MATERIAL CONDITIONS OF THE PASTORAL ACTIVITIES OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CLERGY IN THE PRISONS OF VOLYN AND GALICIA IN 1918–1939

Abstract

The purpose of the proposed article is to present the material conditions of the pastoral activity of the Roman Catholic clergy in the prisons of Volyn and Galicia between the two world wars. In the Second Polish Republic, the spiritual care of prisoners was entrusted to the clergy of mainly Christian denominations, that were called to support morally prisoners in difficult life circumstances. Roman Catholic clergy naturally dominated chaplaincy in penitentiary institutions in interwar Poland. It was determined by the place and status of the western branch of Christianity in the state. Pastors worked on a contract basis, their activities were regulated by some legislative acts of the Second Polish Republic in the field of penitentiary, as well as certain norms of canon law. Chaplains performed religious services, gave moral and religious speeches, held spiritual talks with prisoners, conducted retreats, etc. The material conditions of the pastoral activity of the Roman Catholic clergy in the prisons of Volyn and Galicia remained difficult throughout the whole studied period. The situation was extremely difficult in the first years after the end of the Great War. In the second half of the 1920s, the funding of pastors was improved. The Ministry of Justice conditioned their salary on a fixed percentage of the salary of a civil servant. During various years of the interwar period, sources report that the remuneration of Roman Catholic chaplains ranged from 12% to 50% of the salary of an unmarried civil servants of the X degree. The salary of Roman Catholic pastors was significantly higher, compared to the remuneration of prison chaplains of Greek Catholic and Orthodox confessions. The clergy of the Western Christian rite stopped their service in the penitentiary institutions of Volyn and Galicia with beginning of the Second World War in September 1939.