In memoriam: The Rev. Stephen Knapp, priest, scholar and patriot (05/03/98)

In memoriam: The Rev. Stephen Knapp, priest, scholar and patriot

by Daria M. Stec

MINNEAPOLIS - It was with deep sadness and regret that the parishioners of St. Constantine Ukrainian Catholic Church received news of the death on December 8, 1997, of the Rev. Mitred Steven V. Knapp, Ph.D., S.T.L., who had served as their beloved pastor for more than 28 years until his retirement in 1992. With Msgr. Knapp's death, the entire Ukrainian American community lost a great spiritual leader, scholar and patriot.

Msgr. Knapp was born on November 28, 1909, in Simpson, Pa., the oldest of nine children. His parents, Mykhaylo and Barbara (Orynnyk) Knapp, emigrated to the United States from the village of Zhygestiv, in the Lemkivschyna region of Ukraine. After he expressed his desire to study for the priesthood, Msgr. Knapp was sent to Rome in 1927 by Bishop Constantine Bohachevsky of Philadelphia. In 1929 the Angelicum University of Rome awarded him a doctorate in philosophy and in 1933, a licentiate in sacred theology.

On November 13, 1932, Msgr. Knapp was ordained to the priesthood at St. Josaphat Pontifical Seminary in Rome by Bishop Josaphat Kotsylovsky of Peremyshl (then in western Ukraine), who in 1947 died as a martyr for the faith in a Soviet prison. Prior to returning to the United States, Msgr. Knapp visited western Ukraine and Lemkivschyna, where his parents had been born.

Msgr. Knapp's first assignment was as assistant pastor at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Philadelphia. In 1934 he was appointed pastor of St. Volodymyr Ukrainian Catholic Church in New Kensington, Pa. It was here that Msgr. Knapp began his lifelong work of establishing appropriate and beautiful places of worship for Ukrainian Catholics in the United States; in his 19 years at St. Volodymyr's, Msgr. Knapp built a new church and school, organized a cultural center and purchased a residence for the sisters.

In 1952 Msgr. Knapp was assigned to St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church in Detroit and in 1956 to the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Hamtramck, Mich. Deeply committed to the spiritual and cultural development of Ukrainian American youth, Msgr. Knapp decided to organize the first Ukrainian co-educational high school in the United States. The school would offer spiritual teaching in the Ukrainian Catholic Church and courses in Ukrainian language, literature, history and culture, along with a traditional college preparatory education.

Then, as throughout his long service to the Ukrainian Catholic community, Msgr. Knapp delighted in the accomplishments of his young parishioners, taking every opportunity to praise and encourage them. Classes at the Immaculate Conception Ukrainian Catholic High School in Detroit began in 1959. Msgr. Knapp also helped found St. Josaphat's Ukrainian Catholic Church and its parochial school in Warren, Mich.

His work completed in Michigan, in 1962 Msgr. Knapp was assigned to the Cathedral of St. Nicholas in Chicago. That same year he was invested as monsignor and papal chamberlain.

Msgr. Knapp would spend the longest period of time in service to God as pastor of St. Constantine Ukrainian Catholic Church in Minneapolis. From the time of his arrival in 1964, he took on the task of revitalizing a relatively small church and community. His unstinting efforts led to the blessing of a new church in 1972, one of the finest examples of Byzantine architecture whose interior is intricately painted by the well-known Ukrainian artist Mykhaylo Dmytrenko. Along with the church, Msgr. Knapp built a new rectory, purchased a home for the sisters and established a Ukrainian museum/gallery dedicated to Cardinal Josyf Slipyj.

While pastor at St. Constantine's, Msgr. Knapp took on the additional duty of serving as pastor of St. Stephen's Ukrainian Catholic Church in St. Paul, Minn. When Msgr. Knapp retired after 60 years of priesthood in 1992, he moved back to Detroit to be near his family.

Through the years, the Ukrainian Catholic hierarchy bestowed many canonical honors upon Msgr. Knapp for his work. In 1973, while on a visit to Minneapolis, Cardinal Slipyj, patriarch of Ukrainian Catholics, honored Msgr. Knapp with the title of canon. In 1976 Msgr. Knapp was elevated to the rank of prelate of honor. In 1981 Cardinal Slipyj conferred upon him the rank of mitred archpriest - the highest distinction for a priest of the Eastern Byzantine Rite Church. On October 20, 1989, the Minneapolis/St. Paul Ukrainian community honored Msgr. Knapp on the occasion of his 25th anniversary as the pastor of St. Constantine's.

Bishop Innocent Lotocky of the St. Nicholas Eparchy in Chicago sent the following message: "Your tireless, self-sacrificing efforts and complete dedication during the past 25 years have resulted in miraculous achievements. The beautiful new church, comfortable dwelling for priests, precious museum and convent for the sisters are fruits of your labor and love for the Ukrainian Church and its people. The entire Eparchy of St. Nicholas - and especially your parishioners in Minneapolis - are proud to have this opportunity to give you a proper recognition for these accomplishments."

Msgr. Knapp understood the importance of establishing a Ukrainian Catholic presence in the United States that would serve the spiritual needs of the Ukrainian Catholic faithful, a presence of which Ukrainian Catholics would be proud and non-Ukrainians would admire. Yet his legacy goes far beyond the visible beauty of St. Constantine's and the other churches that he built. First and foremost, Msgr. Knapp worked tirelessly to be a spiritual leader and guide to his parishioners. Through his profound and thought-provoking sermons as well as other spiritual works, he inspired his parishioners to work hard at living a Ukrainian Catholic life in word and in deed.

He will also be remembered for his support and guidance of youth organizations, such as the Zahrava Ukrainian Dance Ensemble, which brought together youth from the entire Minneapolis Ukrainian American community and showcased Ukrainian folk dance across the United States and Canada. He was also very active in the establishment of the St. Constantine's Saturday School, ensuring that the young students had access to quality education about the Ukrainian Catholic religion, as well as Ukrainian language, history, literature and culture. He earned the respect of many, and church celebrations - such as the 50th anniversary of his priesthood in 1982 and the commemoration in 1988 of the Millennium of Christianity in Ukraine - drew prominent Ukrainian and non-Ukrainian religious, political and community leaders alike.

Finally, Msgr. Knapp never forgot his roots, and provided spiritual, moral and material support to the faithful in Ukraine.

Msgr. Knapp is survived by his brother, Mykhaylo Knapp, and his family; sisters Elizabeth Knapp, Dolores Knapp, Olha Prokopyk and her family, Ivanna Spakowsky and her family and Shirley Clark.

Daria M. Stec is a former parishioner of St. Constantine Ukrainian Catholic Church in Minneapolis.