Head of the UGCC, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, is honored with the highest award of the city of Lublin
On Sunday, May 28, the Father and Head of the UGCC, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, visited Lublin. The Head of the UGCC led the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy in the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. After the Liturgy, the Head of the UGCC was awarded the Medal of Honor of Lublin on behalf of the President of the city for his services in building solidarity and spiritual unity between the Polish and Ukrainian peoples with gratitude for the pastoral care of the city’s residents.
During his pastoral visit to Poland, the Head of the UGCC visited Lublin, one of the Polish cities that have received the largest number of refugees from Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale war. The visit coincided with the feast of Pentecost according to the Gregorian calendar and the Sunday of the Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council according to the Julian calendar.
The Head of the UGCC met with the Ukrainian church community in Lublin, led by Fr. Stefan Batrukh. He led the Hierarchical Liturgy in the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, attended by the city’s leaders — Deputy President, Mariusz Banach, and Director of the International Cooperation Center, Krzysztof Stanowski.
Mr. Mariusz thanked for the opportunity to pray together under the domes of the cathedral and highlighted the significance of Lublin, referring to two significant events in history: signing the Union of Lublin, which lasted only 200 years; the second union is the Brest Union, which exists to this day. “We understand that even today the blood of the martyrs keeps flowing for the sake of this Church. We would like to ask you, Your Beatitude, for something very important for us, the residents of Lublin, the faithful of both rites, Eastern and Western, so that God’s grace, which flows from that shed blood, may become God’s grace for us.”
Mr. Banach emphasized that during the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Lublin took an active position in helping Ukrainians, both refugees and those who remained in Ukraine, in the first days:
“During this time, one and a half million guests from Ukraine have passed through our city, and about 50,000 have stayed here. We found schools and hospitals for them. Today, nearly 100 teachers from Ukraine work in our schools. We have come a long way with Ukrainians and want to continue to walk this way with you. On the one hand, we want to thank you for your martyrdom and your testimony, and on the other hand, we want to say what you said so well: that God has not forsaken Ukraine. And here in Lublin, I hope we have the best example.”
As a token of respect for Ukraine, Ukrainians, the UGCC, and personally the Head of the Church, Mr. Mariusz Banach, on behalf of the President of Lublin, Dr. Krzysztof Żuk, presented His Beatitude Sviatoslav with the city’s highest honor, the Medal of Honor.
“I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart, from all of Ukraine, from Kyiv, and say it sincerely: May God reward you,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav in response. “The fact that I am alive is a miracle of God, and I constantly call it a miracle over the Dnipro. Poland remembers the miracle over the Vistula when the Poles were able to stop the invasion of the Red Army. And now, over the Dnipro, Ukraine has stopped that barbarian of the third millennium and is already beginning to drive him from its land. This miracle cannot be explained in terms of human knowledge.
I am here to testify. When the Russians were near Kyiv, we were surrounded. There is a town near Kyiv called Brovary, which was on the front line at the time. I went there to be with the people. And I saw a pile of boxes-they were from Poland. And one of them had a note on it: ‘Poland’s mountainous support for Ukraine.’ I don’t know who wrote it, but I realized Ukraine will win! Because the mountain is for us! The Lord God is with us. Poland is with us! Indeed, the openness of the Poles to the pain of Ukrainians, to the struggle of Ukraine, is not ordinary human philanthropy. Because, humanly speaking, we quickly get tired of foreigners. That is why cordiality and love in the name of God for our people, women, and children is a manifestation of the faith of the people of God who believe in God.
But Ukrainians here in Poland don’t just want to take; they want to give. They want to work to contribute to the development of this country; they want to share their faith and hope. We know that God has not abandoned Ukraine, but He will not abandon Poland. Together we will build our common European dream, our European future. On behalf of all I represent, I say from the bottom of my heart, ‘May God reward you.’”
His Beatitude Sviatoslav also thanked Fr. Stefan Batrukh, priest of the parish of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lublin, for his great work for the Church, Ukraine, and Poland:
“We often communicate with Father Stefan: he is like a negotiator between the Ukrainian and Polish bishops. How many texts are we preparing, and will we persist in preparing? We hope that on July 7, on the eve of the next sad anniversary of the Volyn tragedy, we will announce another text of Ukrainian-Polish reconciliation in Warsaw.”
The Head of the UGCC also expressed his gratitude to the Metropolitan of Lublin, Archbishop Stanislaw Budzik:
“I was very pleased that the first to visit us in Kyiv, after the still living wounds of Kyiv, Bucha, Irpin, were the bishops of Poland. Archbishop Stanislaw Budzik of Lublin also came with that delegation. It greatly uplifted us in spirit and enhanced spiritual support for us.”
The UGCC Department for Information
