Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Bishops Celebrate a Roman Anniversary

This past weekend, the bishops of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, gathered in Rome for a synod, also celebrated the 50th anniversary of the dedication of the church of Santa Sophia (Holy Wisdom) on the via Boccea, the Ukrainian national church in the city. The head of the UGCC, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych, celebrated Vespers on the evening of Saturday, August 31st, and the Divine Liturgy on the morning of Sunday, September 1st, to mark the occasion. Among those attending the Sunday liturgy were Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches; the former President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, with his wife Marina; and the Ukrainian Ambassador to the Vatican, Tetiana Izhevska. The UGCC’s television channel Живе Телебачення live-streamed both services, and has now posted them on its YouTube channel; in the second video, the liturgy starts around the 21:00 mark.

The basilica was originally consecrated on September 27 and 28, 1969, by Yosyf Cardinal Slipyi (1892-1984), together with seventeen bishops of the UGCC, and in the presence of the Pope. The church is next to the Ukrainian University in Rome, which is dedicated to Pope St Clement I (ca. 88-99AD), who was exiled to the Crimean peninsula, which is now part of Ukraine, and died there as a martyr. For the original dedication service, part of the relics of St Clement were brought from the Lateran and placed in the church’s altar.

Blessing of the Waters on Julian Epiphany

Yesterday was the feast of the Holy Theophany on the Julian Calendar, the commemoration of the Baptism of Christ in the Jordan. It is a tradition of the Byzantine Rite to bless not just water in vessels within the church on this day, but also large bodies of water such as lakes and rivers. If the body of water is frozen (as is often the case, especially in the Slavic nations), they will then cut a hole in the ice, so that people can have a polar-bear swim in the newly blessed water. Part of the ritual of the blessing involves submerging a hand-held cross in the water three times; in many places, it is the custom for the bishop or priest who performs the blessing to throw the cross into the water, after which, people dive in to retrieve it. It is popularly believed that the person who gets it will enjoy good health for the coming year, which will definitely be needed after taking that bath.

Here we see part of the ritual at the Greek-Catholic Cathedral of the Resurrection in Kyiv Ukraine, celebrated by the Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, (and some ‘polar-bears’ at the end,) from the Youtube channel of Живе Телебачення (Zhyve Telebachennya), the television channel of the UGCC.

The Rebuilding of St Elias Church in Brampton, Ontario

Two years ago, the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church of St Elias the Prophet in Brampton, Ontario, was completely destroyed by fire. Ever since then, the community has been working to rebuild its church, and an important phase has just been completed, with the mounting of the main dome. Here is a video from their Facebook page, which really has to be seen to be believed. (Wait for the end, when the bells of the church are rung to celebrate this important phase of the rebuilding.)

The head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, will consecrate the finished church at the end of September and beginning of October; details will be announced on their Facebook page. If you are anywhere near the area, you should certainly attend the ceremony if at all possible. St Elias has and deserves a reputation as a place where the Byzantine liturgy is cultivated in the fullness of its richness and beauty, and this will be a unique opportunity to witness a ceremony of even-greater-than-usual magnificence.

More Photos of Archbishop Shevchuk’s Divine Liturgy in Rome

I recently published some photos of a hierarchical Divine Liturgy celebrated by Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych and leader of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, at the high altar of the Roman basilica of St Mary Major. His Beatitude was joined for the liturgy by a large number of concelebrating bishops and priests, and a very large crowd of the faithful; many of the latter were pilgrims visiting Rome together with their bishops, and many were members of Rome’s sizeable Ukrainian immigrant community, who always turn out in force when Archbishop Shevchuk is in the Eternal City. A good friend of mine, Mr Marc Williams, was also present, and since he is a much better photographer than myself, I asked him to share some of his photos with our readers, to which he very kindly agreed.

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“Our Fidelity to the See of Peter” : The Ukrainian Hierarchy Celebrates the Divine Liturgy in Rome

Earlier today, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych and leader of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, celebrated a hierarchical Divine Liturgy at the high altar of the Roman basilica of St Mary Major. Several other bishops of the UGCC and a very large number of priests concelebrated; the liturgy was sung by the choir of the Ukrainian College of St Josaphat, and the central nave of the church was packed with the faithful.

The sermon was given in Ukrainian, but at the end of the ceremony, His Beatitude briefly addressed in Italian those who might happen to be present as pilgrims in the basilica, which is of course a focal point of the Jubilee celebrations and devotions in Rome. He spoke of the persecutions which the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church has undergone over the years, and how “the voice of the Evil One” (la voce del maligno) tried 70 years ago to force the Church which he leads to renounce its fidelity to See of Peter. He then stated that the same voice now seeks to convince them to become Orthodox or join the Patriarchate of Moscow “so as not to be an obstacle.” The celebration of the Divine Liturgy in a Pontifical Basilica in Rome, therefore, is a concrete sign of the continuing fidelity of the UGCC to the See of Peter. He then led the entire assembly in singing a prayer for peace in the Ukraine, to which we unite our own fervent prayers.

During the Trisagion

During the Prokimen (the chant before the Epistle)

Incensation of the congregation during the Alleluia

The chanting of the Gospel

The sermon

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The Byzantine Liturgy in the Basilicas of Rome

Last week, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of Kiev-Halych, led an “ad limina” visit of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic hierarchy, of which he has been the head since March 2011. In the course of their stay in Rome, he and the other bishops celebrated the Divine Liturgy in a number of churches, including Saint John in the Lateran, the Pope’s own cathedral, St Paul’s outside-the-Walls, and St Mary Major. The Pontifical Ukrainian Institute of the Protection of the Holy Mother of God, (Папський Український Iнститут Покрова Пресвятої Богородиці) has posted a large number of photographs of these liturgies to their facebook page; you can see the complete albums at the following links. (first; second; third.) We are grateful for their kind permission to repost some of them here on NLM.

At Saint John in the Lateran

At Saint Paul’s outside-the-Walls

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