Pope reported to be enthusiastic about June 2001 visit to Ukraine (12/31/00)

Pope reported to be enthusiastic about June 2001 visit to Ukraine

ROME - Pope John Paul II met with 22 Ukrainian Catholic bishops from around the world on December 1 and shared his enthusiasm about his upcoming visit to Ukraine on June 21-24. The papal trip was officially announced by Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls the day before the meeting.

According to the Catholic News Service (CNS), the pope referred to the opportunity as "a true spiritual gift." He focused his attention on the bishops who were making a jubilee pilgrimage to the Vatican and said, "I hope very much the Lord will allow me to be among you soon, on Ukrainian soil, to announce with all Christians the common desire to find in Christ the response to all human worries and the only true light which does not fade."

Pope John Paul also encouraged the bishops to give priority to promoting "that spirit of peace and Christian brotherhood which must distinguish each believer in Jesus Christ," while making pastoral plans for their churches.

After decades of Soviet repression, the Ukrainian Catholic Church is now in a period of reconstruction, a time of great growth and energy that has fostered Catholic and Orthodox communities to work together "in the restoration of the full communion Jesus Christ wants," the pope said.

CNS reported that the pontiff commended the fidelity of the Ukrainian Catholic Church during its suppression under a cruel atheist regime, and progressively urged the people to "look forward ... the grace of God urges us to use our time well because it is the time of salvation. We must go beyond this first phase of reorganization and work to create a pastoral project for your church with priority goals and methods and time-frames for their realization."

The pope stressed that religious education and theological formation of monastic communities in the Eastern Christian identity and traditions must be a priority in pastoral planning and should involve the religious community as well as the laity.

Although the schedule for Pope John Paul's visit to Ukraine has not yet been announced, he is likely to visit Kyiv and Lviv, and perhaps the Carpathian Mountains of western Ukraine.

(Excerpted from a Catholic News Service story published in The Sower.)

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