Teofilius Matulionis

Teofilius Matulionis (1873 – 1962)

Archbishop, Martyr, Blessed (2017; commemoration – June 14).

“The person of the late Archbishop Teofilius Matulionis lit up in a very peculiar light in the life of Lithuania, which spread not only over the lands of Lithuania, Latvia, and Russia but also beyond the Atlantic Ocean, especially in North America, where quite a large number of the Lithuanian emigration has long settled. That light was not scientific, not political, not state, but personal, moral, shining with Christian values. It crystallized in long-suffering and revealed a man quietly, resolutely following the paths of thorns, but seeing a broad vision of life, with an irresistible victory of the Good radiating at the ultimate horizon,” Pranas Gaida, a prelate, theologian and writer wrote in his book “Immortal Mortal. Archbishop Teofilius Matulionis” as early as 1981.

In 2017, an unwearied and adamant fighter for the rights of the faithful, Teofilius Matulionis, was beatified – proclaimed a martyr and the blessed one by the Pope’s Decree.

Not only his virtues but especially the works of God through that person are recognized in the process of beatification a person. Every blessed or saintly person is guided by the will of God in their lives, making their lives examples of the Gospel embodiment. The martyr is the one who follows the Lord freely to consent to die for the salvation of the world and gives the greatest witness of love and faith.

Until 2017, the Catholic Church of Lithuania honoured only one saint of our country – Casimir and one blessed Jurgis Matulaitis, who was beatified by Pope John Paul II in Rome. The beatification of Teofilius Matulionis is historically important because this has not been a case in Lithuania yet.

Teofilius was persecuted by the Soviets for his pastoral activities and was eventually tortured by their structures. Imprisoned in eleven prisons, where he spent sixteen years, was four times convicted, interrogated, beaten, poisoned, starved, hard-working, imprisoned in a cell, lived four years in exile, withstood searches and aspersions, recruitment, having lost his health … died after a search of his apartment by Soviet security and an injection of unidentified drugs.

The project “Along the Paths of Blessed Teofilius Matulionis” is aimed at raising Lithuania’s notoriety as a tourist state and improving its image. The implementation of the project will seek to increase the relevance, attendance and visibility of the cultural and natural heritage, as well as raising the societal privity about the environment around them.

Teofilius Matulionis was chosen to remind about one of the most striking and prominent personalities who participated in the resistance to the occupation regime of the USSR. For more than half a century (1900 to 1962), the Archbishop was an active conservator of Christian values. For pastoral activities and unbridled fight for the rights of believers, Teofilius Matulionis was proclaimed the blessed and a martyr by the Pope’s Decree of 2017 (in Lithuania only Saint Casimir and the Blessed Jurgis Matulaitis are revered); The Lithuanian bishops declared 2017 the year of Archbishop Teofilius Matulionis.

The paths of T. Matulionis also extend beyond Lithuania: he began pastoral activities in Latvia, continued in Russia, and in St. Petersburg. In 1934, Teofilius visited Pope Pius XI in Rome; while living in the USA from 1934 to 1936, he was active in Lithuanian communities.

The project will seek to introduce the areas where Archbishop Teofilius Matulionis lived and travelled while defending the rights of the church and of the faithful.

It is planned to increase the attendance and notoriety of cultural and natural heritage objects in eight municipalities (Kaišiadorys, Molėtai, Kaunas, Zarasai, Utena, Vilnius, Varėna and Anykščiai municipalities) by implementing e-marketing tools. The project will implement the following e-marketing tools: Website; optimization of Search engine SEO; Advertising search in systems (SEA); Marketing on social networks (SMM); Visual advertising; Mobile marketing; Advertising on Internet portals. Selected e-marketing tools are expected to allow the creation of a sustainable and consistent tourism information system that meets the modern needs of travellers. The project is funded by the European Union Structural Funds.