Jozef Gaganec was born on 25 March 1793 in the village of Vyšný Tvarožec (today's district of Bardejov) as the second of ten children in the family of a church cantor. He graduated from primary school in Bardejov, from where he continued his studies at grammar schools in Újhely and Levoča. He began his higher education at the academy in Velka Varadin, where he studied philosophy, and completed his theology studies in Trnava. In addition to his native Ruthenian, he also knew Latin, Hungarian and German.
He was ordained a priest in Velky Varadin on 8 March 1817. He started as a priest in the then village of Ruské Pekľany, later he was a parish priest in Vislav and Hejőkeresztúr and an igumen of Boršod county. Before his ordination he married Anna Kovalicka. In 1837 Jozef Gaganec became the secretary of the Eparch of Prešov, Gregor Tarkovič. In 1835, after Tarkovič's death, he became the capitular vicar of the Greek Catholic Eparchy of Presov. In the same year he was widowed and was soon appointed a canon and a member of the episcopal consistory.
Emperor Ferdinand I appointed Joseph Gaganec as bishop and on 25 June 1843 he was consecrated bishop in the imperial chapel in Vienna in the presence of the imperial court. He was consecrated by Bishop Basil Popovich of Mukachevo.
During his tenure as Eparch of Presov, 36 new churches were built in the eparchy and many churches were rebuilt and restored. During this period he ordained 237 priests (190 for the Prešov diocese, 12 for the Order of St. Basil and 35 for neighbouring eparchies). He addressed his priests frequently and very strongly with admonitions and requests to faithfully preserve and deepen their knowledge of the Eastern Rite.
He was a member of the Slovak Matrix. In 1862, on the initiative of Alexander Duchovič, he founded the Society of St. John the Baptist, aimed at caring for orphans or poor students. The Emperor awarded him the Order of Franz Joseph. In 1868, Pope Pius IX appointed him assistant to the papal throne. He died on December 22, 1875.
Source: https://sk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jozef_Gaganec
Photo source: Author Unknown - Erzeparchie Prestov - www.grkatpo.sk/historia_biskupi, Free work, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8551718
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Greek Catholic Bishop of the Presov Eparchy
