Monk Studite Ordained to Serve as Military Chaplain by His Beatitude Sviatoslav in Univ
On August 15, the feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God, during the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Dormition Lavra in Univ, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Father and Head of the UGCC, ordained to the priesthood Monk Valenta Rubakha of the Studite Order, a graduate of the Kyiv Three Saints Seminary. The newly ordained priest will serve as a military chaplain.
“Mother Church will send you where pain, tears, and suffering are greatest today. The Blessed Virgin Mary desires to accompany you there,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav, emphasizing that through the hands of priests, the Blessed Virgin Mary transforms the realm of death into the realm of life.
The Head of the UGCC wished the new hieromonk “to carry the living God, who is the source of immortality, and His Most Holy Mother to our young women and men on the front lines.”
“We wish you, Father, a pure, holy, and impeccable priesthood. Today you receive a special grace—participation in Christ’s priesthood, which is the priesthood of God Himself, who said: ‘I did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many.’ You have become a partaker of this divine ministry—the ministry of God to man through the priest in the Church. Serve worthily, bless the people, and preach the word of Christ’s Gospel, which is the source of our strength and hope. We assure you of our prayers,” His Beatitude Sviatoslav told Fr. Valenta, calling on the faithful to pray for him.
