Abstract

"Memorial" of Metropolitan Joseph Slipyj is an important document of the confessional history of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. It is also a valuable source for anyone interested in the history of religion, the spiritual culture of Ukraine, the course of Orthodox-Catholic and church-state relations in the Soviet era. The author himself calls himself "a silent witness of the Silent Church". In this confession, there is an indescribable tragedy of the personal destiny of the Metropolitan, as well as the fate of his Church. When I wanted to scream the world over the crimes of the Soviet regime against the Church, I had to remain silent, only to pray. The persecuted Church could not tell the world what was happening, her voice did not break through the "Iron Curtain". But she survived and lived - in catacombs and prisons, in the hearts of simple believers and confession museums.