Church in Central and Eastern Europe

Apply online for our grants. . . and scholarships. . . To return to a partially completed application, click here.

The Collection builds the future leadership of the Church by supporting more than eighty people from Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union who are now studying in Rome.

Meet some students who are receiving scholarships from the Church in Central and Eastern Europe to study in Rome! 

[video to come]

Supporting the Catholic Church in Central and Eastern Europe to follow the light of Christ out of darkness...

The countries in Central and Eastern Europe have faced many years of hardship. They have been oppressed by czars, radical Communism, horrendous crimes against humanity, and revolutionary, civil, and world wars. Under communism, organized religion was opposed in favor of atheism to overthrow the power of the Russian Orthodox Church. Since the collapse of the former Soviet Union in 1991, Central and Eastern European countries have been working to rebuild political structures, social welfare, and the economy.

The USCCB Subcommittee on the Church in Central and Eastern Europe funds projects in 28 countries to build the pastoral capacity of the Church and to rebuild and restore the faith and the light of Christ in these countries that have dark pasts but bright futures. The funds collected in the Collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe are used to grant monies to support seminaries, social service programs, youth ministry, pastoral centers, church construction and renovation, and the transmission of the Gospel message through television, radio, and the Catholic press.

Through contributions and prayer, we can bring light to Central and Eastern Europe and help rebuild all that was lost during decades of persecution. To learn more, please click here.

Years after the fall of communism, even though some are now European Union citizens, the Catholics of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union still have great needs. The 2012 Collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, slated for February 22, Ash Wednesday, will focus on the theme "Great needs remain. Give faith to the future."

A Story of Faith Amidst Persecution

Interrupted Lives. . .: Catholic Sisters Under European Communism is heading north! This hour-long documentary, distributed by ABC, has been picked up by the Salt & Light Catholic cable channel in Canada. Visit www.saltandlighttv.org. . . for more information on these broadcast dates. Interrupted Lives documents the persecution and tribulations of the sisters who lived under post-World War II Communism until the fall of the Berlin Wall. These sisters were forced out of their homes and into exile, factory and farm labor, deportation, and jail. The film was partially funded by donations to the annual Collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe taken up in U.S. parishes. Learn more about the inspirational stories of these sisters or order a DVD.