“True Theology Begins with Love for Your Church”: All-Church Forum of Theologians of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Commences in Lviv
On September 26, in Lviv, at the Church of the Holy Wisdom of God of the Ukrainian Catholic University, Father and Head of the UGCC His Beatitude Sviatoslav presided over the solemn Hierarchical Divine Liturgy. The liturgy opened the two-day All-Church Forum “The Theology of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in the 21 st Century: Signs of the Times and Hope.”
Concelebrating with the Primate were Bishop Yaroslav Pryriz, head of the Theological Department of the UGCC, as well as rectors of seminaries and priests-theologians from various eparchies of the UGCC.
In his homily, His Beatitude Sviatoslav highlighted the depth of the Gospel account from John 19:25–27, which the Church reads on this day, noting that it reveals the culminating moment not only of Jesus Christ’s earthly journey, but also of the Paschal mystery: “Perhaps, reflecting on this short passage, our theologians immediately notice the so-called transposition of John’s dualism—two different realities explain the same thing in different ways. Some saw the moment of greatest humiliation—a shameful death on the cross—while John describes the enthronement of the King of Glory. Some perceive the words ‘Woman, behold your son’ and ‘Behold your mother’ as a remedy for the everyday problems of Jesus’ mother before His death. In fact, we hear about the moment of divine adoption, when the disciple becomes a son, and Christ shares His divine sonship with him.”
The preacher emphasized that even in the worst circumstances, we are not left alone.
“It may seem odd to us that in the last moments of his earthly life, Jesus calls his Mother ‘woman’. But it is here that we hear the word about the gift of Christ’s Church. In the Gospel of John, this term means community, God’s people. By giving us his Mother, the Savior assures us that we will never be orphans. At the Last Supper, he also promised that he would not leave us as orphans. How important it is for us today to learn John’s theology—to see deeper than the surface of events. It is no coincidence that our Church is beginning this All-Church Forum precisely now, as we celebrate his mysterious transition into eternity,” continued His Beatitude Sviatoslav.
The Head of the Church also encouraged forum participants to address their prayers to the Apostle John and ask him to help us understand the meaning of God’s word addressed to us during this large-scale event: “Christ points us to the theology of our Church. We are well acquainted with the theology of other local Churches, having often studied in their schools and universities, but we do not always know our own. Today, John Chrysostom points us to our Mother, who weeps before the crucifixion of her people. He says to each of us: ‘This is your Mother.’ Love her, because true theology begins with love for your Church.”
In conclusion, His Beatitude Sviatoslav called on us to love our Church, to which our suffering people belong: “Even in the most difficult circumstances, let us ask the Lord to feel that we are not orphans, but His children. Let us open ourselves and accept this divine sonship. Let us love, study, value, and pass it on to our descendants.”
The All-Church Forum “The Theology of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in the 21 st Century: Signs of the Times and Hope” is being held at the Ukrainian Catholic University with the blessing of the Synod of Bishops. It is organized by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the Ukrainian Catholic University with the support of the Church’s Theology Department in cooperation with theological academic institutions. Its goal is to bring together theologians from Ukraine and other countries to seek answers to contemporary challenges and outline prospects for the development of theological education and science.
The UGCC Department for InformationPhoto: UCU Press Center
