Patriarch Filaret of Kyiv enthrones Bishop Stephen Bilak in Florida (07/07/02)

Patriarch Filaret of Kyiv enthrones Bishop Stephen Bilak in Florida

COOPER CITY, Fla. - The Very Rev. Stephen Bilak, 83, was ordained a bishop of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyivan Patriarchate during a pastoral visit to the United States of Patriarch Filaret of Kyiv and All Rus'-Ukraine, the Church's primate.

The Rev. Bilak, former pastor of St. Nicholas Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Cooper City, Fla., was enthroned as a bishop of the UOC-KP on Sunday, May 19. Present at the ceremony, in addition to Patriarch Filaret, were Bishops Dymytrii and Alexander (Bykovetz). A banquet followed the church services.

James D. Davis, religion editor of the Sun Sentinel, wrote on May 19: "Father Stephen Bilak was happy as a husband and a pastor in Cooper City. And a retiree for three years. He never expected to become a bishop. But a bishop he will become today, when several prelates ... welcome him as a fellow shepherd. ... His Holiness Patriarch Filaret, head of the Church body, will ordain the 83-year-old cleric, along with other bishops from America and Ukraine."

"This is an honor," the church's current pastor, the Rev. Victor Poliarny, who succeeded the Rev. Bilak at St. Nicholas in 1999, told the Sun Sentinel. "Whenever someone comes from Ukraine, we feel super-good about it."

Patriarch Filaret and his entourage were welcomed at the entrance to the church by the head of the parish community, Leonid Husak. Once inside the church, they were greeted by the Rev. Poliarny, who extended felicitations on behalf of Ukraine's faithful children in the diaspora and called on all present to pray for the development of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and for God's blessings for the Ukrainian nation.

After the enthronement ceremony, Bishop Stephen humbly addressed his fellow bishops, clergy and faithful, thanking Patriarch Filaret for his trust and asking all gathered for their prayers to help him carry out his weighty obligations as the newest, although far from youngest, bishop of the UOC-KP.

The Sun Sentinel reported that the consecration "caps a productive life for Bilak, who will celebrate his 60th anniversary as a priest in October. He has built three churches - in Oklahoma and Pennsylvania besides Cooper City - during his 50 years in America."

Bishop Bilak is known also for his activity with the Ukrainian National Association, which he served as an auditor. Since 1990 he has been an honorary member of the UNA General Assembly.

Speaking on the eve of his enthronement, the Rev. Bilak told the Sun Sentinel: "I never thought this was going to happen. I was a married priest, and a married priest cannot be ordained."

Earlier this year, in February, the Rev. Bilak's wife, Olena, died. "After His Holiness [Filaret] knew that I was by myself, he contacted me. And the people were willing to see me as bishop," the Rev. Bilak explained.

Prior to his consecration as bishop, the Rev. Bilak was required to become a monk, a ritual he underwent on Friday, May 17. In the second phase of the process, on Saturday, May 18, he was formally asked to accept the bishop's role. On Sunday, May 19, he was officially installed as bishop during ceremonies at St. Nicholas Church, which will now will be designated as a cathedral.

Present at the ceremony, according to the local newspaper, were many of the 87 families who belong to St. Nicholas Parish and the Rev. Bilak's daughter, Irene, a teacher and counselor at a public school in Miami. Also in attendance were faithful from the Church's parishes in the United States and Canada.

The website of the Vicary of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate in the USA notes that Bishop Bilak, former president of the Consistory of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA, which is headquartered in South Bound Brook, N.J., was a long-time member of the hierarchy of UOC-USA.

However, after the UOC-USA leadership decided to come under the omophorion of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople, the Rev. Bilak opted for the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyivan Patriarchate.

The vicary's website also said of Bishop Bilak's enthronement: "This is a momentous occasion, for it firmly establishes the Kyivan Patriarchate within the borders of the United States and Canada and unites all parishes which have declared their allegiance to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyivan Patriarchate, under one central leadership."

The site went on to explain that Patriarch Filaret had formally established a Vicary of UOC-KP for the United States and Canada headquartered in Cooper City, Fla., with Bishop Stephan as its spiritual leader. On Monday, May 20, a Vicary Constitution was reviewed and formally adopted, and a Bishop's Council, consisting of four clergy and four laypersons, was elected.

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