Religinis tautinis sąjūdis Žemaitijoje XIX a. pabaigoje

LT1881 m. į sostą įžengus Aleksandrui III, Rusijos imperijoje suaktyvėjo reakcija. Jos veiksmus labiausiai pajuto Lietuvos katalikų dvasininkija, kurios caro valdžia nuo Lietuvos okupacijos pradžios nepajėgė įveikti. Todėl Rusijos vyriausybė visaip siekė maksimaliai apriboti Katalikų Bažnyčios funkcionavimą ir taip mažinti dvasininkijos įtaką, sudaryti sąlygas krašto kolonizacijai ir stačiatikybės įsigalėjimui. Tokia padėtis skatino gyventojus priešintis valdžios siekiams juos nutautinti ir paversti stačiatikiais. Kita vertus, katalikų tikėjimas ir lietuvių kalba valstiečiams buvo įgimtos dvasinės vertybės. Nuo M. Valančiaus vyskupavimo laikų jos turėjo ryškesnę tautinę tendenciją. XIX a. pabaigoje, sustiprėjus reakcijai, religinis tautinis sąjūdis Žemaitijoje ne susilpnėjo, bet atvirkščiai, įgijo aštresnę pasipriešinimo formą bei platesnį mastą [p. 96].

ENThe growing autocracy's reaction in the 80ies of the 19 century made the Catholic clergy ardent supporters of both the interests of the Catholic Church and the Lithuanian nation. Their activities incited anticzarist attitudes among citizens and encouraged Samogitians to resist the selfwill of the government. Due to their efforts the national religious movement spread wide by across Samogitia. Catechists were also a serious stumbling-block in the process of the russification of their pupils, and their compulsory conversion to orthodoxy. In defence of their native language and religion, they resisted saying the common prayer before the classes neither did they teach a special prayer for the Czar prepared by the government itself. Teachers of religion encouraged pupils to ignore compulsary attendance of the Orthodox Church. Illegal underground groups in the Seminary of Kaunas were the first impetus for the religious national movement. These groups preserved the Lithuanian spirit, and many future clergymen were encouraged here to devote them selves for the national movement. A longside, much practical work was done there, and the preparation of the activities programme of the Catholic clergy and the organization of publications and their distribution should be mentioned first.The institution of bishopric also supported the movement and tried to modify its direction in defence of the Catholic Church, and the clergymen were often reassured to resist all the restrictions laid down on the Catholic Church; religious belief and the feeling of national identity were forsted among people. In general, the clergy of the Samogitian Diocese were against the autocracy's regime in Lithuania, though they were not unanimous in their support of the Lithuanian national movement. But the interests of the Catholic Church consolidated the clergy and the believers into a unanimous anti-czarist front. The coordinating function in the movement was performed by Bishop M. Paliulionis. He tried to direct all the clergymen in defence of their national orientation to resist the czarist policy in Lithuania. He used different methods and tactics and managed to neutralize the attempts of the government to russify and convert Lithuanians into orthodoxy, thus in directly contributing to the national movement in Lithuania.