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dated material~~deliver by October 10

OCTOber 2012

XLVIII No. 10

Synod of the UgCC

Held in Canada

he Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church has been held in Canada
on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the arrival of the first Greek
Catholic bishop in that country, Bishop NikiTa (Budka). The bishops issued
a special address to the faithful of Canada stressing that the bishops sought to get
to know the life of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic community in that North american country better. We [join in] the meeting, prayer and communication with the
faithful of the UGCC living in Canada in order to assure them of our prayer for
them, our respect and love, reads the document.
When blessed Nikita came to Canada in 1912, he saw the efforts of our people
to get established in the land where they went through many difficulties and obstacles. These people knew well the traditions and customs of their native land but
here they found themselves as if in another world, reads the address.
according to the hierarchs, Bishop Nikita in cooperation with the clergy, monastics and active lay people set about the work of strengthening and development of
the Ukrainian Church and community life in Canada with a great evangelic commitment. Thanks to his efforts and the efforts of his followers, the UGCC in Canada
achieved much during the last century.
Our Church has developed into the first metropolitanate outside Ukraine. it gave
many bishops, priests, monks and nuns to our Church not only in Canada, but also
all over the world. a large number of lay people achieved success in the Canadian
society as teachers and lawyers, doctors and engineers, political figures and military officers, reads the document.
The bishops also expressed gratitude to the faithful of UGCC for their commitment and faithfulness to the work of God which was felt by our Church especially
strongly in the end of 80sbeginning of 90s of the last century when the Lord
granted its nation freedom after the long centuries of persecutions.
We pray that this Synod [has been] an opportunity for the Holy Spirit to fill our
Church afresh and lead us into the future, reads the address.
information department of UGCC

At a pre-Synodal gathering, Latin Catholic Archbishop James Weisgerber,

Ukrainian Orthodox Metropolitan YUriY (Kalishchuk),
Bishop BOhdAN (dzurakh) and his Beatitude SviAtOSLAv.

New Star featres extesive coverage of the Synod of Bishops held in Canada.
Articles appear on pages 11, 12, 17, 18 and 19.

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new Star 11

October, 2012

His Beatitude Sviatoslav visited Youth

and Children at one of the oldest
Churches in Canada

is Beatitude Sviatoslav celebrated a prayer

service in the church and responded to the
questions of young people. The meeting was
moderated by andriy konopelnyi, who has graduated
from the local Catholic School of St. Paul, and is a
Fellow of Manitoba University, a member of the university association The Leaders of the Future. Since
2004, Fr. Demyan Dutka is the pastor of the Parish.
The Parish youth and children were united in the
Youth Community and in the Sanctuary Brigade. For
over the 60 years, the young parishionersmembers
of the Youth Communityparticipated in national

and diocesan conventions of the Ukrainian Youth of

Canada. in the early years of its existence, this community included around 30 people. Since 1960, only
teenagers are among members. The majority of club
members participated in the World Youth Day in
Toronto in 2002, which was also attended by Pope
John Paul ii.
in May of 1922, The Children of Mary community was established, among the members of which,
there were 55 girls. in October of 1929, the Society of
Mary for girls from the age of seven started operating.

his beatitude sviatoslav Visited

holy family home for the elderly

n 1957 the Sisters with the support

of local residents and the blessings
of Metropolitan MakSiM (Hermaniuk), bought out a former childrens hospital. They renovated it into an elderly
residence which could house 140 people. The official opening of the residence took place on May 26, 1957.
Soon, when this residence could not
meet the demand, the Sisters expanded
it in 1970 by 124 more places, and in
1978 built a new residence for an additional 160 beds. Then they dismantled
the former childrens hospital which had
been constructed in 1911.
On the 25th anniversary of the center,
in 1982, there was an official opening
and blessing of the Jubilee Park next to
the Holy Family Center. in 1992, a new
complex of elderly housing and a guest

residence were added and services provided were upgraded. in 2007, the center celebrated its 50th anniversary.
Todays residence is a comfortable,
well-equipped building which can serve
276 people. The center offers individual
physical, mental, spiritual and social
services. in order to improve the quality
of life for elders, many social and entertainment events are held. Ukrainian culture is the basis and anchor of the center,
although its residents include people of
various ethnic and religious affiliations.
The center also administers some programs in the city, which include the
Respite Care Program, an adult Day
Program, Meals on Wheels, Telephone
information Resource Line and others.
UGCC Department of Information

in 1935, the same community, but for boys, was established.

The Sanctuary Brigade has worked within the parish
since the day it was established. The responsibilities
of its members include lighting the candles at the altar
continued on page 19

Oath by Relics of Blessed Vasyl

Velychkovsky began Work of
Synod of Bishops

t the entrance to the church the

Synod participants were greeted by Rev. Bohdan Lukie
CSsR, pastor of St. Josephs parish. He
handed His Beatitude Sviatoslav the
personal cross of the Blessed Bishop
and Martyr Nikita Budka, whose centennial of arriving in Canada is commemorated by the
Ukrainian Greek
Catholic Church in
Canada this year.
in the name of the
Redemptorist
Order
of
the
Yorktown Province, the Order of
The Most Holy
Redeemer, and in
the name of all St.
Joseph parishioners, the Synod Fathers
were greeted by Rev. Larry kondra
CSsR, the Father Superior of the
Redemptorists of the Yorktown Province. The Prayer Service was attended
by nuns, members of the Synods organization committee and numerous volunteers who assist the Redemptorists in
hosting pilgrims who visit the chapel
and museum of the Blessed Bishop and
Martyr Vasyl Velychkovsky.
The text of the oath was read by the
longest-ordained bishop presentHis

Grace BaSiL (Losten), Bishop Emeritus

of the Stamford Eparchy. after the taking of the oath, there was a procession
by the Synod Fathers to the chapel of
the Blessed Bishop and Martyr Vasyl
Velychkovsky. The procession was
headed by the most recently ordained
Bishop BORYS (Gudziak), who held a
lighted candle as a
symbol of living
faith. Bishop Borys
was ordained on
august 26, 2012 as
the apostolic Exarch for the Ukrainian Greek Catholics in France,
Switzerland and
the Benelux countries.
in the Chapel of Blessed Priest and
Martyr Vasyl, the bishops prayed that
this great ascetic of faith and prisoner of
Communist concentration camps would
intercede for the successful course of
the Synod. Then the bishops visited the
Blessed Bishop and Martyr Vasyl
Velychkovsky Museum under the guidance of Rev. ivan Siyanchuk, the museum director.
UGCC Synod of Bishops Secretariat

Patriarchal Catechetical Commission Meets

embers of the Patriarchal

Catechetical Commission of
the Ukrainian Greek Catholic
Church met on august 2730, 2012 at
Westminster abbey in Mission, British
Columbia, Canada. The members were
being hosted by the Eparchy of New
Westminster, on the occasion of the
100th anniversary of the arrival of the
first Ukrainian Catholic bishop Blessed
NikiTa (Budka) and the Synod of
Bishops in Winnepeg, Manitoba, in
September 2012. Those in attendance
were: Bishop PETER (Stasiuk, CSsR),
Eparch of australia, New Zealand and
Oceania, and Chair of the Patriarchal
Catechetical Commission; Bishop DaNiEL (kozlinski), apostolic administrator
for Ukrainian Greek Catholics of argentina; Sr. Luiza Ciupa, SSMi, assistant

chair of the Patriarchal Catechetical

commission; Fr. Taras Barscevski, member of the Patriarchal Catechetical Commission and head of Biblical apostolate;
from the Eparchy of Toronto, irene
Galadza; from the Saskatoon Eparchy,

Sr. Marijka kondarevych, SSMi; from

the Edmonton Eparchy, Fr. Peter Babey,
Sr. Emmanuela kharyshyn, SSMi and
Gloria Green; from the Eparchy of New
Westminster, Fr. andriy Chornen`kyy;
from the Eparchy of St Josaphat in

Parma, Sr. ann Laszok, OSBM and Sr.

Olga Faryna, OSBM; from the Stamford
Eparchy, Fr. Vasyl Colopelnic; from the
Catechetical-Pedagogical institute (Ukraine), Nazar Duda and iryna Rasyak; Fr.
Peter ZhukDirector of the Catechetical
office in kyiv archeparchy, Rector of the
kyiv seminary; Fr. Mykhaylo Harvat, the
head of the Catechetical Commission of
kyiv-Galician Major archeparchy; from
australia, Fr. andriy Mykytyuk.
This meetings agenda included discussions on the implementation of the
Catechism; the timeline for the various
publications of the translations and the
development of a program for the
Catechumenate and the celebration of the
15th anniversary of the Patriarchal
Catechetical Commission.

12 new Star

October, 2012
Patriarch SViaTOSLaV (Shevchuk)s dropped 1 place.

leBaneSe oUtSide leBanon alSo eager

for PaPal viSit: ROME, The Lebanese population
SYro-MalaBar SYnod inforMS PoPe: The
Holy Father gave his assent to the election carried out
by the Synod of the Major archiepiscopal SyroMalabar Church of Fr. George Rajendran kuttinadar
S.D.B. as bishop of the Eparchy of Thuckalay of the
Syro-Malabars, india. He likewise gives his assent to
the election of Fr. Jacob Muricken as auxiliary of the
Eparchy of Palai of the Syro-Malabars, india.

foUr CHUrCH leaderS on KorrespondentS toP 100 MoSt inflUential UkrainianS: On august 31 the magazine Korrespondent
released its annual TOP 100
Most influential Ukrainians
ranking. The list includes
leaders of churches in
Ukraine, with Metropolitan
VOLODYMYR (Sabodan) of
the Ukrainian Orthodox
Church-Moscow
Patriarchate (UOC-MP) taking
the highest ranking among
them:
23. Metropolitan VOLODYMYRof the UOC-MP
49. Patriarch FiLaRETof the UOC-kyivan Patriarchate
54. Cardinal LUBOMYR (Husar)former Patriarch of
the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
62. Patriarch SViaTOSLaV (Shevchuk)of the UGCC
Compared to the top 100 list that Korrespondent
released last year, Metropolitan Volodymyrs ranking
rose 4 places, Patriarch Filarets dropped 5 places,
Cardinal LUBOMYR (Husar)s rose 27 places, and

s pe ciaL sy nod editi on

SYnod of BiSHoPS of UgCC dealS witH

QUeStionS of PaStoral Care for YoUtH:
The Synod of Bishops of the UGCC, which just concluded in Canada, heard reports of its committees on
the first day of its activity.
This year, the bishops paid special attention to the
questions of pastoral care for young people, care for
migrants and catechization. The bishops expressed
their support for the establishment of the Unified youth
space in UGCC which will allow to unite the youth in
Ukraine and elsewhere, create for young Catholics a
platform for communication and exchange of experience of spiritual life and testimony of their faith in the
modern world.
The bishops expressed concern over the continuous
and large-scale migration of people from Ukraine. a
number of decisions were passed to support them
abroad and prevent them from losing their national and
religious identity.
as for catechization, the bishops decided to include
the study of the Catechesis of UGCC in the educational-instructional programs of the clergy and laity, to
develop new catechetical programs on the basis of the
Catechism of UGCC and in the spirit of the Christian
tradition of Volodymyrs Baptism, to improve catechization in the countries where no institutions of
UGCC exist. So reported the in formation Department
of UGCC

BiSHoPS diSCUSS next StePS in viBrant

PariSH Plan: We have parishes that are growing
and need pastoral, financial and structural support, said
Canadian Bishop kEN (Nowakowski) of New
Westminster, who heads the Ukrainian Catholic
Churchs implementation team for its strategic plan,

living outside their country is much greater than that

residing in Lebanon. The majority of migrants are
Maronite Catholics trying to maintain, with no little
difficulty, their roots.
The Diocese of Rome hosts a Maronite church dedicated to the patron saint of the only Eastern Church
that has no schisms but that is wholly Catholic and
proud of her fidelity to the Successor of Peter. in an
interview, ZENiT talks to Monsignor antoine Gebran,
chaplain of this mission. on what the [visit] will bring
to his homeland. The full text of the interview is at:
http://www.zenit.org/article-35513?l=english

new CroSSeS inStalled at CatHedral of

Saint SoPHia in roMe: The crosses, which only
recently started to decorate the cathedral, were made in
Cherkassy. all the other roofing restoration works
were performed by an italian firm.
in October this year, these crosses will be blessed on
the restored Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Rome, Puting the crosses on the domes marks the completion of
restoration works, which started in July last year. On
this occasion, His Beatitude SViaTOSLaV (Shevchuk),
urged the faithful people to participate in the allUkrainian Pilgrimage to Rome, as the part of measures
have been inserted by Vatican into the official program
of the Year of Faith in the Catholic Church.
Press Service of the organizational committee

PreSident YanUkovYCH greetS leader of tHe CatHoliC CHUrCH(eS) of BeirUt: Beirut

Ukrainian eParCHY of arMenian aPoStoliC has five dioceses: Beirut of the Maronites (episcopal
see since 1577), an archieparchy with some 232,000
CHUrCH: On august 26, Ukraines President Viktor Yanukovych greeted the
leader of the Ukrainian Eparchy of the
armenian apostolic
Church, archbishop
GRiGORiS (Buniatian),
on the occasion of his
birthday, as reported
by UNN.
On the occasion of
Your birthday, let me
wish You good health,
inspiration and spiritual joy. Let the Lord support You
in the service to the church, Ukraine and the brotherly
armenian community for many years, reads the
address.

faithful under the care of archbishop PaUL YOUSSEF

(Matar); Beirut of the Greek Melkites (dating from the
fourth century) and Jbeil of the Greek Melkites (suburbicarian 1881), a metropolitan see with 200,000 faithful under archbishop CYRiL SaLiM (Bustros); Beirut of
the armenians (1928-1929), metropolitan see and
patriarchal eparchy of Cilicia of the armenians, serving 12,000 faithful and led by His Beatitude NERSES
BEDROS XiX (Tarmouni), Patriarch of Cilicia of the
armenians; Beirut of the Chaldeans (1957) with
19,000 faithful under Bishop MiCHEl (kassarji); Beirut
of the Syrians (1817), eparchy of the patriarchal
church of antioch of the Syrians with 14,500 faithful
under the care of His Beatitude iGNaCE YOUSSiF iii
(Younan), Patriarch of antioch of the Syrians.
The city also has one apostolic vicariate, that of
Beirut of the Latins which has 10,000 faithful and the
vicar of which is archbishop Paul Dahdah O.C.D

Vision 2020. Some urban parishes have an aging

population and declining numbers, and synod members
must decide how to support the parish priest who
spends so much time visiting the sick and officiating at
funerals, said Bishop Nowakowski. at the other end of
the spectrum, the bishops must consider how to help
keep priests in busy, large parishes from burning out.
The Vibrant Parish initiative was approved by the
synod in 2011 when the bishops met in Brazil.

BiSHoPS of UgCC at SYnod take SeCreCY

oatH: The first official act of this years Synod of

ortHodox leadernortH aMeriCa'S CHUrCHeS Can Be exaMPle for Ukraine: PORTaGE La PRaiRiE, Manitoba Catholic and
Orthodox churches in Canada and the United States
can be an example for their counterparts in Ukraine,
Canada's top Ukrainian Orthodox leader told the
Ukrainian Catholic Synod of Bishops. Ukrainian
Orthodox Metropolitan Yurij of Winnipeg, Manitoba,
addressing the worldwide synod September 10, told
the bishops it was "evident that our God is blessing us
and helping us develop this better relationship. We also
pray that in Ukraine this same attitude will develop as
well," he said at the first meeting of the synod.
The synod was private, but part of its initial session
was open to media. Metropolitan Yurij told several
dozen Ukrainian Catholic bishops that the North
american Catholic and Orthodox bishops have worked
through the "animosity" that once marked relations
between their churches, and they now collaborate. "in
Ukraine, they have to go through the same kind of
process," he said, and the bishops outside Ukraine
must be patient with their brothers.
While the majority of Ukrainians are Orthodox, they
are divided into three churches: one in communion
with the Russian Orthodox Church, one with a patriarch in kiev and the third known as the autocephalous
Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The forced unification of
the Ukrainian Orthodox Church with the Moscow
Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the
1940s "is one of the principal problems," the metropolitan said.

Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church took

place in the Church of St. Joseph in Winnipeg (Canada). The Synod fathers took their oath to keep secret
and prayed for the assistance of the Holy Spirit in their
activity.
according to the information Department of UGCC,
the prayer was led by Patriarch Sviatoslav in concelebration with the metropolitans and bishops from
Ukraine, Canada, the United States, Poland, Brazil,
argentine, Germany, Great Britain, italy and australia.
in total, 38 bishops participated in the Synod.

SYnod of BiSHoPS ConSiderS role of laY

PeoPle in CHUrCH: On September 11, the Synod
of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
considered the theme of this years meeting of the hierarchs, Role of lay people in the life and mission of the
Church.
according to the information Department of the
UGCC, four reports dealt with the biblical-theological
basis of the calling and mission of lay people in the
Church, the historic context of development of lay
movement in the UGCC, activity of lay people in the
UGCC parishes today and results of laymen inquiries
regarding their vision of their role in life and the mission of the Church.
During discussions of the reports, the bishops
emphasized the role of lay people in the preservation
of the faith in the difficult social-political circumstances of the last century, the four waves of emigration and persecution of the Church in the homeland. it
was mentioned that the holiness of lay people was recognized by the whole Catholic Church.
The bishops also stressed the importance of the role
of lay people for the Church in view of the fact that the
environment of devout lay people produces many
vocations to priestly and monastic life. Therefore, a
special emphasis was laid on the spiritual care for families and catechization of children, youth and adults.

new Star 13

October, 2012

Pope Signs Post-synodal

document in lebanon

is Beatitude, GREGORY iii (Laham), Patriarch of

antioch, Jerusalem, alexandria and all the East,
welcomed His Holiness Benedict XiV to the
(Melkite) Basilica of St Paul in Harissa, Lebanon. Here, on
the Feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross the Pope
signed the post-synodal document of the Special assembly
of Bishops for the Middle East, Ecclesia in Modio Oriente.
The retinue of Patriarchs, Metropolitans, archbishops,
Bishops and other dignitaries entered the basilica accompanied by chants of the Byzantine Tradition. after an address by archbishop Nikola Eterovic, secretary general of
the Synod of bishops, the ceremony continued with chants
according to the Maronite Church Tradition.
Benedict spoke to assembled hierachs, clergy and laity
and delegtions of the Orthodox Churches as well as Muslim and Druze guests. also present were representatives of
the cultural and civil society.
a summary of the points contained in the apostolic
Exhortation Ecclesia in Modio Oriente has been provided
by Vatican Radio. The document is based upon the fortyfour final propositions of the October 10-26, 2010 Synod
for the Middle East, held at the Vatican.
an introduction asks the native faithful who belong
to the several Eastern Catholic Churches sui juris, to open
dialogue with Muslims and Jews. Unity is desired within
the context of geographical, religious, cultural and sociopolitical diversity found in the Middle East. His Holiness
renewed his call to conserve and promote the varied ritual
ex-pressions, the heritage of all Christ's Church, each
according to its own Tradition.
Three parts of the document address matters of concern. Part one examines the context of life in the region,
including the noble and authentic contribution of the varied members of the Body of Christthe Church. Too, His
Holiness dramatically mentioned the deaths, the victims of
human blindness, fear and humiliation amid the conflicts
that involve even the Holy Places in Jerusalem. a call to
conversion to peace was issued to override distinctions of
race, gender, and classto practice peace in private and
community life.
Christians are encouraged to embrace the mosaic of a
multitude of traditions which favors ecumenical unity, yet
does not mean uniformity of tradition and celebrations.
The Exhortation reasserts the work of theology and ecumenical commissions to speak to important moral questions: family, sexuality, bioethics, freedom, justice and
peace.

At the Basilica of St Paul in harissa, Lebanon, Melkite Patriarch his Beatitude Gregory iii (Laham)
welcomes his holiness Pope Benedict Xvi, who in the presence of other Patriarchs,
blesses those gathered for the ceremony at which he signed the
Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Medio Oriente.
Next mentioned is the relation between Christians, Jews
and Muslims based upon the theological foundations of
faith: belief in a single Godand to recognize in the other
believer a brother to love and respect.
Two new realities were enumerated: secularism and fundamentalismeach with a healthy aspect, and each with
detrimental aspects which seek to take power for political
ends, at times using violence, over individual conscience
and over religion. The Pope urged all [religious leaders]
to uproot threats which indiscriminately and fatally affect
believers of all faiths.
Migrationexodus or hemorrhageof Christians, who
often feel fearful and humiliated, and flee is a crucial issue.
Noting that the Middle East with few or no Christians is
not the Middle East, His Holiness invited pastors of the
Eastern Churches to help priests and faithful who have fled
keep in contact with their families and their Church. Those
who might receive these refugees are exhorted to allow
them the possibility of worshipping according to their own
traditions. in turn this chapter considers immigrant workers of the Latin Rite from africa, the Far East and indian
sub-continent who often experience discrimination and
injustice,
in Part two, Patriarchs, bishops, priests, seminarians
and consecrated religious are individually addressed. Patriarchs are encouraged to exercise their role as leaders
favoring consultation and collegial action within the
framework of the Council of Catholic Patriarchs of the
Middle East.
Bishops, called a visible sign of the unity in diversity of
the Church are to proclaim God's Word in sometimes difficult situations, and to ensure a wise, honest and transparent management of the temporal goods of the Church.
Priestsand priests-in-training are exhorted to instructeducatethe People of God in the construction of
a civilization of love and unity. Likewise the clergy
whether celibate, or the ancient component of Eastern tradition, marriedare to persue intellectual and spiritual
renewal to be able to transmit an in-depth awareness of the
Word of God and the doctrine of the Church.

why?/why:

Morality

hat with all the political hoopla and mudslinging all-too-evident these days, i suspect
that much pious wind will be added to the
hurricane by self-righteous preachers. (Being a member of the Order of Preachers and myself responsible
for much verbal ventilation, i know whereof i speak!)
inevitably, much such production centers around
morality, and is aimed at getting people into a lather.
Why the lather? My guess is that, since the time of
St. augustinewho, by the way, died in the year 430,
almost 1,600 years agomorality has largely been
focused on body parts found between the neck and the
knees, and how these parts shouldand, most importantly, should notbe used. Lets cut to the chase, shall
we? For many, morality is almost exclusively about
sex, and sex usually gets people into a lather. Sanctimonious preachers lustily inveigh against the evils of
the flesh, and they stand ready to proclaim transgressors from the pulpit.
a definite problem for preachers, however, is that
ones words often come back to haunt one; as
Shakespeare would say, aye, theres the rub! i personally find it entertaining to watch a blubbering evangelist, guilty of doing exactly what he harangued others

By Fr denny Molitvy will

Monastic lifeborn in the Middle Eastprovides men

and women who are called to collaborate with the bishops
and pastoral and missionary activities. They are to meditate
upon and observe the evangelical counsels without which
there can be no spiritual regeneration.
The laity, members of the Body of Christ through Baptism are fully associated with the mission of the Church.
They are to be formed to overcome all divisions and subjective interpretations of Christian life.
Family Life faces certain Middle Eastern tendencies,
based upon an overlooked concept of equality between
men and women. The Exhortation addresses the need for
an end to discrimination and calls for women to play a
greater role in public and ecclesiastic life.
Young people are to be instructed in respect for others.
as well they are to be afforded dignity by parents, teachers
and public institutions recognition of their rights from the
moment of conception.
Part three examines the place of Scripture, liturgy,
sacramental life and prayer, evangelism, catechesis and
Christian formation. Each of these areas is not solely applicable to the Middle East. all can benefit from a deeper
knowledge and understanding of the Bible. No one is immune to the importance of liturgical awarenessto know
the services, and the underlying elements that are expressed through faithful celebrations of liturgical rites.
Baptism's key role allows those who receive the Sacrament
to be in communion with other members.
Prayer, particularly in the Middle East with its many
places of pilgrimage for word-wide visitors, is a way to
consolidate faith. all holy places should be freely accessible without restriction. and the motivation of the places of
pilgrimage is to be penitence and the search for God.
Evangelization is an essential element in transmitting the
faiththe mission of the Church. With charity, the Church
is to do as did Christdraw in those in need: orphans, the
poor, disabled, the sick. Tools for such activity may be
found in educational centers of all levels as implements of

continued on page 19

return with the next issue of New Star.

about, proclaim i have sinned, Lord! i want to shout

back, Yes, you have, and unfortunately youre not
alone! The Catholic Church has had its own problems
with sex scandals in recent years, and these have done
nobody any goodneither for the Church, nor for the
obsessed media, not even for the titillated masses
whose tastes have been lowered to the level of the
tabloids.
Please notice what i am not saying: i am not saying
that sex should not enter into the discussion. after all,
sexuality is basic both to our make up as individuals
and to the continuation of human life and the societal
forms which that life exhibits: were it not for sex, we
wouldnt be here to argue about sex, would we? Moreover, many life-and-death issues are sex-related: abortion comes immediately to mind, while others like
overpopulation and the resulting poverty and starvation
seem to get less press. Hmmmm i wonder why?
Could it be that we, like the aforementioned evangelist, see morality as a product for export? You know,
the self-satisfied finger-pointing or bludgeoning aimed
at those people, you know the ones i mean who do
all those unspeakable things that respectable people
wouldnt be caught dead doinguntil they get caught,
of course, and thereby lose their respectability, at
which point we can disregard them as well. Harumpf!
it is much less comfortable, however, to see morality in

terms of issues where we might risk being judged

guiltylike the people Jesus condemned for their total
lack of concern for the least of my brothers and sisters, or like the rich man sentenced to eternal hell-fire
for ignoring Lazarus, the poor beggar at his door. Morality includes these issues which hit home with us, and
we likewise will be held accountable. Gulp!
Morality is to life what a users manual is for a car:
it can be ignored, but there are definite risks involved.
in essence, morality is where the rubber hits the road
in our everyday lives; ignoring important moral questions is like polishing the sidewalls while ignoring the
bulge and the lack of tire treadin other words, a disaster waiting to happen. Some say that freedom is
being allowed to do whatever one wants, no matter
how foolish those choices may be. i prefer to think of
freedom as a range of good choices from which to
choose, choices which will be
beneficial both to the individual
and to the society. Morality serves
as a guidepostor, even, as a
guardrail preventing unfortunate
but foreseeable and therefore
avoidable accidentsalong the
road to the fullness of life which
both we and God desire for all of
us.
fr. Jim Karepin, op

14 new Star

October, 2012

Justice shall you pursue

deut. 16:20

ome years ago, as a religious

Sister, i did Biblical studies in the
Holy Land. While i studied there
for two summers, the mayor of
Jerusalem was Ted kallek. He was
greatly respected by all arabs, Muslims, and Jews because he was not only
very approachable but extremely just
when dealing with individuals. it was a
very peaceful existence for persons of
all faiths living at that time in
israel. For most people then,
this was an experience of the
kingdom of the almighty on
earth as His people attempted
to live by the Covenant given
them.
Presently, in the United States,
we are experiencing the 2012 Democratic and Republican Presidential campaigns. These campaigns are far from
just and truthful. accusations by both
political parties, one against the other,
of all sorts of evil as tax-cheating, voter
fraud, corporate stealing, cult-like
devotion to abortion, rejection of the
traditional biblical model of the family,
and much hostility expressed at those
with Christian viewpoints as was the
case with the recent Chick-fil-a president, Dan Cathy. This is a far cry from
the justice, freedom, and hope pos-

sessed by the founding Fathers of the

United States of america. This isnt the
promise of an america our ancestors
sought when they travelled across the
ocean. There is too much pandering
now by politicians to the extremes of
political ideologies and the division of
americans in the process.
We know that the pursuit of justice is
central, not only to a Christian life, but
to the existence of our democracy. also central for us is to
view every human being as
created in Gods own
image. This conviction will
bring a peaceful transformation of hearts, respectful and
harmonious living.
We need faith in the power of God
who comes from the future into our
present world. Only God will bring justice, peace, and reconciliation to our
political process. We need to do our
part in staying informed and praying for
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in our
discernment process as to which leader
we vote for in November. Most Holy
Mother of God, intercede for us and for
our country!
Sister Jonathan Wachko, OSBM

Creators are we

he first words in the Old Testament reveal

Gods image, in the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth. (Gen 1, 1). in a
number of verses following, God said, let Us create
man in Our image, in the likeness of Ourselves,
(Gen 1, 26). God tells us that He is the creator and
that we are creators in His likeness. We are not the
prime creator but we are co-creators. God has given
us the work of co-creating the pinnacle of creation,
man, the master of creation.
We take part in the creation of our very lives from

renault donates 2 Eco-sustainable vehicles

VaTiCaN CiTY, (Zenit.org).- The Holy

Father received two Renault batterypowered vehicles, made expressly for
the Pontiff and the staff at his service.
The gift was explained during a press
conference held in the Marconi Room of
Vatican Radio.
Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office,
recalled some of the salient passages
about the commitment of the Catholic
Church to care for the environment and
renewable energy. in his encyclical
Caritas in veritate, Benedict XVi spoke
about the environment and also addressed the topic in his 2010 World Day
of Peace Message, if You Want to
Cultivate Peace, Protect Creation.
The Holy See already has other electric cars. in particular, the Holy Father
made use of one during his pastoral visit
to Venice and arezzo, and on the occa-

conception to life with God in His kingdom. The uniqueness of our personhood
is continuously co-created by the decisions made by everyone on earth
whether in the past, present, or future.
We are co-created by our parents, teachers, leaders, role models, friends, society, and nation.
Our personal co-creativity depends on
how we are affected in the use of our
free will to do good. When we decide to act
in a virtuous way we are co-creating with the will of
God. When we engage in vices then we do not
express Gods image and act contrary to Gods love,

You Could Look it Up

few hundred years ago several
pious feudal lords and princes
approached St Paissii Velychovskii, commissioning him to travel to
Mount athos, the monastic republic in
Greece, to learn the special monastic traditions developed there (primarily hesychasm, the prayer of the heart, the Jesus
Prayer.)
imagine his surprise when he arrived
on the monastic peninsula and realized
that none of the illiterate sheepherder
monks currently in residence there had
even the faintest clue of the hesychastic
tradition. He spent decades collecting
and translating and editing the crumbling hand-copied texts that the brothers
were using as t. p., rescuing much of the
Churchs sacred tradition.
When he eventually returned to the
Slavic lands he was coerced into becoming abbot/archimandrite (Hegumen) of
a whole bunch of monasteries generously supported by the local boyars and
nobility, and much to his chagrin was
suddenly the Spiritual Director of thou-

eco-friendly popemobile
delivered to benedict XVi:

sands of people. Back then thousands

of people was a lot he tried to explain
that the only reason hed gone to Mount
athos in the first place was to try and
find a Spiritual Director for his own
poor sinful self. and, much to his chagrin, he never found one; that is, he wasnt ever blessed with a real flesh-andblood Spiritual Father.
Due to Gods expansively magnificent
sense of humor and the serious commercial and technological efforts of a bunch
of people throughout Europe, more or
less reasonably priced books sprang
miraculously into existence, with the
help of a guy named Gutenberg and
some technology borrowed from China
and Japan, and literacy as a general trend
slowly became pervasive across most of
the world.
St Paissii in his great wisdom realized,
when presented with a serious dearth of
actual physical live-action real time
Spiritual Direction by a recognized qualified sanctified glorified TM obscure
monk at some primitive skete on a

sion of last ash Wednesday, from Sant'

anselmo to Santa Sabina. Moreover,
Paul Vi Hall is equipped with photovoltaic panels, Father Lombardi commented.
Explaining the details of the vehicles,
the president of Renault-italy, Jacques
Bousquet, said they have entirely electric
motors, made on the kangoo Maxi Z.E.
model, developed in collaboration with
the Gruau car-body designer.
One of them is white, for the Pope, and
the other is blue, for the use of the
Vatican gendarmerie. They were presented to Benedict XVi by the presidentdirector general of the Renault Group,
Carlos Ghosn, in the course of a visit to
the papal summer residence of Castel
Gandolfo.
With this gift to His Holiness, Renault renews its strong and continuous
commitment to sustainable development
and respect of the environment, said
Carlos Ghosn.
The white car for the Popes use has
the papal coat of arms on both front
doors and is 15 feet in length and 5.9 feet
in width, and can run for around 105
miles before being recharged.
Luca Marcolivio

the Challenges of
discipleship
Office of Faith Formation
to our own detriment and the harm of others.
Prayer leads to the acceptance of the privilege of
the fantastic responsibility of co-working with God.

Greek cliff side that books, manuscripts, icons, and liturgical texts and
traditions presented us with a rich
resource of spiritual direction especially in the absence of a real fleshand-blood guru. So the Desert Fathers
and their buddies became his mentors,
even though they had been dead for
more than 1,000 years, through their
writings.
and now, for those of you who have
access to the myriad forms of media
and publishing platforms, resources
and technology, Metropolitan andrij
or St Gregory the Theologian or St
Theophane the Recluse or Fr Lev
Gillett or St John Climacus or whoever. (id candidly advise you to avoid
archbishop Lefebvre, any ex-priest
married to a lady named Skyhawk,
and to tread carefully through Fr
Seraphim Rose) can be your Spiritual
Father, or you can learn important lessons from several orthodox sources, a
little here, a little there as the Holy Spirit
moves through your life. all you have to
do is open yourself up to him or her or
whoever. We have vast libraries available through ever more numerous media

opportunities. all the best spiritual counsel is right there at our fingertips. its
wonderfully miraculous if you can find
an actual flesh-and-blood kindred soul
willing and able to advise you one-onone, personally; or even if you can receive a bit of wisdom here, and a bit
from there. But its rare these days.
Books are easy and everywhere.

new Star 15

October, 2012

concert in honor of pope benedict XVi in

Vatican for pilgrimage to rome,
With the blessing of His Beatitude Sviatoslav, the religious society Hagia Sophia decided to invite
this youth, however, already highly
professional, orchestra for the best
representation of the city of Lviv
and of its talents, as well as, for the
promotion of Ukrainian orchestral
music at the one of the most famous
stages in the world. i consider this
to be an extremely important event
in the history of Ukrainian music"
said Fr. Dr. ivan Datsko, who is
the chairman of the organizing
committee of the pilgrimage.
The organizers of the pilgrimage
expect that the concert will be attended by the members of the

College of Cardinals and the Synod

Fathers, who will come at that time
to the Vatican from all around the
globe, as well as by the representatives of the city government of
Rome, by the presidents of both the

province of Rome and the Lazio

region, by the representatives of
Ukrainian diplomatic structures
and Ukrainian government. it is
also anticipated that the pilgrimage
will be attended by many pilgrims
from Ukraine and from abroad.
it should also be mentioned that
Myroslav Skoryk is the author of
the Moses opera, which was
composed on the demand of the
Vatican and was given on the occasion of Pope John Paul ii visiting of
Ukraine.
Press Service,
Organizing Committee

archbishop of roman Catholic Church

on Celebration in September

elebratory events of the Roman Catholic

Church to mark the 600th anniversary of the
transfer of the seat of Lviv archbishops from
Halych to Lviv (1412) have been going on since
February 1, 2012. The events included the Eucharist
Congress, which, according to archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki, was a wonderful experience of the
faith and sense of community which is being created
by the RCC in Ukraine.
The archbishop called the faithful to
participate in the joint prayer of the
Jubilee Year, the apogee of which
will be the annual procession in
honor of Jacob Strepa. according to the letter, the procession
was held on September 8 and
began in the Sanctuary of St.
antony of Padua in Lviv with

a liturgy.
a delegate of Pope Benedict XVi, Cardinal Josef
Tomko, from the Vatican celebrated the Eucharist.
after the Eucharist, at the Cathedral Square,
an evangelization concert was held and in
the evening, in the Lviv Opera House, an
evening event in honor of the Pope and
the first night of the film i Was Looking
for You about Pope John Paul ii.
Pope Benedict XVi himself joins our
celebration through his delegate, the
mentioned Cardinal Josef Tomko,
and in that way, comes in our midst
as the Vicar of Jesus Christ is a great
privilege and honor for us, reads
archbishop Mokrzycki's address.
riSU

capuchin brothers to found

Monastery in Ukraine

apuchin brothers are

founding
another
monastery in Ukraine,
this time in Uzhhorod. This
will be the seventh Ukrainian
city with active Capuchin
monks, the Catholic magazine Credo informs.
The Capuchins petitioned
the local Eparch of the Greek
Catholic Church M i L a N
(Shashik) to engage in evangelization there.
The church and new monastery the Capuchin brothers
will construct is in the center
of Uzhhorod.
From the city government the
Capuchins received a boiler house,
which for many years hasnt been
used. They will transform the space
into a church and monastery. Now

this place is in disrepair; however,

to get permission to refurbish the
old building is easier than building
a new one.
Now the Capuchins live in a

Greek Catholic Seminary, where they will

teach and serve 80 seminarians. Brother Justin
Rusin, a former longtime abbot in a monastery in Vinnytsia, will
be the confessor of the
seminary and Brother
Roman Pop, from the
Mukachevo Greek
Catholic Eparchy, will
teach bioethics and
moral theology. also
Brother adam came
from Poland to Uzhhorod.
in addition to Uzhhorod, the
Capuchin brothers are in kyiv,
Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, Dniprodzerzhynsk, Starokostiantyniv and
krasyliv.

We can learn something

from our Muslim brethren
his beatitude sviatoslav
Western society is
losing a sense of the
supernatural while the
Muslim world is not. in
their lives religion
holds a prominent
place, thinks
the
UGCC leader.
in his opinion, a second lesson lies in learning not to be afraid of
expressing ones faith
akin to the way that the
Muslims do this. it has to be admitted that sometimes Christians in their everyday life are ashamed of
their faith. Then there emerges a certain separation
a dichotomy: in church we piously and ostentatiously
pray, but once we leave the church we live as if God
did not exist... Our faith often does not influence our
daily life. Therefore, maybe we should be less compromisingnot to be ashamed of being Christians,
is the Primates conviction.
a third lesson worth learningespecially concerns
categorical youthwe cannot engage in compromises or agreements with evil.
if we shut our eyes to the evil, thinks UGCC
Head, done by me, my brother or our politicians, then
we become collaborators. Therefore categoricalness
can be expressed in such a concept as jihad. although
in our case we have to properly understand this word.
By declaring war on all that is evil in us and in our
societywe will be good Christians, stated His
Beatitude Sviatoslav.
UGCC department of information

President Yanukovych Highly

appreciates activity of roman
Catholics in Ukraine

n occasion of the 600th anniversary of

the transfer of the metropolitan seat of
the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) in
Ukraine from Halych to Lviv, President
Yanukovych issued a greeting address to the
Catholics where he highly appreciated the
achievements of RCC in Ukraine.
This is to greet you sincerely on occasion of
the blessed jubilee, the 600th anniversary of the
transfer of the capital of the Latin metropolitans
from Halych to Lviv.
The history of Ukraine is closely connected
with the activity of the Roman Catholic Church,
whose theological and cultural achievements
enriched the sacral heritage of our country considerably.
Todays event is an excellent opportunity to
touch upon the roots of the Christian creed, to
thank the previous generations of the faithful for
their spiritual feats.
On this solemn day, we should show special
respect for all the leaders of the Lviv cathedral
of the Latin Rite. it is thanks to their zealous
Church activity that the firm foundation of the
spiritual growth of the believing community was
laid, the Christian values of good and justice
were established, the way of active social ministry of the Church was paved. i wish you all
good and happiness, new success and achievements, reads the greeting address of President
Yanukovych to Roman Catholics posted by the
presidential press service.

16 new Star

October, 2012

Pope Calls laity to responsibility in the Church

Says a Change of Mentality Is Needed
CaSTEL GaNDOLFO, italy, (Zenit
.org).- Benedict XVi says the laity
should be seen as truly "co-responsible"
for the Church, and not just "collaborators" with the clergy.
The Pope said this in an august 10
message released recently by the
Vatican. it is addressed to the 6th
assembly of the international Catholic
action Forum. The five-day assembly
was held in Romania.
"Co-responsibility requires a change
in mentality, particularly with regard to
the role of the laity in the Church," the
Holy Father said.
Laity should be considered "persons

truly 'co-responsible' for the being and

activity of the Church," he stated.
Hence, he called for a committed laity
who are united, each making his own
"specific contribution to the Churchs
mission, in accordance with the ministries and tasks each one has in the life
of the Church, and always in cordial
communion with the bishops."
Recalling that Lumen Gentium spoke
of the laity-clergy relationship as "familiar," the Pontiff said it is "important to
deepen and to live out this spirit of profound communion in the Church, which
characterized the early Christian community, as the book of the acts of the

apostles attests."
"Feel the commitment to work for the
Churchs mission to be your own," he
exhorted, "through prayer, through
study, through active participation in
ecclesial life, through an attentive and
positive gaze at the world, in the continual search for the signs of the times."
Benedict XVi encouraged "serious
and daily" ongoing formation, saying the
laity are "called to be courageous and
credible witnesses in every sphere of
society, so that the Gospel might be the
light that brings hope in difficult situations, in troubles and in the darkness that
men today so often find along the path of

cornerstone of new Greek catholic

church in spain blessed

efore the blessing, Rev. Dmytro

Savchuk, pastor of the local
UGCC read the Foundation Certificate in both Ukrainian and Spanish,
which was placed in a capsule. Bishop
Dionysius was greeted by Ukrainian children and Rev. Sviatoslav Myroniuk,
chaplain of the dioceses of Granada and
Cordoba Spain. it is to be noted, that
guests from Portugal presented the parishioners in Huelva with an icon of Sts.
Cyril and Methodius.
after the blessing, Bishop Dionysius
celebrated a hierarchical Divine Liturgy
in St. Peters Cathedral. in his sermon, the
hierarch emphasized the importance of
building a new UGCC church in Spain
because the Ukrainians who live here
are no longer workers, but a new

Ukrainian diaspora.
He thinks the future cathedral should
not only become a significant spiritual
center but also an active cultural center
which will help the faithful who are now
far from their land not to lose Ukraine
in their hearts. The Bishop thanked
Eparch Jose Vilaplan for supporting
UGCCs development in the city of Eciji,
the representatives of the mayor and the
government who approved the allocation
of this land for building this church.
after the Liturgy, children and youth
presented a concert honoring Ukraines
independence Day. as a momento of the
day, Bishop Dionysius gave each parishioner a small icon of the Blessed Virgin
of Hoshiv.
UGCC department of information

The Catholic Near East Welfare association (CNEWa) regularly reports news and
indformation on the Eastern Churches worldwide. During the recent Synod in
Canada, several hierarchs were interviewed including Metropolitan Stefan (Soroka)
and Bishop RiCHaRD (Seminack). To see the question and their response, go to:

www.cnewa.org/default.aspx?iD=1932&pagetypeiD=8&sitecode=HQ&pageno=1
New Star may just publish some reactions to the article in a future issue. Send to:
ForNewStar@aol.com Please put CNEWa in subject line. You may identify yourself by name or just city and/or state.

Cardinal angelo Sodano visited the

greek Catholic Church in karaganda

life."
"To guide others to an encounter with
Christ by announcing his message of salvation with language and ways understandable in our own day marked by rapidly transforming social and cultural
advances, is the great challenge of the
new evangelization," he added. "[...] at
this stage in history, work in the light of
the Churchs social teaching to become a
laboratory of 'globalization of solidarity
and charity,' in order to grow with the
entire Church in the co-responsibility of
offering a future of hope to humanity, by
having the courage to make even demanding proposals."

n this church the guest was met by a great

number of people from the Greek Catholic
community. Children and the youth were
dressed in embroidered shirts; girls were holding
bread and flowers. Fr. Vasyl Hovera, the apostolic
delegate for Greek Catholics in kazakhstan and
Middle asia welcomed this important guest. in his
welcome address, which was delivered in italian,
Fr. Vasyl reminded of the previous Cardinal
Sodanos visit that took place in May, 2003, during which he visited the Greek Catholic community that, at that time, was praying in a small chapel
(the foundation for a new church was already laid
nearby). in two years, that isin 2005, the newlyestablished church was consecrated by Cardinal
iGNaTiUS MOUSSa (Daoud), then prefect of the
Congregation for Eastern Churches.
Father Vasyl emphasized that this temple is the
symbol of resurrection of the Greek Catholic
Church, which spent the period of 43 years hiding
and being persecuted, after what it emerged from
the catacombs to enjoy religious freedom.

Pointing on the assembled people, the apostolic

Delegate for the Greek Catholics in kazakhstan
and Central asia noted that all of those faithful
people: adults, youth and childrenare the Fruit
of faith and suffering of our victims, because during the Stalinist regime, on the territory of kazakhstan, three Greek Catholic bishops, approximately 300 priests as well as thousands of faithful,
found themselves in prisons and concentration
camps.
afterwards, the senior priest of the parish asked
the Vatican dignitaries to accept, as the Ukrainian
tradition demands, the modest gifts of bread, salt
and flowerswhich are all the symbols of our
love and fidelity to the Successor of Peter, who is
represented by the Cardinal Sodano, the papal
legate, and to devote the apostolic Blessing to
both: all the people who were present, as well as,
the whole Greek Catholic Church in kazakhstan.
Having mounted the pulpit, Cardinal Sodano addressed the people who were present in the
church. The Dean of the Sacred College of

Cardinals expressed his satisfaction that there are

a lot of children and young people in the church,
stressing that they are the hope and the future of
the church. Moreover, he reminded of the courage
and loyalty of the Greek Catholic martyrs, who
should serve as an example for us. He promised to
send the Holy Father greetings and prayers from
the Greek Catholics of karaganda.
at the end of his short visit to the church, Father
Vasyl showed to the important guest the two icons
of the blessed martyrsthe Blessed Bishop Martyr NikiTa (Budka) and the priest Oleksiy Zarytskyithat may be found in the church. Moreover, the priest emphasized that this year, the
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church will celebrate
its 100th anniversary since the arrival of the first
Ukrainian bishop in Canada, as well as, the beginning of the Synod of Bishops of the UGCC on this
occasion, in this country, September 9th of this
year.
While leaving the church, Cardinal Sodano expressed his gratitude to Fr. Vasyl Hovera for his
service and for the large community that he saw in
the church, especially for the enormous number of
children and youth present.
Press Service of the UGCC in Kazakhstan

new Star 17

October, 2012

the year of faith

ast yearon October

suppressed by
11, with the apostolic
royal edict of
Byzantine
Letter Porta Fidei,
His Holiness Benedict XVi
Emperor Leo
declared that a "Year of
iii, (717- 741)
Faith" would begin on
and continued
October 11, 2012, and conby his son Con- Bronze plaque of Eastern Patriarchs and John XXiii, Paul vi
clude on November 24, 2013.
stantine V (741
The Year of Faith is not a temporary
October 11, 2012, the first
-775), and grandson, Leo iV.
part of lifeand coupled with the New
day of the Year of Faith, is
From September 24 to October 13, Evangelization, todays Christian can
the fiftieth anniversary of the
787, three hundred-fifty bishops and experience the far-reaching effects of the
opening of the Second
representatives metfirst to pardon development of conciliar decrees from
Vatican Council and also the
three bishops for their earlier her-esy fifty years ago as well as those extending
twentieth anniversary of the
of image-breaking and to have the back to the earliest days of Christianity.
letters of Pope Hadrian i read, asking
Catechism of the Catholic
We are on a continuumliving in a
for agreement with the veneration small part of eternitydestined for a
Church. During the Year of
Council Fathersbishops of East and West join the
Faith Catholics are asked to
of images. This council is celebrat- fuller experience of the greatness of Gods
queue for the procession into the openning
study and reflect on the docued in the Eastern (Orthodox and kingdom, here and in the age to come.
session of vatican ii.
ments of Vatican ii and the catCatholic) Churches of Byzantine The Year of Faith is a token of our comechism so that they may deepen their choice to convene the bishops of the Tradition as "The Sunday of Orthodoxy" mitment to the Christian way of life.
Church at that particular time.
knowledge of the faith.
each year on the first Sunday of Great
Here we have the chance to know the
To associate the momentous occasion Lent and again on the Sunday after faith in its theological dimension, and to
Fifty and twenty may seem like
milestone years to manywithin the with another significant event, some ref- October 11. The former celebration com- live it in its practical implementation, inmemory of a lot of people, and a legacy erence to an earlier historic gathering memorates the council as the culmina- spired by a biblical reference to the purto generations born since either of these could set the tone for the importance of tion of the Church's battles against pose of councils and synods, worldevents occurred. Few might realize the calling the apostles successors to talk, heresy, while the latter commemorates wide, patriarchaleven eparchial:
rationale in choosing the time to com- discuss and write about issues con- the council itself. Thus,Vatican ii opened [T]hey called the church together and
mence the 1962 event referred to as fronting the Church. Earlier councils 1,175 years after Nicea ii.
reported what God had done with them
Vatican ii. Called by Pope John XXiii, it addressed issues to combat heresies; the
So, the Year of Faith extends beyond and how He had opened the door of
was no mere coincidence or random latter council dealt specifically with ex- a half-century of history, reaching back faith... (acts 14:27).
pressing and living the faithas a now 1,225 years. The Second
Council of Counsel rather than defin- Nicean Council determined that
ing doctrine. its aim was to rediscov- the cross is to be seen as a symer the Churchs link to its apostolic bolas well as images of Christ;
age roots, preserved more diligently the Mother of God; the angels
in Eastern Churches than in the West. and saints. These images are to
Through familiarity with the Byz- be in churches, homes, by the
antine liturgical calendar gleaned roadsideto be revered by those
from his days as nuncio to Bulgaria, who see them. among other
John XXiii knew about the annual things, sculpted images were
commemoration of the Seventh condemned as sensual; knowlEcumenical Council on the Sunday edge of Scripture by clergy was
following October 11. That council mandated; Christian conduct was
was Nicea ii, held in 787, summoned required; each altar is to contain
to address the heresy of iconoclasm. relics; clerical discipline was
it resulted in a monumental procla- decreed as a renewal of ecclesimation accepting veneration of icons, astical life.

EAn icon of the Council Fathers of Nicea II.

A photograph of Council Fathers of Vatican II.

Synod Closes with Proposals

and New Members of
Permanent Synod

he Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek

Catholic Church passed a number of proposals
regarding the main theme of this years theme,
Role and mission of laymen of UGCC. So reported the
Secretary of the Synod, Bishop BOHDaN (Dziurakh).
The proposals were about the importance of helping lay people to understand the Word of God, encouraging
them to take a more active part in the
prayer and liturgical life and the
Churchs charitable activity of diaconia.
according to the bishops, priests should
ensure that the Holy Scripture is explained properly to all the faithful, and
lead Bible groups in their parishes. The
Synod decreed to instruct priests to organize systematic
Bible hours at the parishes and encouraged the faithful
to daily reading of the Bible. The Patriarchal Catechetical Committee was instructed to further develop the
Bible apostolate in parishes, monastic institutions and
Church educational institutions of UGCC.
in order to increase participation of the faithful in
Church life, the Synod encouraged lay people to attend

services not only on Sundays and holy days but on

other days. The bishops drew parents attention to the
responsibility of bringing up children in the faith and
love for God and neighbors and to active participation
in the life of the Church community. The bishops called
all the faithful to say daily prayers with children and
prayers before and after meals.
an especially important aspect of the Church life
where laymens gifts may be manifested is charitable
activity. The bishops encouraged lay people to participate in helping the sick,
orphans, migrants, widows,
prisoners, lonely and elderly.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav
thanked the former members
of the Permanent Synod:
Bishop iHOR (Vozniak), archbishop and Metropolitan of
Lviv; Bishop VaSYL (Semeniuk), archbishop and Metropolitan of Ternopil; Bishop PaUL (Chomnycky), Eparch
of Stamford and Bishop DaViD (Motiuk), Eparch of
Edmonton, for their willing and successful services and
welcomed the newly-elected members of the Permanent Synod. Elected for the next five years. Bishop
BORYS (Gudziak) of France; archbishop VOLODYMYR
(Vijtyshyn) of ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine; Bishop kEN
Nowakowski of New Westminster, B.C.; and Bishop

JaROSLaV (Pryriz) of Sambir-Drohobych, Ukraine.

in Canada this year honoring the anniversary of the
arrival of Bishop Nikita, next year's general Synod
will be august 1-13 in kiev, Ukraine, and have as its
theme the New Evangelization.
The bishops proclaimed Blessed Martyr Volodymyr
Pryima patron of the laity and encourage all to venerate
the holy laymen of the Ukrainian Church. The year 2012
has been proclaimed the Year of Laymen in the UGCC.
Volodymyr Pryima, who served as cantor in the
Church in Stradch, died as a martyr on June 26, 1941.
. On the way home from visiting a sick woman, Fr.
Mykola konrad and Volodymyr Pryima were captured
by NkVD soldiers and cruelly tortured to death in a
forest. Fr. Mykola konrad and Volodymyr Pryima were
beatified as martyrs by Pope John Paul ii during his
visit to Ukraine.

Blessed Martyr volodymyr

Blessed Bishop Nikita

18 new Star

October, 2012

patriarch Visited winnipeg

he large crowd, many dressed in

Ukrainian traditional clothes or
the uniform of various religious
organizations, boldly sang Blessed is he
who comes in the name of the Lord! as
the father and head of their thousandyear-old Church descended the escalator
into the arrivals hall of Richardson international airport.
Sviatoslav, the surprisingly young principal hierarch of the Churchpopularly
referred to by as many as Patriarchis
making his first pastoral visit to Winnipeg
since his election last year. (He was elected by his peer bishops at the age of 41
after his predecessor LUBOMYR (Husar)
asked to retire.) Winnipeg is the archiepiscopal See of Most Rev. LaWRENCE
(Huculak), the Metropolitan of Canada
for Ukrainian Catholics.
after Metropolitan Lawrence welcomed him, he was met by representatives of the young people of Manitoba
those in church organizations and those
from the Ukrainian scout organizations
SUM and PLaST. Greeting him in both
English and Ukrainian, they presented
him with traditional Ukrainian symbols
of welcome: bread and salt.
His Beatitudevisibly moved by what
he referred to as an overwhelming welcomeresponded to the crowd mainly
in English. He did not speak very long,
because he said that they would have

many opportunities to meet in the days

ahead. in fact, a series of large encounters
were planned with the youth, the elderly
the clergy and religious among others. He
visited a number of parishes and pastoral
centers. Three of the principal events
were the Divine Liturgy at Sts. Volodymr
and Olha Cathedral on Sunday, September 9th and a Gala Banquet the following Sunday.
after his visit, His Beatitude chaired
the Synod of the Ukrainian Catholic

Church. The participants are all the

Bishops of the Ukrainian Catholic
Church from around world. They have
never convened in Canada before and
may never do so again. Since Ukraine
gained independence twenty-one years
ago, they almost invariably meet in
Ukraine. However, they chose to come
this year to commemorate the centenary
of the appointment of the first Ukrainian
Bishop to Canada. Bishop NikiTa
(Budka) arrived in Winnipeg in 1912 to

serve as the sole bishop for Ukrainian

immigrants from coast to coast. He is
titled Blessed, because he was beatified
as one of the 27 New Martyrs recognized
by Pope John Paul in 2001. after serving
fifteen years as bishop in Canada,
Blessed Nikita returned to Ukraine only
to later suffer arrest and martyrdom under
the Soviet regime. Canada acknowledges
his legacy this year and thus Metropolitan
Lawrence invited all the Bishops to come
join the celebrations. They too arrived
over the following few days.
The week-long Synod took place outside of Winnipeg and discussed many
matters common to the faithful of the
Ukrainian Catholic Church around the
world. The principal theme of this convocation is laity and the Evangelization.
However, they dealt with a wide variety
of pressing matters. The Synod Fathers
now number forty-nine, but due to various issues not all were not able to attend.
[Thirty-eight bishops attended. ed.]
His Beatitude Sviatoslav departed from
Winnipeg on September 18th to continue
his visit to Canada in Saskatchewan.
at the close of his visit to Canada, he
addressed the plenary session of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
toward the end of September.
Rev. Michael kwiatkowski
information, Media
and Public relations
Winnipeg visit and Synod Committee

annual Congress on orthodox Spirituality focuses on Creation

Papal Message Notes hope for Joint Commitment to Protect God's Gift
ROME, Zenit.org).- "Man, the Custodian of Creation" was the theme of the
20th international Ecumenical Congress
of Orthodox Spirituality, in the italian
monastery of Bose.
The Holy Father, through his secretary
of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, sent a
telegram to participants, expressing the
hope that "the fraternal encounter and discussions of these days may favor mutual
knowledge and the sharing of faith,
arousing and renewing a joint commitment to protect God's gift of creation."
Man as custodians but also guests of
creation was a theme developed by
Father Enzo Bianchi, prior of the monas-

tic community of Bose, and by His

Eminence Metropolitan iOaNNiS (Zizioulas) of Pergamo, representative of the
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew i.
The congress was attended by representatives from the Orthodox Churches and
from the Catholic Church. Catholic representatives included Cardinal Roger
Etchegaray, vice dean of the College of
Cardinals; archbishop antonio Mennini,
apostolic nuncio to Great Britain, and
Bishop Mansueto Bianchi of Pistoia,
italy, president of the Commission for
Ecumenism and interreligious Dialogue
of the italian Episcopal Conference. also
present were representatives from the

Church of England and from the Reform

Churches, the World Council of Churches
and the Pontifical Council for Promoting
Christian Unity, as well as theologians
and academics from all over the world.
"During the four days of meetings and
debates, which were open to the public,
speakers examined the theological and
spiritual dimensions of man's relationship
with his environment, seeking values
capable of inspiring responsible choices
in the face of the ecological crisis, which
has been provoked by man himself and is
causing irreversible damage to life on our
planet," a communique explained.
Orthodox Church teaching on ecologi-

Bishops of the Synod Celebrated divine liturgy in

Cathedral of Sts. volodymyr and olha, winnipeg

ccording to the UGCC Primate, Christ is

present in the Church through His Mystical
Body and makes us part of the Christian family during each Liturgy, which is a mark of the New
Testament. Through the sacrament of the Eucharist
He shares His inner flame with us, therefore we
should be happy in that through this we share with
Him the Heavenly kingdom, said the UGCC leader.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav also noted that the UGCC
Synod of Bishops took place in Canada not by
chance. The Heavenly Father sent His hierarchs here
so that they would gather all to come and participate
in the banquet of the Heavenly Father. The Church
Primate thinks that coming to this banquet means not
only to stand before God, but to actually become a
member of His Church. in celebrating this Divine

Banquet today and commemorating the UGCC centennial of existence in Canada, our Church wants to
invite all inhabitants of this countryUkrainians and
non-Ukrainiansto become the sons and daughters
of God announced the Primate. Furthermore he
believes that the UGCC Bishops present here are
encouraging everyone to renew their faith and to rediscover for themselves once again the spiritual treasure of UGCC in Canada. and this also means, to live
a real Christian life and to grow in holiness.
Finally, the UGCC leader spoke about his predcessor, Metropolitan aNDREY (Sheptytsky) since it
was because of his fatherly concern that our people in
Canada received their first missionary priests.
Metropolitan andrey never forgot his children in this
land and it was thanks to him that the first Ukrainian

cal matters were presented by Bishop

aMVROSiJ, rector of the Theological
academy of Saint Petersburg, while the
scholars John Behr of New York, Nestor
kavvadas of Tubingen and assaad Elias
kattan of Munster spoke on such subjects
as: the goodness of creation according to
biblical narrative, the relationship
between wounded and healed nature and
the history of salvation, and the understanding of the relationship between
human beings and the creation in the
Fathers of the Church from irenaeus of
Lyons to Maximus the Confessor

bishop did arrive in Canada. He also reminded the

audience that in 1910, Metropolitan andrey visited
Canada and upon his return to Ukraine in February
1911, he composed a renowed Epistle to RusynsUkrainians in Canada, supporting them and thereby
giving them hope. The epistle states: Be forever
grateful to the country which accepted you and
offered you the possibility of a new, broader and better life, but do continue to preserve all good Ukrainian
traditions. Metropolitan andrey ended the epistle
with the thought, in all tasks and efforts, above all,
try to get help from heaven.
We greet you in the name of the whole UGCC and
we remind you that you are members of Christs large
family, which remembers you, loves and supports
you, concluded UGCC leader.
after the Liturgy, Bishop BOHDaN (Dziurakh),
Secretary of the Synod of Bishops, read the Decree
of His Beatitude Sviatoslav on the Convocation of the
Synod of Bishops in Canada.

new Star 19

October, 2012

ennifer's wedding day was fast approaching. Nothing could dampen her
excitementnot even her parents
nasty divorce. Her mother had found the
perfect dress to wear, and would be the
best-dressed mother-of-the-bride ever!
a week later, Jennifer was horrified to
learn that her father's new, young wife had
bought the exact same dress as her mother.
Jennifer asked her father's new young wife
to exchange it, but she refused.
"absolutely not! i look like a million
bucks in this dress, and i'm wearing it," she
replied.
Jennifer told her mother who graciously
said, ''Never mind sweetheart. i'll get another dress. after all, it's your special day.''
a few days later, they went shopping, and
did find another gorgeous dress for her
mother. When they stopped for lunch, Jennifer asked her mother, ''aren't you going to
return the other dress? You really don't have
another occasion where you could wear it."
Her mother just smiled and replied, ''Of
course i do, dear.....i'm wearing it to the
rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding.''

encoUnter 2012 Update

he Mid-West session of Encounter 2012 opened with

enthusiasm September 20-21
with the Clergy sessions. There were
over eighty bishops, priests, deacons
monasticsand some clergy wives for
the four sessions tailored to fit the specific roles and relationship that must
exist between the ordained and nonordained People of God who make up
the Church, the Body of Christ.
The speakers found ways to focus
the presentation of their specific topic
upon the ways of collaboration between all the Body Parts of the
Church to facilitate a healthy, functioning Presence of the living Kingdom of
God that empowers all its members to
be all that a Christian is called to be.
For another two days of presentations, the speakers tweaked some
points of emphasis to help the more

than two hundred attendees realize the important place and

mission each has in the Church
the Church of many different yet complementary expressions all working as a
harmonious whole to present the face of Jesus to the
world which lives around us by
the way we livebolstered by the
way we pray.
To this end, each day had prayers in
several of the Catholic Traditions that
make our unity unique. Some of the
material presented has been recorded
and will be available on line.
The Encounter 2012 experience was
covered by Catholic News Service for
dissemination to media of the global
Church. Portions of the presentations
and prayer services will also be broadcast on EWTN.

There is, if you hurry, time still to attend one of the remaining two exciting
Encounter 2012 Sessions. Details at: encounter2012easterncatholicchurches.org

Sneak Peek at enCoUnter 2012 Coverage:

mong the ENCOUNtEr 2012 participants were our

Bishop, three priests, two deacons and half dozen
lay people from St Nicholas Eparchy. Most are seen here

Just as new star was going to press, enCoUnter 2012 was taking place.
a full press release was not yet complete. More in our next edition.

in one of the photos above. they came from Michigan,

indiana, and illinois to hear ideas, stop and share some
profound thoughts, pray together, meet new peopleor

simply to enjoy the company of long-time friends during a

meal. One nice feature was the event was not staticbut
included field trips that enhanced the whole experience.

Main synod topic discussed on third day

continued from page 11

prior to the divine service, carrying candles in processions,
the incense making and the assistance to the priest in liturgical acts. Since 1972, the sanctuary servants also started to
read the apostolic reading during the Sunday liturgies.
The Sisterhood of St. Barbara is the oldest parish organization. Having been established in 1904, this womens
organization soon became associated with the Congregation
of the Sisters Servants of Mary immaculate. On the 25th of
May 1945, women of the Parish of St. Nicholas formed the
first branch of the newly-established national organization
the League of Ukrainian Catholic Women.
From January 1965, at this parish, the Boys Club Bingo
started functioning. The most famous event, which is organized by this Clubis the annual Ukrainian Sportsman's
Dinner. Each week a Wednesday Night Bingo is conducted in
the Parish Club.
From July of 1922, in this parish, the "apostleship of
Prayer" started operating, and since 1985so did the
"knights of Columbus" organization.
UGCC Department of Information

continued from page 13

cultural formation.
Lastly the Conclusion of the
Exhortation calls for reading and teaching
of the Catechism of the Catholic Church,

uring this discussion, the bishops gratefully noted the dedication and sacrifice
of UGCC laity throughout the history of
the Church, especially its role in preserving their
faith in difficult social-political realities of the
last centuryfour waves of emigration and the
persecution of the Church in its native land. The
holiness of the laity was recognized by the entire
Catholic Church, especially through the beatification of the Pratulyn martyrs and the Blessed
Martyr Volodymyr Pryima, who became examples for Greek Catholics of all times, of faithfulness to ones Church and the willingness to sacrifice oneself in serving it.
The hierarchs highlighted the importance of the
role of the laity in the Church also because it is
precisely from the environment of the deeply
faithful laity that there are numerous callings to
become priests and nuns. in connection with this,
special significance is attributed to the spiritual
guidance and the pastoral care of families as well
as the catechization of children, youth and adults.

or other such works of synods and episcopal bodies, with particular emphasis on the
spiritual wealth of the Fathers of the
Church. in conclusion, the Pope asked that
all authorities alleviate suffering of those

The Synod members stated their conviction

that the laity should demonstrate and value their
particular service in the Church: in order to create
together with the priests and the nuns under the
direction of the hierarch, the Only Bodya living and life-giving community of Christs apostles. in order to give the theoretical discussion at
the Synod some reality, the embers in small
groups focused on the role of the laity in the realization of the UGCC Strategy of Development as
developed in the Pastoral Epistle by His
Beatitude Sviatoslav a Vibrant Parishthe
Place of Meeting the Living Christ The bishops
also examined the possibility of activating laity
in the life of the Church in various regions of the
world where the UGCC exists and difficulties
associated with that.
By the resolution of the Synod, further steps
will be delineated in order to improve the spiritual education of the laity and to include it more
broadly into the mission of the Church.

living in the Middle East. as well, all of us

are re-minded to live together in communion, with this admonition: a lukewarm
spirit is displeasing to God,. Through
understanding this all are encouraged to

Secretariat, UGCC Synod of Bishops

bear witness to Christ courageously as
onea difficult witness, but exhilarating.
His Holiness also noted the urgent need
for peace in Syria and iraq where unrest is
rampant,.

20

New STar

October, 2012

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Telephone:
(773) 276-5080
fax: (773) 276-6799

Bishops Chancery

OFFiCE HOURS:
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The Mystery of CrowningPart 1

aving confessed their faith and

love of God in the narthex of the
church (symbolic of the physical
world fallen under sin since adam and
Eve) the newly-betrothed couple are led by
the priest into the nave of the church (symbolic of the world redeemed by Christ).
This procession also represents the secular
institution of marriage being transfigured
into a Holy Sacrament, a mystical participation in the divinizing life of the Trinity.
as they proceed in, those in attendance
chant Psalm 127, Blessed are all who fear
the Lord, who walk in His ways
Here, most might wonder, Where
is the brides Father, why isnt he
walking her down the aisle?
Unlike in the Western Church
the father does not give her
away This ritual practice of
Western cultures comes
from ancient rituals of
conveyance based on the
concept that women are
the property of men. as a
"maiden", she "belonged"
to her father. at marriage,
her husband contracted with her father
to have the bride "given" to himmost
likely in return for a dowry. Our Church
emphasizes that every man and woman
has free will and each equal to the other.
They walk into the church together, holding the priests epitrachil, as willing, equal
and consensual partners marrying without
duress.
at the tetrapod they stand on an embroidered cloth which symbolizes the
hope that they will never face poverty or
stand on a bare floor. after the ceremony the cloth is draped over an icon in their
home. The couple is prayed over, blessed
and listens to the Word of God. By the
mercies of God working in the Holy
Mystery of Crowning, the marriage becomes a Holy, Saving and Life-creating
Divine Sacrament through which
the husband and wife are not only
recipients and partakers of divinization, but are also a vessel in which
the human and divine are united in
Christ. They are united as one for

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the continuance of the human race and the

building of Gods kingdom on Earth.
as we witness these two separate but
equal individuals become one in God, we
see a parallel to the Father, Son and Holy
Spiritone in essence, yet unique individuals. Look at the classic icon of the
Hospitality of abraham, the Holy Trinity as angelsindividuals, yet equal and
joined together in love, seated in a semicircle, inviting us to join them in the Bread
of Life, the Eucharist. Reflecting on the
unity and love of the Holy Trinity, you
become more aware of the significance of
the unity of a husband, wife and God in
the Mystery of Crowning. The icon and
the married couple reflect the image and
likeness of God. The Father, Son and Holy
Spirit form a community just as the married couple forms a community with God.
The Holy Trinity is the model for the family to live in a communion of love.
as the ceremony continues some may
notice an absence of vows. Vows are not
part of the original Byzantine marital traditionthe free consent being expressed
at the betrothal exchange of rings. Marriage vows come from the idea that marriage is a contract, between the Bride and
the Groom. Byzantine theology of the
Mystery of Crowning" presents the ceremony as a much more profound matter
than mere human contract. Here the human aspect of the marital ceremony is elevated to a Mystical Sacrament. The
crowns (flower wreaths or metal) show
the husband and wife as king and queen in
their new kingdom (family) as true participants in the royal priesthood of each
baptized person, eachas St John Chrysostom saysin service to each other as
equal sharers of their oneness.
if vows are exchanged, it is in imitation
of the contract mentality of Western
thinking, which neither knows or understands the authentic Tradition of our Eastern Church.
Other elements of the crowning, sharing
the common cup and the Dance of isaiah
will be explained in the December edition
of New Star.
Phyllis Muryn Zaparaniuk

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editorial Board and ContriBUtorS:

Fr John Lucas, Managing Editor
Petro Rudka, Ukrainian Editor
Fr James karepin, OP
Fr Leonard korchinski
Fr Denny Molitvy
Fr Deacon Michael Cook
Just another Monk of the Eastern Church
George Matwyshyn
Serge Michaluk
Olenka Pryma
Nazar Sloboda
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Phyllis Muryn Zaparaniuk