Abraham Woyna (Wojna; ) (1569–1649) was a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

priest and

auxiliary bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

(1611–1626),

bishop of Samogitia A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

(1626–1631) and then

bishop of Vilnius Bishops of Vilnius diocese from 1388 and archdiocese (archdiocese of Vilnius) from 1925:" ...

(1631–1649). His term in office was marked by the rise of

Calvinism Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyteri ...

in the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

, to which he was actively opposed.

Bishop of Vilnius

Among his achievements was the foundation of the monasteries of the

Discalced Carmelites The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel () or the Order of Discalced Carmelites (; abbreviation, abbrev.: OCD; sometimes called in earlier times, ), is a Catho ...

and the Good Friars in Vilna (modern

Vilnius, Lithuania Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

), the latter of which also opened up a hospital and a pharmacy nearby. Two

synods A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

were held in the Vilnius diocese while Woyna was bishop, in 1631 and 1635; in 1633, Woyna ordered the compilation of the resolutions of various prior synods, titled "Constitutiones Synodorum dioecesis Vilnensis diversis temporibus celebratarum Jussu". The previous bishop,

Eustachy Wołłowicz Eustachy Wołłowicz (; 1572–1630) was Bishop of Vilnius in 1616–1630. He was one of the more accomplished bishops of Vilnius in the 17th century. A son of the Protestant father and Eastern Orthodox mother, Wołłowicz became a Catholic and ...

, had supported the church authorities' decision to transfer the church built by Piotr Korkonos in 1616 to the

Canons Regular of the Lateran The Canons Regular of the Lateran (CRL, Canonici Regulares Lateranenses), formally titled the Canons Regular of St. Augustine of the Congregation of the Most Holy Savior at the Lateran, is an international congregation of canons regular, comprisin ...

, but a lack of funds when the first two monks arrived in 1625 meant the foundation was postponed. Woyna issued an official document for the foundation of a parish in 1638 at Rokantiškės. In 1636, Woyna, along with four others, signed a commissary decree regarding the housing of the Jewish populace within the city. Specifically, the decree established tenement housing for the Jewish populace following what the text refers to as "tumults" in 1634. It also included a provision increasing the annual fee required of the Jewish citizenry, doubling the peacetime fee agreed on in 1630 from 300 złotys to 600. He also led the anti-

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

faction in the local politics and led the persecution of the Calvinist activists. In November 1641, Jesuit wards beat a preacher named Chelchonski as he returned from administering communion; he and another preacher named Gedarla were both attacked when returning from a feast held by Janusz Radziwiłł. When petitioned to punish the offenders, Woyna responded that he would not, as it was his job to "exterminate heretics". Another such effort was an accusation of

sacrilege Sacrilege is the violation or injurious treatment of a sacred object, site or person. This can take the form of irreverence to sacred persons, places, and things. When the sacrilegious offence is verbal, it is called blasphemy, and when physical ...

against

Krzysztof Radziwiłł Prince Krzysztof Radziwiłł () (22 March 1585, Biržai – 19 November 1640) was a Polish–Lithuanian noble (szlachcic), and a notable magnate, politician and military commander of his epoch. Sometimes referred to as ''Krzysztof Radziwił ...

brought before the diet in 1646 where Woyna demanded a sentence be rendered based on only the evidence he presented. The debate lasted five days, with the measure eventually being defeated.

Bibliography

* Wileński słownik biograficzny. Bydgoszcz: 2002. .

References

External links

Bishop Abraomas Voina (Wojna)
1569 births 1649 deaths

Abraham Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrews, Hebrew Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the Covenant (biblical), covenanta ...

17th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Bishops of Vilnius 16th-century Polish nobility 17th-century Polish nobility Bishops of Samogitia {{Lithuania-reli-bio-stub