Ruthenian Uniate Church

The formation of the church led to a high degree of confrontation among Ruthenians, such as the murder of Archeparch Josaphat Kuntsevych in 1623.

Opponents of the union called church members "Uniates," though Catholic documents today no longer use the term due to its perceived negative overtones.

The eastward expansion of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania had been facilitated by amicable treaties and inter-marriages of the nobility when faced with the external threat of the Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus'.

Both the Catholic and the Ruthenian churches suffered from the policy of nominations to higher benefices by the King, the indifference of the nobility, and a low state of clerical education and discipline.

[4] After Metropolitan Joseph II Soltan (1509–1522), the names of the great families are missing among the nominees to the bishoprics.

While the great families could have obtained the nominations had they cared, since they did not, the nominees came from the poorer gentry and from the burghers.

[5] Prelates continued to live the style of life they were used to as laymen: they took part in raids and carried on trade and money lending.

For the common people, their religion was ritualism; attendance was often limited to baptism and church burial.

As such, Ruthenians became a second class people in society, their culture backward compared to the other ethnic groups in the Commonwealth.

Intermarriage played a great role in the assimilation of the Ruthenian aristocracy; usually the Catholic faith prevailed.

With the loss of the elite, the Ruthenian Church and people increasingly lost leadership, representation in the government, and benefactors for church-sponsored programmes.

At the time of the negotiations for union there were eight Ruthenian bishoprics in the Commonwealth:[10] Later, the Archeparchy of Smolensk was erected.