Bishop Jan Niemiec (; ; 14 March 1958 – 27 October 2020) was a Polish-born Ukrainian Roman Catholic prelate, who served as an

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. ...

of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Kamyanets-Podilskyi The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kamianets-Podilskyi () is a diocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in Ukraine. Maksymilian Leonid Dubrawski O.F.M is the current bishop of the diocese. He was appointed to the episcopal see of Kamiane ...

and the Titular Bishop of

Decoriana Decoriana (Decoriensis or Dicensis) was an ancient Roman–Berber city and former bishopric in Tunisia. It is now a Latin Catholic titular see. History Decoriana, in today's Tunisia, was important enough in the Roman province of Byzacena to bec ...

since 21 October 2006 until his death on 27 October 2020.

Life

Bishop Niemiec was born in the Roman-Catholic family of Jan and Maria (née Oparowska) Niemiec in the

Eastern Poland Eastern Poland () is a macroregion in Poland comprising the Lublin Voivodeship, Lublin, Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Subcarpathian, Podlaskie Voivodeship, Podlaskie, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, Świętokrzyskie, and Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Wa ...

. After graduation of the school and lyceum education, he subsequently joined the High Pedagogical School in

Rzeszów Rzeszów ( , ) is the largest city in southeastern Poland. It is located on both sides of the Wisłok River in the heartland of the Sandomierz Basin. Rzeszów is the capital of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship and the county seat, seat of Rzeszów C ...

(1977–1982) and after – the Major Theological Seminary in

Przemyśl Przemyśl () is a city in southeastern Poland with 56,466 inhabitants, as of December 2023. Data for territorial unit 1862000. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Subcarpathian Voivodeship. It was previously the capital of Prz ...

(1982–1987). He was ordained as

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

on 24 June 1987, after he completed his philosophical and theological study. After his ordination he served as an assistant parish priest in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

from 1987 until 1992, when he has been transferred to

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. Also during his parish work he continued to study in the

Catholic University of Lublin John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (, , abbreviation KUL) is a university established in 1918. History Father Idzi Benedykt Radziszewski founded the university in 1918. Lenin allowed the priest to take the library and equipment of ...

. Since 1992, Fr. Niemiec is working in the

as the professor, prefect (1992–2001) and rector (2001–2007) of the Major Theological Seminary in Horodok. Also he graduated the Institute for the History of Science, an institution of the

Polish Academy of Sciences The Polish Academy of Sciences (, PAN) is a Polish state-sponsored institution of higher learning. Headquartered in Warsaw, it is responsible for spearheading the development of science across the country by a society of distinguished scholars a ...

, with

Doctor of Science A Doctor of Science (; most commonly abbreviated DSc or ScD) is a science doctorate awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. Africa Algeria and Morocco In Algeria, Morocco, Libya and Tunisia, all universities accredited by the s ...

degree in 1998. On 21 October 2006, he was appointed by the

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

as the

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. ...

of the

and

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

. On 8 December 2006, he was consecrated as bishop by Cardinal

Marian Jaworski Marian Franciszek Jaworski (, 21 August 1926 – 5 September 2020) was a Cardinal Priest and Archbishop of Lviv of the Latins in the Roman Catholic Church. He was a close friend of Pope John Paul II. Biography Early years Born the son o ...

and other prelates of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

in the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul in

Kamianets-Podilskyi Kamianets-Podilskyi (, ; ) is a city on the Smotrych River in western Ukraine, western Ukraine, to the north-east of Chernivtsi. Formerly the administrative center of Khmelnytskyi Oblast, the city is now the administrative center of Kamianets ...

. On 12 April 2007, Bishop Niemiec was appointed as a Vicar General of the same diocese. Bishop Niemiec died from

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Poland The COVID-19 pandemic in Poland was a part of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 strain of coronavirus. , Poland had a cumulative total of 6,775,116 confirmed cases (17,849 per 100,000 population), and 120,976 deaths (31 ...

on 27 October 2020, at the age of 62, at a hospital in

Łańcut Łańcut (, ; ; ) is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 18,004 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. Situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (since 1999), it is the Capital (political), capital of Łańcut County. History Archeological investigat ...

, where he was transferred from a hospital in

Kamyanets-Podilskyi Kamianets-Podilskyi (, ; ) is a city on the Smotrych River in western Ukraine, to the north-east of Chernivtsi. Formerly the administrative center of Khmelnytskyi Oblast, the city is now the administrative center of Kamianets-Podilskyi Raio ...

, five days earlier.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niemiec, Jan 1958 births 2020 deaths People from Strzyżów County John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin alumni Polish expatriates in Ukraine 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ukraine Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland Polish Roman Catholic bishops People from Rzeszów Recipients of the Order of Polonia Restituta