Born in a Rusyn village in Máramaros County, Austria-Hungary, he followed the example of his father and his uncle and entered the Ungvár Theological Seminary. He was ordained to the priesthood on December 14, 1902, aged 23. He served as a parish priest for nine years. The then Mukacevo Eparch Julius Firczak appointed him as the controller of the Eparchial bank and executive officer of its Unio Publishing Company, as well as the superior of the "Alumneum", the Eparchy's boarding school.