Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church to Youth in Kyiv: “Here, each of us can reach our roots”
“We are of Kyivan roots. Here, as they say in Cherkasy, our umbilical cord is anchored.” This was said by His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Father and Head of the UGCC to Ukrainian youth gathered for the jubilee pilgrimage to the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Kyiv on August 16. The pilgrimage is dedicated to the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the restoration of the Kyiv Metropolia and the 20th anniversary of the return of the seat of the Head of the UGCC to Kyiv.
“It is indeed a great joy and privilege to welcome you all here today in our Patriarchal Cathedral, because the presence of young people is a gift from God, a special opportunity. During wartime, having the opportunity to meet another person is a unique moment that may never happen again,” the Primate said to the young pilgrims.
The Head of the Church emphasized the symbolic significance of the jubilee pilgrimage in the context of two important dates: the 30th anniversary of the revival of the UGCC in Kyiv and the 20th anniversary of the return of the seat of the Head of the Church to the capital of Ukraine.
“We remember the past with a view to building the future. Here, in Kyiv, each of us can touch our roots, because it was here, in the waters of the Dnipro River, that we were born as a Church,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav.
The Primate refuted Moscow’s propaganda about the origins of the UGCC: “For centuries, Moscow’s propaganda claimed that we never existed in Kyiv. We were told that we only came into being in 1596 with the Union of Brest. But this is not true. We were born a thousand years ago, even more, here in Kyiv.”
His Beatitude Sviatoslav paid special attention to the role of the Patriarchal Cathedral during the Maidan and the beginning of the Russia’s full-scale invasion, when the temple became not only a place of prayer, but also a shelter and a center of public resistance.
“I believe that those 30 years of our Church’s revival were a gift from God so that we could rebuild our structures and our parishes, to mature and be able to stand firm and endure the hardest times of war,” added His Beatitude Sviatoslav.
The Primate also remembered His Beatitude Lubomyr Husar, at whose coffin pilgrims prayed during the pilgrimage. “He is an outstanding person who continues to build our Church here. He laid the cornerstone of this cathedral, and later became a cornerstone of the Church himself,” said the Head of the Church.
“During the war, many people come to his tomb with prayers, and in the crypts there is a book where people record their gratitude for answered prayers. His Beatitude Lubomyr protects people from heaven and listens to their deepest requests,” he added.
In conclusion, the Head of the UGCC accentuated the global role of the Church: “Our Church of Volodymyr’s Baptism is beginning to enlighten the whole world, as the righteous Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky prophetically foresaw.”
He called on young people to join in the common search for answers to the difficult questions of our time: “Let us contemplate together. But most importantly, let us move forward together toward the new goals and challenges that life and God set before us.”
Afterwards, Ukrainian youth had the opportunity to communicate with His Beatitude Sviatoslav, asking him questions and sharing their experiences of the pilgrimage to Rome.
