 1909. Both during and after construction, pastoral duties were conducted by Father Antoni Maczuk. The overwhelming majority of parishioners were of Polish origin, with fewer representatives of German, Lithuanian, and Irish Catholics. The remaining Catholics who resided in Harbin were looked after by French priests. In 1909, Father Władysław Ostrowski initiated his pastoral work in Harbin and made a significant contribution there to the development of the local church and parish. That very same year, Bishop Jan Cieplak, on a visit to Siberia and the Far East, also graced the church in Harbin with his presence.
The simultaneous growth of both Harbin and its Catholic community quickly necessitated the construction of a second church for Polish Catholics. In large part due to the efforts of Father Ostrowski and the visit of Archbishop Jean B.M. de Guebriant, the land required for the construction of another church was obtained, located in the Pristan (Harbin Wharf) district, about three kilometers from the city center. The foundation stone was laid and blessed on September 3, 1922, with the construction once again being financed by Polish donations. In 1924, Bishop Karol Śliwowski established an independent parish in Pristan, dedicated to Saint Josaphat, with Father Antoni Leszczewicz appointed its first pastor. The consecration of the church took place on November 15, 1925, and was carried out by Father Maurus Kluge. These two churches and their parishes also counted on several affiliated chapels, which were as a rule, situated hundreds of kilometers away from Harbin, being not only religious centers but also places for the cultural and educational life of the Polish community in Harbin. Those institutions affiliated with the parishes included the Henryk Sienkiewicz Humanistic Gymnasium, an orphanage, a daycare centre, and the Saint Vincent de Paul Elementary School, as well as charitable organizations such as the Roman Catholic Charity Association and the Saint Vincent de Paul Society.
The Church’s Largest Territory – The Apostolic Vicariate of Siberia
A breakthrough moment for the Catholic community of Harbin came on December 1, 1921, when Pope Benedict XV signed a document establishing the Apostolic Vicariate of Siberia — at that time constituting the largest territorial unit of the Catholic Church. The Vicariate was directly subordinate to the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith and was to be headed by an Apostolic Administrator, although his appointment did not come about until 1924. The initial seat of the Vicariate was designated as Vladivostok, but after the city’s seizure by the Bolsheviks, it was relocated to Harbin. The Vicariate came to be divided into five deaneries: Tomsk, Omsk, Irkutsk, Tashkent, and Vladivostok. On March 2, 1923, Pope Pius XI set apart the Vladivostok deanery from the Vicariate and elevated it to the rank of a diocese, which would report directly to the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith. The new diocese then encompassed the Amur and Primorsky regions along with Sakhalin Island. Bishop Karol Śliwowski was appointed to lead it, with his consecration taking place in Harbin on October 28, 1923. The solemn liturgy was conducted by the Apostolic Delegate, Archbishop Celso Costantini. After the separation of the Vladivostok Diocese, the Apostolic Vicariate of Siberia covered an area of 9,006,000 square kilometers. The territory’s total population numbered approximately 8 million people, around 140,000 of whom were Catholics. The first Apostolic Administrator, Father Gerard Piotrowski, described the vast area under his stewardship as follows: “It stretches eastward to the Pacific Ocean; from the north it is lashed by the icy waves of the Siberian Sea and the Bering Strait; to the south it borders Persia and Eastern Turkestan, and further beyond, Mongolia and Manchuria.”. Across the entire expanse of this enormous region, served only twelve priests, who travelled constantly from place to place, often risking their lives in the process as civil war and the period of Bolshevik terror raged around them. Harbin, chosen as the seat of the Vicariate, was initially a relatively safe location, however, after the establishment of the border between the Soviet Union and China, the city found itself on the Chinese side, making extremely difficult any communication with those territories of the Vicariate which remained inside the Soviet Union.
Due to the impossibility of him being permitted to step foot on Soviet territory or visit the parishes under his jurisdiction, Father Gerard Piotrowski sought to provide financial and spiritual support (through letters) to the clergy and faithful who remained there. At the same time, due to loss of contact with the Vicariate on May 15, 1927, the Holy See decided to constitute a separate Apostolic Administration in Harbin and to incorporate it into the Diocese of Vladivostok. Father Piotrowski was appointed to the position of the diocese’s Vicar General. Simultaneously, from early November 1926, the Apostolic Administrator of the Vicariate of Siberia was Father Julian Groński, who remained however, within the territory of the Soviet Union. These fast-moving administrative changes were in large part a response to the activities of the Soviet authorities, in particular their methods of terrorising and persecuting the Church.
How to Unite Christians?
Relations between Poles and Russians living in Harbin were exemplified by conflicts, prejudices, and disputes. For this reason, the Vatican entrusted the Marian Fathers (Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary) with the task of caring for Russian believers of the Eastern rite, a mission that turned out to be extremely challenging. The idea of rapprochement and unification of the two Churches also found some advocates among the ranks of the Russian émigré intelligentsia and members of the Orthodox clergy.
The foundations for the union of the Churches were laid by Monsignor Władysław Ostrowski, then parish priest of the Catholic parish in Harbin. He celebrated the liturgy in the Byzantine-Slavic rite and preached sermons for Orthodox Christians in the Russian language. Pastoral work for the Eastern-rite community was undertaken in 1924, initiated by Father Konstanty Koronin, a former Orthodox priest who had converted to Catholicism, together with his father, Father Jan Koronin, who also counted himself as a convert. Below is an account which describes Father Jan Koronin and his conversion:
“Upon the Feast of the Epiphany in 1925, Father Jan did embrace Catholicism. Standing at the altar of the Catholic church, surrounded by Latin-rite clergy, he celebrated the Holy Mass in the Eastern rite. At the steps of that same altar, before an innumerable congregation, in a solemn speech he made his profession of faith. Not long after, an immense joy filled the hearts of the people, as they hoped that the long-awaited time of reunion between the two Churches was approaching.
Illness however, slowly came to undermine his health. In June, he underwent an ill-fated surgery, which was ultimately unsuccessful. He was discharged from the hospital to his beloved church, although he was in no fit condition to offer the Holy Sacrifice at the altar. On August 27, he received the last sacraments, final prayers were uttered, as though he was still waiting for the arrival of the Mother of God. Indeed the very next morning, at seven o’clock, on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1925, he surrendered to Her his soul, thereby departing this world in order to receive his eternal reward.
The funeral of Father Jan was a grand and moving religious manifestation, attended not only by clergy of both Churches and Catholic faithful, but also by numerous Orthodox Christians who sympathized with the idea of returning to the one true Church, even though, for a multitude of reasons, they were not yet able to become open professors of the Catholic faith. The funeral rite was conducted by Father Borys Tomicew, the deceased priest’s successor, sent by the Apostolic Delegate to China. Harbin had never witnessed such a magnificent demonstration of religiosity, something that forged a deep impression on even non-Catholics. The Russian press published extensive reports about his death and funeral.”
The example of the Koronin family stands as an exceptional one during the early years of the functioning of the Russian Catholic community in Harbin. Not all Eastern-rite priests were as devout and capable as the late Koronins. Before the arrival of the Marian Fathers’ mission, there were several priests and deacons who had converted to Catholicism, but unfortunately, their stay in Harbin was usually all too brief and often detrimental to the fragile new community. By the late 1920s everything had changed. On May 20, 1928, the “Pro Russia” Commission canonically established the Exarchatus Apostolicus Harbinensis — the Russian Apostolic Exarchate of the Byzantine-Slavic Rite in China, based in Harbin at the Church of Saint Vladimir. This Exarchate was established in order to cater for Russian Catholics of the Eastern rite, who in the main heralded from the “White” (anti-Bolshevik) Orthodox emigration to China. The first Ordinary (head) of the new administrative unit was Archimandrite Fabian Abrantowicz, a member of the Congregation of Marian Fathers.
Gradual steps or pressure from above?
With the aim of facilitating pastoral activity among Russians who had converted to Catholicism in the Byzantine rite, a parish dedicated to St. Nicholas was established in Harbin. A chapel was subsequently erected, being later elevated to the status of a parish church under the patronage of St. Vladimir. The seminary, which had been transferred in 1923 from Vladivostok, was over time transformed into St. Nicholas Lyceum, and administered by the Marian Fathers. A similar reorganization took place at the girls’ institute run by the Ursuline Sisters, who, through the efforts of Fr. Piotrowski, had been brought to Harbin. Fr. Fabian Abrantowicz petitioned for the Ursuline Sisters’ conversion to the Eastern rite—a proposal that was initially met with some considerable reservation and resistance on their part. The conversion ultimately did occur, however only following direct intervention by the Holy See, which temporarily suspended the congregation’s superior from office.
Not all members of the Polish clergy perceived the Vatican’s policy of ecclesial rapprochement as meaningful or necessary. From the very beginning, a fundamental problem that had dogged relations between Harbin’s Catholic parishes centred on the issue of jurisdictional authority. Until the appointment and arrival of Fr. Abrantowicz, the Catholics of the Eastern rite had been under the supervision of Fr. Piotrowski, the acting administrator. He was viewed most unfavorably by Russian converts, who leveled at him accusations such as that he wanted to Polonize and Latinize the Byzantine rite. Piotrowski had repeatedly stated publicly that “Catholics of the Eastern rite are not true Catholics,” even going so far as to mock Russians and their so-called “schismatic crosses.” His approach, however, conflicted somewhat with the intentions of the Holy See, which had no desire to impose conversion by force or to supplant the Orthodox liturgy with the Latin rite. Rather, the Vatican envisioned an incremental and non-intrusive process of rapprochement—inviting Orthodox believers into communion with Rome, at the same time permitting for the retention of their own liturgical traditions.
Between Polonization and Russification
Father Abrantowicz clearly understood and embraced the Holy See’s new approach toward the Orthodox faith, although upon arriving in China he encountered not only a lack of cooperation from the Orthodox clergy but also widespread misunderstanding among both the Catholic clergy and laity. Anticipating assistance from Father Piotrowski, Abrantowicz instead met only with opposition: Piotrowski was unable to grasp the theological and pastoral rationale of his mission and refused to lend any form of help to the Marians. A dispute with regard to competence also developed between them, prompting both to write to the Vatican for clarification on matters of sovereignty and subordination. Father Piotrowski requested the Holy See decide which of the hierarchs should remain in Harbin. The Vatican made it unequivocally clear that Father Fabian Abrantowicz was to remain there. The decision was final: Fr. Piotrowski and his Franciscan confrères were to leave and be reassigned to the mission on Sakhalin. This conflict reflected a deeper divide between two competing visions of missionary work among Orthodox Russians: the European (Polish) model and the Russian model (represented by Russian Catholics of the Byzantine rite). By way of the most simple explanation regarding this matter, we may quote the historian Konstantin Nikolayev, who aptly summarized the tension as follows: “The Poles feared Russification, while the Russians feared Polonization.” Unfortunately the common experiences during the time of the Russian Empire and the Vatican’s earlier “missionary experiments” only exacerbated the sense of mistrust, hindering the carrying out of pastoral work among Russian converts.
Following Fr. Gerard Piotrowski’s departure, all parishes—including the Polish ones—were submitted to the authority of Fr. Abrantowicz, which presented a significant challenge for both himself and the Uniate mission. Further difficulties arose from political instability and the Japanese occupation which began in 1932, all of which served to further curtail the development of Catholic life in Harbin.
Three Visions of the Church
It ought to be emphasized that three distinct visions of Catholicism coexisted—and at times collided—in Harbin. Although all Catholic communities belonged to the universal Church, they operated with a considerable degree of autonomy, which occasionally spilled over into open conflict between one another. The city thus emerged as not merely a site for traditional evangelization among local populations, as had long been promoted by the Holy See, but also as a center of vigorous national Catholic activity and bold ecumenical experimentation aimed at achieving rapprochement between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. Resultantly, Harbin stood out as a unique locus on the global Catholic map of the early twentieth century—a place where competing ecclesial, cultural, and national identities converged, which served to further underline its status as an exceptional phenomenon in the history of Catholic missions in East Asia.
Mid-titles come from the editorial team.
Dr Dmitriy Panto – Chartered Custodian of Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk
Translated by Jan Dobrodumow