New metropolitan for U.S. Ukrainians to be enthroned (02/25/01)

New metropolitan for U.S. Ukrainians to be enthroned

PHILADELPHIA - Tuesday, February 27, will be a historic day in the life of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States as Bishop Stefan Soroka, 49, of Winnipeg, is enthroned as metropolitan-archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia.

The new spiritual leader of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States succeeds Metropolitan-Archbishop Stephen Sulyk, 76, who submitted his resignation to Pope John Paul II, pursuant to the provisions of canon law upon reaching the age of 75 in October 1999. The resignation was accepted and the new metropolitan was appointed by the holy father on November 29, 2000.

The Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, which met in Ukraine in July 2000, made its recommendation to the Holy See for the appointment of the new metropolitan-archbishop of Philadelphia.

The enthronement ceremony, when Metropolitan Soroka officially takes canonical possession of the archeparchy, will begin at 2:30 p.m. A procession of 400 children and altar boys from throughout the archeparchy, 150 clergy and religious, and 35 bishops, including three cardinals and six archbishops, will begin entering the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception at 2 p.m.

Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, major archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, will extend greetings on behalf of the Synod to the faithful. Archbishop-Gabriel Montalvo, apostolic nuncio to the United States will read the papal bull of appointment and officially enthrone the new metropolitan. Other cardinals presiding will be Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua of the Latin-rite Archdiocese of Philadelphia and Cardinal William Keeler of the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

After the enthronement ceremony, all the clergy of the Philadelphia Archeparchy will come forward to express their promise of obedience to the new metropolitan as they kiss the omophor on his right shoulder, his hand and his epigonation.

Metropolitan Soroka will be the main celebrant and homilist at the hierarchical divine liturgy, with his brother bishops of the Eastern Catholic Churches of the Byzantine tradition as co-celebrants.

Priests of the Philadelphia Archeparchy who will also serve at the altar are: the Rev. Archpriest David Clooney, rector of St. Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Seminary, Msgr. Ronald Popivchak, protopresbyter of the Reading Deanery; Msgr. James Melnic, protopresbyter of the Philadelphia Deanery; and the Rev. Archpriest Michael Hutsko, protopresbyter of the Shamokin Deanery. The Rev. Andrij Rabiy will serve as deacon.

The responses to the divine liturgy will be sung in congregational chant in both the English and Ukrainian languages. The choir of Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church of Melrose Park, Pa., will sing traditional hymns during the services.

After the divine liturgy, Metropolitan Soroka will greet guests during a reception in the cathedral social hall to which all the clergy, religious and faithful are invited. A formal luncheon for invited clergy, religious, family and friends of the new metropolitan will be held earlier in the day.

The new metropolitan-archbishop of Philadelphia was named auxiliary bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Winnipeg on March 29, 1996, and was ordained to the episcopacy on June 13, 1996.

Archbishop-designate Soroka was born November 13, 1951, in Winnipeg. He studied at the University of Manitoba, where he received a bachelor's (1973) and master's degrees (1978) in social work.

In 1979 he entered St. Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Seminary in Washington to begin studies for ordination to the priesthood for the Archeparchy of Winnipeg. He earned a bachelor in sacred theology degree from The Catholic University of America in 1982 and was ordained by the late Metropolitan Maxim Hermaniuk of the Archeparchy of Winnipeg, on June 13, 1982, in Winnipeg.

After ordination, he continued graduate studies and earned a doctorate in social work in 1985 from The Catholic University of America in Washington.

As a priest, Archbishop Soroka ministered to parishes in Manitoba and served as a judge of the archdiocesan tribunal and director of vocations since 1984. He was named chancellor and financial administrator of the Winnipeg Archdiocese in 1994. When he was named an auxiliary bishop in Winnipeg in 1996, he was - at age 44 - 21 years younger than the next-youngest Ukrainian bishop in Canada.

In a letter to the clergy and faithful announcing the new appointment last November, retiring Metropolitan Sulyk commented: "I have known Bishop Soroka since 1981, when he was a seminarian and a priest student at our St. Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Seminary in Washington, D.C. During this time, he became known and a friend of many of our priests and became most familiar with our archeparchy and many of our parishes."

"He was been a colleague and good friend, especially as we gathered in synodal meetings of our Ukrainian Catholic Church. His youth, his enthusiasm and his dedication will enable him to bring a new vitality to our Church as we journey into the 21st century," the metropolitan stated.

Archbishop Sulyk was named metropolitan-archbishop of Philadelphia on December 29, 1980, by Pope John Paul II. He was ordained to the episcopacy in Rome on March 1, 1981, and has served as the sixth spiritual head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States.

The Ukrainian Catholic Church is the largest of the Eastern Catholic Churches. In the United States, the Ukrainian Catholic Church consists of the Philadelphia Archeparchy, with 68,000 faithful in 74 parishes located in Delaware, eastern Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia. Other suffragan eparchial sees of the Philadelphia Metropolitan Province are located in Stamford, Conn., Chicago and Parma, Ohio.

| Home Page |