ESTABLISHMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE ST. CLEMENT UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY IN ROME

Abstract

Relevance of the research topic. The article is dedicated to the history of the foundation and activity of the Saint Clement Ukrainian Catholic University and to the role of Major Archbishop UGCC Josyf Slipyi in those processes. The objective of this article is to further study and spread the heritage of the Major Archbishop UGCC Josyf Slipyi.
Methodology of research. The research used the method of systematic analysis of sources to reproduce the events related to the founding of the UCU; the comparative method was used to determine the dynamics of the growth of the number of students, the results of the library's work, new revenues of the archive and museum, and the printing of scientific publications; the historical and cultural method helped in the review of socio-historical and cultural events related to the activities of the Major Archbishop UGCC Josyf Slipyi, the founding of the UCU and the determination of the importance of this institution for the development and spread of Ukrainian education and culture.
Results. During the study, the main fields of activity of the UCU were identified: research, publishing and informative.
There was an archive, a library, a museum of ecclesiastical and artistic monuments, the university‘s Church of Saint Sophia – Divine Wisdom, monuments to Taras Shevchenko, Markiyan Shashkevych, and Ivan Kotlyarevskyi. In the first academic year 1964-1965, the theological and philosophical-humanistic departments welcomed 10 students. With every new entry, the
number of those interested in learning has increased. During the academic year 1966–1967, the first branch of the UCU was established in Buenos Aires (Argentina). The employees of UCU have prepared numerous scientific papers for publication.
Also began a course of philosophy and theology for clergy and laity. The UCU in Rome, with the eternal departure of its founder Josyf Slipyi (1984), continued its activity, which was marked by a certain stagnation. With the emergence of UGCC from the underground (1989) and Ukraine's independence (1991), UCU has transferred its legal powers to Lviv, where it
currently operates successfully functioning and grows as one of the major educational institutions.
The scientific novelty. The novelty of the article consists in underline the special features of the foundation of the UCU and its activities in Rome.
The practical significance. The study highlights the preconditions, idea, formation, development of the Saint Clement Ukrainian Catholic University in Rome. It is the basis of new in-depth studies of the spiritual and cultural heritage of the Major Archbishop UGCC Josyf Slipyi.