Ateitis

Last updated
Ateitis
AbbreviationAteitis
FormationFebruary 19, 1910;114 years ago (February 19, 1910)
TypeLithuanian non-profit youth organization
PurposeAssociation of Catholic youth and student groups
Headquarters Kaunas, Lithuania
Membership3,000 members
Website www.ateitis.lt

The Lithuanian Catholic Federation Ateitis (literally, 'future') is a youth organization in Lithuania uniting Catholic-minded schoolchildren, university students, and alumni. Ateitis is a member of the Fimcap umbrella group of Catholic youth organizations. [1] Members of the Ateitis Federation are known as ateitininkai. [2]

Contents

Name and aims

The aim of Ateitis is the integral development of young people enabling them to be effective apostles of Christ and creative agents capable of changing society according to Christian values. [1] For historical reasons another central aim is to preserve the national heritage and culture of Lithuania. The five principles of Ateitis are: Catholicism, community spirit, social responsibility, education and patriotism. [3] The motto of Ateitis is To Renew All Things in Christ (Latin : Omnia Instaurare in Christo, Lithuanian : Atkurti Viską Kristuje). [2]

History

Ateitis was founded on Feb. 19, 1910 as a secret student organization in Kaunas, Lithuania, then part of the Russian Empire. [2] The Ateitis  [ lt ] magazine is associated with the organization. After Lithuania gained its independence in 1918 and during the interwar period, the organization grew significantly and gained social and cultural influence in the Lithuanian society. [2] Several famous Lithuanian writers, philosophers, historians, and politicians were members of the organization.

In the 1930s the authoritarian nationalist regime of President Antanas Smetona made it illegal to join Ateitis during the high school in order to slow down the growth of the organization, as many members of Ateitis later on had become leaders of the oppositional Christian Democratic Party. [4]

During the occupation of Lithuania by the Soviet Union between 1945 and 1990, no Catholic organizations were allowed in Lithuania. The organization, however, continued to function in exile outside of Lithuania; [1] for example, in North America. [2] [5] [4] To this day, the Ateitis Foundation maintains a center in Lemont, Illinois. [6]

After Lithuania regained its independence in 1990, Ateitis could return to Lithuania as an official youth organization. Due to the lengthy occupation, preserving the Lithuanian national heritage and culture has become a central element of the work and identity of Ateitis.

Ateitis is member of the international umbrella of Catholic youth organizations Fimcap since the General Assembly in Ghana in 2001. The first contact between Fimcap and Ateitis took place in Kehl, Germany, in 1999 during the Eurocontact seminar of Fimcap. After that, contacts between Fimcap and Ateitis became more frequent, ties grew stronger and this finally resulted in Ateitis being a full member of Fimcap. [3]

Notable members

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vytautas Landsbergis</span> Lithuanian politician

Vytautas Landsbergis is a Lithuanian politician and former Member of the European Parliament. He was the first Speaker of Reconstituent Seimas of Lithuania after its independence declaration from the Soviet Union. He has written 20 books on a variety of topics, including a biography of Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis, as well as works on politics and music. He is a founding signatory of the Prague Declaration, and a member of the international advisory council of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vytautas Magnus University</span> Public university in Kaunas, Lithuania

Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) is a public university in Kaunas, Lithuania.The university was founded in 1922 during the interwar period as an alternate national university.

Vytautas Šustauskas was a controversial Lithuanian politician who was leader of the Lithuanian Liberty Union and Union of the Fighters for Lithuania political parties. A self-styled "king of the beggars", he was elected Mayor of Kaunas in 2000 and became a member of the Seimas in the same year. He was known for protests against poverty, inequality, membership in the European Union and NATO, and pride parades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salomėja Nėris</span> Lithuanian writer

Salomėja Bačinskaitė-Bučienė, mostly known by her pen name Nėris was a Lithuanian poet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Church in Lithuania</span>

The Catholic Church in Lithuania is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. Lithuania is the world's northernmost Catholic majority country. Pope Pius XII gave Lithuania the title of "northernmost outpost of Catholicism in Europe" in 1939. The Vilnius Cathedral is the most important Catholic Church in Lithuania, which was previously used for the inauguration ceremonies of Lithuanian monarchs with Gediminas' Cap, while in modern times it is a venue for masses dedicated to the elected Presidents of Lithuania after their inauguration ceremonies and giving of oaths to the Nation in the Seimas Palace.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mečislovas Reinys</span> Lithuanian Roman Catholic titular archbishop and professor

Mečislovas Reinys was a Lithuanian Roman Catholic titular archbishop and professor at Vytautas Magnus University. He was the Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs from September 1925 to April 1926. He was imprisoned by the Soviets in Vladimir Central Prison where he died in 1953. His beatification case was opened in 1998 and he was recognized as a martyr in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mykolas Biržiška</span> Lithuanian professor, diplomat and politician (1882–1962)

Mykolas Biržiška, a Lithuanian editor, historian, professor of literature, diplomat, and politician, was one of the twenty signatories of the Act of Independence of Lithuania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pranas Dovydaitis</span> Lithuanian politician

Pranas Dovydaitis was a Lithuanian politician, Prime Minister of Lithuania, teacher, encyclopedist, editor, and professor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leonas Bistras</span> Lithuanian politician (1890–1971)

Leonas Bistras was one of the most prominent Lithuanian politicians of the interwar period. A Christian Democrat, he was in 1925 appointed Prime Minister of Lithuania. Bistras also headed the ministries of education, defense and foreign affairs in several different governments throughout the 1920s and 1930s and twice served as the speaker of the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas. After the 1926 Lithuanian coup d'état and the subsequent fall of parliamentary democracy, Bistras led the Christian Democrats and, despite persecution, acted as an outspoken leader of the opposition to the authoritarian President Antanas Smetona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vladas Mironas</span> Lithuanian politician

Vladas Mironas was a Lithuanian Catholic priest and politician. He was one of the twenty signatories of the Act of Independence of Lithuania and served as the Prime Minister of Lithuania from March 1938 to March 1939.

The Lithuanian World Community (LWC) is a non-governmental and non-profit organization established in 1949 that unifies Lithuanian communities abroad. The Constitution of the Lithuanian World Community declares that it consists of all Lithuanians living abroad. The Community is active in 42 countries, including representation in Lithuania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vytautas Mačernis</span> Lithuanian writer

Vytautas Mačernis was a Lithuanian existentialist poet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vladas Jurgutis</span>

Vladas Jurgutis was a Lithuanian priest, economist, and professor. As the first chairman of the Bank of Lithuania he is unofficially considered to be the "father of the Lithuanian litas."

The FIMCAP, which is short for Fédération Internationale des Mouvements Catholiques d'Action Paroissiale, is an umbrella organization for Catholic youth organizations. Its 31 member organizations are based in 28 countries. The FIMCAP was founded in 1962 and is recognised as an official Catholic organization by the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life. FIMCAP is also a full member of the European Youth Forum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kazys Bobelis</span> Lithuanian surgeon and politician

Kazys Bobelis was a Lithuanian surgeon and politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magdalena Galdikienė</span> Lithuanian politician (1891–1979)

Magdalena GaldikienėnéeDraugelytė was a Lithuanian Catholic feminist, teacher, and politician. For two decades, she chaired the Lithuanian Catholic Women's Organization, the largest women's organization in interwar Lithuania. She was the first to celebrate Mother's Day in Lithuania in 1928. She was elected to the Constituent Assembly of Lithuania in May 1920 and all subsequent Seimas (parliaments) until the 1926 coup d'état. After World War II, Galdikienė fled to the United States where she devoted herself to supporting, promoting, and preserving the art of her husband, the painter Adomas Galdikas.

Edvardas Turauskas was a Lithuanian diplomat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vincentas Borisevičius</span> Lithuanian Roman Catholic bishop (1887–1946)

Vincentas Borisevičius was a Lithuanian Roman Catholic bishop of the Telšiai Diocese. The process of his beatification was initiated in 1990.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leonas Prapuolenis</span> Lithuanian leader of 1941 uprisings

Leonas Prapuolenis was a Lithuanian public figure, commander and leader of the June Uprising of 1941 in Lithuania.

The Catholic Action Center was a Catholic Action organization active in interwar Lithuania from 1919 to 1940. It was an umbrella organization uniting and coordinating activities of various Roman Catholic societies and organizations in Lithuania.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Homepage of Ateitis: Mission and Vision
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Kriaučiūnas, Romualdas (Fall 2010). "Ateitis: Federation for the Future". Lithuanian Quarterly Journal of Arts and Sciences. Lituanus Foundation, Inc. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  3. 1 2 Homepage from KjG: Ateitis from Lithuania
  4. 1 2 Grazulis, Marius K. (2009-03-11). Lithuanians in Michigan. MSU Press. ISBN   978-0-87013-920-8.
  5. ↑ "Mūsų ateitis » Šiaurės Amerikos ateitininkai" (in Lithuanian). Mūsų ateitis. 2015. p. Pagrindinis. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  6. ↑ "Ateitis Foundation". Ateitininkų Namai. Lemont, IL. 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.