Sheptytsky's miter is discovered (03/03/02)

Sheptytsky's miter is discovered

Religious Information Service of Ukraine

LVIV - A sensational discovery was presented recently at Lviv's Museum of Ethnography and Art: the miter of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (UGCC) from 1900 to 1944.

Andrii Yurash, lecturer at Lviv's Ivan Franko National University (IFNU) and at the Lviv Theological Academy, was the first to examine the relic. He was the one who theorized that this is the metropolitan's miter. Mr. Yurash made this conclusion because Metropolitan Sheptytsky's coat of arms is embroidered on the miter. The four evangelists are embroidered on the relic and it is decorated with almost 150 pearls and diamonds. Although the crucifix is no longer present, there is a sign of its former presence. This strongly suggests that the miter did not belong to a priest.

According to Roman Shust, professor in the history department at IFNU, the discovery of the miter has a deeply symbolic meaning for Ukrainians and for the Church. It was given to Metropolitan Sheptytsky at the ceremony of his appointment to the Metropolitan See of Lviv in 1901. The evidence may be seen in the many photos of Metropolitan Sheptytsky wearing this miter.

This theory was also confirmed by Olena Haiova, director of the religious department at the Central State Historical Archive of Ukraine in Lviv, which has many photos of the metropolitan. She suggested that once, perhaps in the 18th century, this miter belonged to Metropolitan Anastasii Sheptytsky. The family kept it and in 1901 gave it to Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky.

During World War I, when Russian troops tried to destroy the UGCC, this relic disappeared. Prof. Shust assumes that one of the priests of the UGCC hid it from thieves.

Liudmyla Bulgakova, curator in Lviv's Museum of Ethnography, said that the cloth of the miter is from the 18th century, but some new elements were added to it in the 19th century.

The relic is part of a private collection belonging to Mykola Rohutskyi, president of the Artor company. At a press conference on December 25, 2001, he stated that the miter had previously belonged to a family from Lviv.

The relic will be returned to its historical owner, the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church. Mr. Rohutskyi said he would present the miter to Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, head of the UGCC.

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