His Beatitude Sviatoslav met with the priests of the Archeparchy of Kyiv
On Tuesday, October 4, the Father and Head of the UGCC, His Beatitude Svyatoslav met with priests and deacons of the Kyiv Archdiocese of the UGCC. They are on the annual formation course organized by the archdiocese. Bishop Yosyf Milyan, assistant bishop of the Kyiv Archdiocese, took part in the meeting via video link.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav thanked the priests for staying in their parishes in the most challenging time. After the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, when part of the northern regions of the Kyiv Archdiocese came under occupation, other areas became the site of active hostilities and the front-line zone.
The Primate noted that the parishes where the priest remained had become centers of saving people and social service. At the same time, the bishop emphasized that, besides humanitarian aid, people need a word of hope.
Separately, His Beatitude Sviatoslav noted the service of military chaplains who, providing spiritual support to Ukrainian soldiers in the first months of the war, also became “capillaries through which humanitarian aid was transmitted” to different parts of Ukraine.
The Primate pointed out that the period of the first months of the great war will still be researched and therefore asked the priests to be open to proposals to document their experience of serving in war conditions, calling them “living history.” His Beatitude Sviatoslav added that he was proud that God had given the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church such a clergy.
Speaking with the priests, the Head of the UGCC focused his attention on the current humanitarian situation in Ukraine. He asked the fathers and deacons to reach out to internally displaced persons, helping them to integrate into social life in their new places of residence.
The Primate also noted that in the current situation of Russia’s war against Ukraine, the Church, in addition to the humanitarian one, also found itself on the information front. In this context, the bishop called on the priests not to stop telling the world the truth about the war and Russia’s crimes in Ukraine in all possible ways and known languages.
At the end of the meeting, the Primate encouraged the priests to take care of their health and recalled that the priorities of the UGCC pastorate for the next three years were healing the wounds of war, rescuing the most vulnerable, and caring for families.
The UGCC Department for Information
