‘Peace, peace,’ they cry, yet there is no peace! (Jeremiah 6:14)

The Eastern Catholic Bishops of the United States, gathered in their annual meeting in St. Louis, March 21-23, declare their solidarity with the suffering nation and Churches of Ukraine. We encourage all people of good will, our priests, religious, monastics, and faithful to intensify their prayer for peace in Ukraine.

Most Reverend Archbishops and Bishops,
Very Reverend and Reverend Fathers,
Venerable Brothers and Sisters in Monastic and Religious Life,
Dearly Beloved Laity in Christ of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church

Christ is Risen!
Having kept its seals intact,
You rose from the grave, O Christ,
Who preserved the Virgin’s keys in Your birth,
and opened for us the doors of Paradise.
Ode 6, Paschal Canon

“Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean” (Mt. 8:2)

For the people of the ancient world, the most dreaded disease was undoubtedly leprosy.  It was an incurable and pervasive disease that slowly spread over the body, covering it with painful, unsightly ulcers and condemning all who contracted it to horrible suffering and death.  It was a merciless illness that honored no boundaries, ravaging the lives of everyone it touched: male and female, young and old, educated and illiterate, saints, and criminals, rich and poor alike.  It was literally impossible to move beyond its reach.

“And they were terrified…But the angel said to them:
Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you;
He is the Messiah, the Lord.” (Lk. 2:10-11)

Most Reverend Fathers, Deacons, Monks and Nuns,
Brother Seminarians, and Dearest Faithful,

Nine months from the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Pope Francis writes a letter in which he expresses his sorrow and closeness to “the noble and martyred” Ukrainian people.

By Salvatore Cernuzio

“Overcome evil with good!” (Rom. 12:21) Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends (Jn. 15:13).

Beloved in Christ!

Christ is Risen!

You have descended into the depths of the earth, O Christ,

And have broken the eternal bonds which held the captive, 

And like Jonah from the whale on the third day,

You arose from the tomb!

Ode 6, Paschal Canon

The myrrh-bearing women at the break of dawn

drew near to the tomb of the Lifegiver.

There they found an angel sitting upon the stone,

he greeted them with these words:

Why do you seek the living among the dead?

Why do you mourn the incorrupt amid corruption?

Go: proclaim the glad tidings to His disciples.

Paschal Stikherion

From the department of External Relations of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Catholic Emergency Appeal
The Head of the UGCC Sviatoslav Shevchuk - Save St. Sophia Cathedral Intelligence sources are revealing that there is a plan for the Russian invaders to destroy the 1,000-year-old cathedral of Holy Wisdom, St. Sophia, in the historic heart of Kyiv. Speaking from a bomb shelter, His beatitude Sviatoslav is appealing to the world to save the church of God’s Holy Wisdom.
“We have received information that the Russian army plans an air strike on the most venerable holy site of the Ukrainian people since the time of Kyivan Rus — the Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Kyiv. His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Head and Father of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, calls upon all Christians to pray for the protection of this holy site of all Slavic peoples and calls upon the aggressor to refrain from this most horrific act of vandalism.”

“A pure heart create in me, O God!” (Ps. 50:10)

At the celebration of every matins service, we recite Psalm 50, the great penitential prayer of King David. King David was one of the most remarkable men who ever lived. He was a mighty warrior, a king, a prophet, a poet, a musician, a friend, and also a penitent. Throughout his life, David gave thanks to God for the many blessings he had received from Him. And when he sinned greatly, he prayed: “A pure heart create in me, O God!” He was aware that even his own repentance was a gift from God.

METROPOLITAN ARCHEPARCHY OF PHILADELPHIA 

Ukrainian Catholic

810 North Franklin Street

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19123-2005

Phone (215) 627-0143 Fax (215) 627-0377

     Kyiv, February 22, 2022

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Prot. N. 22/048 ENG

APPEAL

of His Beatitude Sviatoslav