Vilnius
On the evening of July 15,1987, Cardinal Jaime Sin arrived in Vilnius from Riga. Even though officially nothing had been announced about it in advance, the Cardinal and his party were greeted in the churchyard of St. Nicholas by young people in folk dress and a numerous group of the faithful.
One girl presented the Prince of the Church with a white rosebud and explained that this was a gift of the imprisoned priests. The guest respectfully kissed the thorny stem of the rose to the accompaniment of the tumultuous applause of the assembly.
The young people presented flowers to the cardinal's companions, Lithuanian and Filippino clergy. For about an hour, as long as the guests were in the chancery, the faithful did not disperse. In the St. Nicholas churchyard, the young people's religious hymns rang out: "Marija, Marija" and "Lietuva Bran-gi" ("Beloved Lithuania"). The Lithuanian national anthem was sung.
As a sign of the unity of the Universal Church, those assembled recited aloud the Pater Noster, Ave Maria and Gloria Patri. When His Eminence reappeared on the steps with his party, the faithful greeted him with ringing, triple "Mabuhai, Cardinal!" (In Tagalog, "Long live the Cardinal!"), and shouts in Latin, "Vivat Lituania libera et catolica!" ("Long live Lithuania, free and Catholic!") Moved, the guest blessed everyone assembled in the churchyard. For a long time, unabating applause accompanied Cardinal Jaime Sin.
The folowing day, July 16, at noon, the Fillipino Cardinal con-celebrated Mass in the Cathedral-Archbasilica of Kaunas. In the sermon which he delivered through a translator, he repeatedly recalled the loyalty of the Lithuanian nation to Christ, witnessed and witnessing by heroic sacrifices. He spoke of the respect of the Pope and the Universal Church and their concern for our nation, and invited the assembled mothers to bring home to their infants a kiss sent by Pope John Paul II.
As the Cardinal and his party proceeded after Mass along a living corridor through the assembled crowd, four young men knelt at his feet with flowers in their hands and one of them shouted in German, "We greet you, Your Eminence, in the name of the youth of Lithuania. We ask you, tell them everywhere that our priests are imprisoned, many churches are closed and the teaching of catechism to children is forbidden by law! Tell everyone that!"
The Cardinal was given a packet containing photographs of the priest-prisoners Fathers Sigitas Tamkevičius and Jonas-Kąstytis Matulionis, the exiled Bishop Julijonas Steponavičius, the deceased Father Bronius Laurinavičius and Father Juozas Zdebskis, photographed immediately after his death in the automobile, as well as views of the inside and outside of a vandalized church, confirming the truth of the spoken words.
Tauragė
On August 5,1987, the pastor of the parish of Skaudvilė, Father Jonas Kauneckas, was summoned to the Executive Committee of Tauragė Rayon. He was presented with a warning from the Commissioner for Religious Affairs, Petras Anilionis, concerning his sermons delivered at the religious festival delivered in Žemaičių Kalvarija. Father Kauneckas is accused of giving sermons devoid of religious content and of reinforcing the Lowlander stubborness in disregarding the regulations for religious cults. In the warning, it was stated that this was the sixth warning and in the future, sterner measures would be taken. Father Kauneckas stated in writing that the warning was unjust, since he had not spoken in his sermon about any laws, much less about disregarding them.
Anilionis similarly warned Father Kazimieras Gražulis, assistant pastor of St. George's in Šiauliai, about his sermons delivered at Žemaičių Kalvarija.
Vilnius
On July 28, 1987, Tlie Peasants' Newspaper printed an article by Lithuanian Cultural Fund Committee Chairman D. Valatkevičius entitled, "To Work, Nurturers of Culture!". It states that the Archdiocese of Vilnius allotted 10,000 rubles to the Soviet Lithuanian Cultural Fund. This would be praiseworthy if the cultural fund used the money for the restoration of churches which are architectural monuments. However, as the author of the article writes, the money was allotted to:
— The refurbishing of the home and grave of freethinker M. Katkus in the Village of Ažytėnai, .Rayon of Kėdainiai;
— For the memorializing of places connected with revolutionary events and of fighters for the ideals of socialism;
— Finishing work on a memorial to heroic actions during the Great War for the homeland and the route of the Lithuanian 16th Division.
Deltuva (Ukmergė Rayon)
The August, 1987 issue of Soviet Woman, number 8, published author Mockuvienė's article, "The Pastor Tells Them To Separate," in which, by various fabrications, the pastor of the parish of Deltuva, Father Eugenijus Bartulis, is vilified and insulted.
Angered by such behavior on the part of Mockuvienė, the faithful of Deltuva wrote a letter of protest signed by 311 persons. The people of Deltuva demanded that their letter be published in the following issue of Soviet Woman.
A group of the faithful went to see Mockuvienė herself regarding this matter, but their demand that she retract the really low-brow article besmirching the title of journalist, or at least that their letter of protest be published, was ignored.
Adakavas (Raseiniai Rayon)
On February 13,1987, Monika Gavėnaitė, arrested in the the Village of Adakavas, was summoned before Skaudvilė District Chairman A. Mikašaus-kas. When she presented herself, Chairman Mikašauskas asked to see her papers. Taking the papers, the Chairman gave them to the worker at the passport desk and demanded that Monika Gavėnaitė's registration be immediately cancelled.
Thus, Gavėnaitė's registration in Adakavas was cancelled by force. The reason for the cancellation was absurd: She had been the housekeeper of the imprisoned Father Alfonsas Svarinskas.
Monika Gavėnaitė is trying to register at the address of a friend living in Šiluva, but here, too, the personnel at the document desk would not agree to register her.
On April 16, a meeting was called at the Raseiniai Rayon Executive Committee at which the responsible staff members passed resolution number 136. In the resolution, Gavėnaitė is accused of living since February 13, 1987, without registration and of having no permanent residence.
For not following the rules of the document desk, Gavėnaitė is being penalized by administrative procedure. She was given the order, "Register within a month!"
Upon receipt of the written decision, Gavėnaitė wrote a complaint to the Chief Procurator in Moscow, setting forth the entire facts and indicating that she was being discriminated against just because she had been Father Alfonsas Svarinskas' housekeeper.
On May 21,1987, Gavėnaitė was finally registered in Šiluva.
Panevėžys
On May 22,1987, in Panevėžys, G. Petrauskienė, a teacher at Middle School 15, was buried with religious ceremonies. On the eve of the funeral, Principal Kulvinskas and Vice Principal Pranskaitienė tried to convince the mother of the deceased, Eleanora Miežanskienė, to bury her daughter without Church rites. The mother disagreed, "My conscience does not allow me to bury her without the Church."
The visitors then began threatening that such stubbornness would have an effect on Miežanskienė's career, and the future life and education of Petrauskienės little daughter.
Unable to frighten the relatives, Principal Kulvinskas forbade students and teachers to take part in the funeral of Teacher Petrauskienė.
Palėvenėlė (Kupiškis Rayon)
On June 13,1987, faithful of Palėvenėlė erected a new wooden cross at the Palėvenėlė-Alizava crossroads, in place of the old one. Not for long did the people enjoy their cross. Executive Committee Vice Chairman Mečislovas Gudonis ordered Alizava District Executive Committee Chairwoman Danutė Paliulionytė to destroy the cross. Volunteers to destroy the cross did not show up. The evening of June 27, Rayon Executive Committee Vice Chairman Mečislovas Gudonis himself came, and together with Alizava District Chairwoman Paliulionytė, cut down the cross, cut it into pieces and threw them into the bushes next to the Palėvenėlė Middle School.
Šiaudinė (Šiauliai Rayon)
In the parish of Šiaudinė is the old cemetery of Kairiškiai, which the local people call the the Cemetery of the Vows. There, people from of old erected crosses, prayed, and now the faithful often assemble in the little chapel on the burial mound for prayer.
This jubilee year, too, services took place in the little chapel of the old cemetery of Kairiškiai, after which a cross was erected and blessed in thanksgiving to God for graces received. Participating in the services and the blessing of the cross were the faithful and the pastor of the parish of Papilė, Father Jonas Paulauskas and the pastor of the parish of Viekšniai, Father Vincentas Gauronskis.
Some time after the celebration, Juozas Dapšys and Albina Kuodytė were summoned to the Kairiškiai Soviet farm where they were lectured by Director Zamarienė, Party organization Secretary Bučiūtė and a representative of the Rayon Executive Committee. The government officials scolded Dapšys, laughed at his beliefs, and said that the erection of crosses was forbidden.
At the end of the interview, an announcement was issued that Dapšys and Kuodytė were supposed to go to the Rayon Executive Committee to explain themselves.
On June 30,1987, Dapšys and Kuodytė were scolded at the Rayon Executive Committee. For the erection of the cross, they had to pay a 30 ruble fine, and they were ordered to tear down the cross, otherwise the government would do so and they would have to pay for the labor.
