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Bishop Daniel and Metropolitan Antony of the UOC-U.S.A. and Bishop Saba of the Georgian Orthodox Church pray at the crypt of Patriarch Mstyslav I.
SOUTH BOUND BROOK, N.J. – Thousands of pilgrims visited the Metropolia Center of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the U.S.A. (UOC-U.S.A.) here on April 18-19 with divine liturgy served in St. Andrew Memorial Church on Saturday and Sunday. During the liturgies, commemorations were made for all those buried in St. Andrew Cemetery for the weekend of the annual St. Thomas Pilgrimage on a Sunday following Easter.
St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Memorial Church was a place of quiet reflection and prayer that weekend. Besides the liturgical services of each day of the pilgrimage, the doors of the Metropolia’s main church remained opened for visitation, meditation and prayer.
St. Andrew Cemetery, which is located behind the church, was a place of spiritual reunions for many visitors. Hundreds of people visited Holy Resurrection Mausoleum, wherein lies the crypt of Patriarch Mstyslav.
The three hierarchs, joined by clergy, pray at the Memorial Cross for the victims of Chornobyl, victims of the Holodomor of 1932-1933, veterans of Ukraine and the U.S.A., as well as Christians who have laid down their lives for their faith.
The Ukrainian Cultural Center was once again bustling with activity. Numerous Church organizations presented displays about their ministry among the faithful of the Church and in Ukraine. In addition, dozens of vendors offered Ukrainian folk art and other cultural, religious and historical items for sale.
The Ukrainian Orthodox Museum, located on the premises of the Church’s spiritual headquarters, provided numerous visitors with the opportunity to come in contact with their historical, spiritual and cultural roots. The curator of the museum, Natalia Honcharenko, and the director of the Consistory Office of Archives and Historical Information, Dr. Michael Andrec, personally provided answers to numerous visitors who showed interest in the construction progress of the museum.
All the points of interest of the Spiritual Center remained opened for the weekend so that the Ukrainian Orthodox faithful, along with the numerous visitors to the center, had an opportunity to partake in the day-to-day life of the national headquarters of the UOC of the U.S.A., known as “Ukrainian Jerusalem” not only here in the U.S.A., but far beyond its borders, including Ukraine.
On Saturday afternoon, guests had an opportunity to tour St. Sophia Ukrainian Orthodox Theological Seminary and later on joined the seminarians for a picnic at the seminary, which was sponsored by the seminary’s chapter of the Ukrainian Orthodox League (UOL). Both Hierarchs – Metropolitan Antony and Bishop Daniel-joined the picnic in order to learn about the culinary skills of the student body. The picnic concluded with vespers served in the Three Hierarchs Seminary Chapel.
Children carry placards with images of the victims of the Euro-Maidan protests in Kyiv.
On Sunday morning the hierarchs of the UOC-U.S.A. welcomed Bishop Saba of the North American Diocese of the Georgian Orthodox Church to the Metropolia Center. This was the first formal liturgical archpastoral visit of Bishop Saba to the Metropolia of the UOC–U.S.A. The divine liturgy was celebrated by the three hierarchs, assisted by many clergy of the church.
The bishops walked in procession with all the clergy and altar servers from the historical Fisher House to the Memorial Church while the ancient bell sounds “Greeting of the Metropolitan” filled the air throughout the neighborhood. Entering through the sacred doors of the Memorial Church, the children of St. Andrew’s Ukrainian School (director Halyna Marynetz) welcomed the hierarchs with a traditional Ukrainian greeting, presenting their spiritual fathers with bouquets of flowers. The elder/starosta of the local community of St. Andrew Memorial Church, Dmytro Kozluyk, greeted Metropolitan Antony, Bishop Daniel, and especially Bishop Saba of the “friendly Georgian Orthodox community.” Three ladies, representing Pokrova Ukrainian Orthodox Sisterhood of the Memorial Church (Lesia Siwko, Valentyna Rudyy and Anna Shevchenko), presented the bishops with the traditional bread and salt, laid on the beautifully embroidered and decorated Ukrainian ritual cloths. Finally, the Very Rev. Yuriy Siwko, pastor of St. Andrew’s Church, presented the hierarchs with the altar cross.
Responding to the numerous greetings, Metropolitan Antony assured everyone in attendance of the sincere prayers of their bishops, exclaiming: “Christ is risen!”
The bishops walked out of the Royal Doors wearing an orange omophorion of archpastoral service, making reference to the call of so many Christian communities across the United States of America, to wear an orange ribbon that Sunday in support and memory of the innocent Orthodox Christians throughout the Middle East that lost their lives, while beheaded or tortured to death by Islamic terrorists. Bishop Daniel also spoke of the innocent some 6,000 Ukrainian men, women and children who lost their lives due to the barbaric behavior of politically motivated separatists in eastern Ukraine and throughout the region where people continue to experience Russian aggression, in whose honor as well the orange omophorion is being laid upon his shoulders.
Divine liturgy was a beautiful service in the packed St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Memorial Church, prayerfully enhanced by the congregation’s choir under the leadership of Maestro Andrec.
The hierarchs of the Church, along with the concelebrating clergy and the Ukrainian American Veterans, led a procession to the main cross of St. Andrew Cemetery, where a memorial service was served for the victims of the Soviet-ordered man-made Famine that destroyed millions of lives, for the victims of Chornobyl, those who served in the armed forces of both Ukraine and the U.S.A. and perished in all wars, and those who gave their lives for Christ in defense of His Church throughout history.
A the special prayer on the first anniversary of the slaughter of Ukrainian students and activists on Kyiv’s Independence Square was offered in front of the Memorial Cross in total silence, as the names of over 100 victims were pronounced during the memorial litany.
The clergy and faithful then proceeded to Holy Resurrection Mausoleum to the crypt of the first patriarch of Kyiv and all Ukraine, Mstyslav I, where a memorial service was offered for the patriarch and spiritual father of millions of Ukrainian Orthodox faithful, and all the hierarchs and clergy who have served the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the U.S.A. and the diaspora.
The pilgrims spent the rest of the day visiting the graves of their loved ones, friends, political leaders or spiritual fathers who repose in the cemetery.
Ukrainian American Veterans serve as a color guard during the commemorative service at the Memorial Cross in St. Andrew Cemetery.
The Cultural Center hosted exhibits about the Church’s ministries: the Offices of Youth and Adult Ministry, Public Relations, Publications, the Ukrainian Orthodox League, St. Andrew Ukrainian School and St. Andrew Society, Ukrainian Historical and Educational Center, etc. A special presentation was offered in the Cultural Center on the historical path of Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).
The main dining hall of St. Sophia Ukrainian Orthodox Theological Seminary was the venue for the youth ice cream social hosted by the Consistory Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, and prepared by St. Demetrius UOL Chapter of Carteret, N.J. This was an opportunity for some 120 youths from all over the country to meet with each other and with the hierarchs of the Church.