George Matulaitis Journal

charge here. 1 Therefore, I told him that he would have to deal with them. In my opinion, in strict justice the church ought to be given back to the Catholics. He was not able to make any headway in this matter. The Bolsheviks also told him that the Orthodox have enough churches of their own and that this one had been taken away from the Catholics. In the past the church belonged to the Jesuits. 2 I was very concerned that, once the Germans had gone, the Catholics would be forced out again. I asked Father Muckermann not to leave with the Germans, but to stay on here. If we succeeded in holding on to the church, the Jesuits could then reoccupy their residence. Father Muckermann was even appointed rector of the church by his superiors. Father Muckermann stayed behind, and I gave him another priest to help him. They celebrated the liturgy beautifully and church attendance soared. When the Bolsheviks took over, everything came to a standstill, so to speak. Father Olsza<ski , 3 who headed the Polish workers’ associations, at first went into hiding. Father Muckermann came to consult with me whether something could be done for the workers. We were both interested in putting the building near the church to some good use. I advised him to find out if the Bolsheviks would hinder his work or were inclined to leave him alone, at least in the beginning. I asked Father Muckermann to be guided solely by Catholic principles and to do Catholic work, setting aside politics and nationalism. I told him that, as far as I could see, if he labored in a Catholic spirit, all would go well; the people had had enough of these nationalistic feuds. We both agreed that the thrust of his work would be purely religious, cultural, and economic. To start, he called a meeting of the workers at five o’clock Sunday afternoon. A great many people came. Seeing this, he invited them into the vacant building near the church and began to organize 186 1 This was in December 1918. The Germans occupied Vilnius in 1915; in 1916, Kaiser Wilhelm II visited the Church of St. Casimir. 2 It was popularly known as the Jesuits’ church, but had been a parish church since about 1749. 3 Ignacy Ols za<sk i (b. 1883): ordained in 1910, had a master’s degree in theology; was known for social and cultural work in Vilnius. Later became a member of the Polish Parliament; made monsignor in 1924.