UCC's Jubilee Synod examines state of Church worldwide (10/01/00)

UCC's Jubilee Synod examines state of Church worldwide

LVIV - The bishops of the Ukrainian Catholic Church (UCC) completed the work of their Jubilee Synod at the Basilian Monastery of the Holy Cross in Buchach, Ukraine, on July 22. In attendance were almost all the bishops from the eparchies of Ukraine, Poland, Germany, France, the Benelux Countries, Italy, Great Britain, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina and Australia.

Bishop Lubomyr Husar from Lviv, the auxiliary to the primate of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (UGCC) with delegated authority, presided at the synod. He opened with a report on the state of the Church in Ukraine and in the diaspora. He reported that the situation of the UGCC within Ukraine is stable: interconfessional conflicts are greatly reduced, while ecclesiastical structures have been strengthened. Bishop Lubomyr emphasized that it was theological education facilities that had played an important role in the stabilization process.

Citied in particular were the Lviv Theological Academy, which will obtain the status of a Catholic university in the future, the Holy Spirit Seminary of Lviv, the Ukrainian Catholic Clement Sheptytsky Lyceum and the St. Josaphat Lyceum of Buchach.

The good relations that the Ukrainian Catholic Church maintains with all Eastern Catholic Churches of the Byzantine tradition was also a topic of discussion at the Synod. The UCC's participation at international assemblies - such as the Encounter of the Representatives of Eastern Catholic Churches in America, Australia and Oceania held in Boston; the Study Days for representatives of the Eastern Catholic Churches of Europe held in Niedergas, Hungary, or the International Conference of the Eastern Churches of Eastern Europe held in Jerusalem, which was organized by the Melkite Patriarchate - was cited as an example of these good relations. These encounters were the foundation for the establishment of the Union of Eastern Catholic Churches, in which the UCC plays an important role.

The Synod dedicated a considerable amount of its time to discussion on the project of a particular law for the UCC, which has been developed over the past three years by the Synodal Canon-Law Committee. (The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, i.e. CCEC, to which all Eastern Catholic Churches adhere, in many important aspect allows each Eastern Church to follow its own particular tradition in a particular matter.)

The bishops also studied the situations of the faithful in those countries where the UCC does not yet have its own ecclesiastical structures or sufficient pastoral care. The bishops were especially concerned about the mass emigrations of Ukrainian citizens to foreign lands where they often find themselves in dire circumstances.

The Synod of Bishops reviewed projects on the reorganization of the eparchies in Ukraine. Two additional eparchies are to be made from the existing Archeparchy of Lviv: the Eparchy of Stryi and the Eparchy of Sokal. The existing Eparchy of Ternopil is to be divided into two: the Eparchy of Ternopil-Zboriv and the Eparchy of Buchach.

With regard to the situation in Ukraine and the diaspora, the Synod also selected candidates for vacant eparchial episcopal sees.

Bishop Husar also made a presentation on the ecumenical positions of the UCC. Ongoing ecumenical dialogues cannot progress without the participation of Ukraine, which is not only an integral part of Europe, but also a country that incorporates 50 million faithful of various Churches. It was recognized that there is a lack of information about the activities of the UCC and an inadequate means of distributing that information via the mass media. The president of the Synod challenged the bishops to remedy the situation by using and developing the means of communication available to them.

The Synod fathers also held discussions regarding the third and final session of the Patriarchal Council (Sobor) of the UCC, which is slated for June 2002. The working title of this Sobor is: "Jesus Christ: The Source of Spiritual Renewal of the Ukrainian Nation."

The Synod of Bishops concluded with a meeting between the bishops and the special legate of Pope John Paul II, Cardinal Vinko Puljic and the apostolic nuncio to Ukraine, Archbishop Nicholas Eterovych.

After the conclusion of the Synod, the bishops participated in the pilgrimage to Zarvanytsia, which took place July 22-23. The pilgrimage site has recently undergone renovations to accommodate a million pilgrims and an a new shrine was built in honor of the Theotokos (Mother of God) of Zarvanytsia. The bishops performed the consecration of the shrine on July 22.

This year's annual pilgrimage to Zarvanytsia drew pilgrims from all parts of Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary (led by the Eastern Catholic Bishop Silard Kerestesh), Germany, Austria, Canada, the United States and other countries. [See The Ukrainian Weekly, July 30, 2000.]

This article is reprinted with permission from The Way, Ukrainian Catholic biweekly based in Philadelphia, August 13 issue.

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