UKRAINIAN CHURCHES RESPOND TO EVENTS IN UKRAINE: Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (12/05/04)

UKRAINIAN CHURCHES RESPOND TO EVENTS IN UKRAINE

Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church

The Synod of Bishops of the Kyiv-Halych Metropolitanate of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), which began its work in Lviv on November 23, issued an address on the critical situation in Ukraine. In the words of Bishop Stepan Meniok, UGCC exarch of Donetsk and Kharkiv, "If we are quiet, then we will be slaves forever." The complete text of the address, provided by the Religious Information Service of Ukraine, follows.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ!

In this decisive and fateful moment for our Ukrainian people, we, the bishops of the UGCC gathered in synod, feel our obligation before God and the people to address you with our pastoral message. The Church of Christ is always with its people, it is their conscience and in every critical situation goes in their defense.

Above all, we want to recall that our Church more than once addressed you all in its statements in the period before the election, saying that every citizen of Ukraine should freely, according to the voice of his or her conscience, and honestly cast his vote for the worthy candidate for the presidency of Ukraine. Our Church did not campaign for any of the candidates. In our pastoral addresses to the faithful we emphasized the importance of preserving democratic principles during the election. We will briefly recall the possible violations of these principles that we cautioned against:

interfering in the free expression of the will of each citizen of Ukraine;
one-sided information;
using "administrative resources";
buying votes;
falsifying the results of the election.

Have we not become witnesses of these violations?

More than once the president of Ukraine publicly stated that the election would be democratic. Did he, as the guarantor of the Constitution of Ukraine, properly see to it that this was so?

Today the nation is convinced that democratic principles were violated.

When people take to the streets to defend their constitutional rights in a peaceful way, they are not a dark mass "off the street." These are brave people, self-sacrificing and responsible, who should be honored and whose voice should be heard, for "the voice of the people is the voice of God."

So, we turn to those persons in positions of power, entrusted with power by this same people, asking them not to give in to the temptation during the resolution of this very difficult situation, not to use their standing, the means of force and law-enforcement structures, for their own narrow interests, against their own people. Your activities should always be within the boundaries of the law.

We achieve true freedom through the way of the cross and suffering. Let us be ready for this, for Christ the God-Man freed the human race by His suffering and death on the cross from sin, and gave us all freedom.

In this difficult and responsible moment for our country, we call people one by one, families and the whole nation, to common prayer for God's help. We hope and we ask God Almighty that He, as the gracious Lord, would give each and all of us the opportunity together and freely to build a happy future for our long-suffering but blessed Ukrainian land.

May the Lord's blessing be upon you!

Ý Lubomyr
in the name of the Bishops of the Synod of the Kyiv-Halych Metropolitanate of the UGCC.

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