The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church has been organizing dispensing feasts between Christmas and the Epiphany for the past couple of years in Kyiv. It’s when the patriarch shares the bread offered at the Divine Liturgy (Eucharist) with the congregation, symbolizing the unity between the Church and the faithful and reaffirming the unity of the adherents. This year’s religious ceremony took place at Ukraine’s International Exhibit Center in Kyiv. It was attended by a number of adherents and clergymen from all over Ukraine (largely due to Lubomyr Husar’s farsighted policy of having the UGCC center transferred from Lviv to Kyiv in 2005, as well as owing to Husar’s charismatic personality). The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is slowly gaining acknowledgment as a national church rather than a local one. During the ceremony it was stated that the Patriarchal Christmas Cathedral would be consecrated in Kyiv, that the fund-raising campaign was underway all over Ukraine and far beyond its borders, and that this will be followed by the transfer of the remains of St. Yosyp Slipy from Lviv’s St. George’s Cathedral. Needless to say, professional media, particularly The Day, wouldn’t miss this opportunity of interviewing His Eminence Lubomyr Husar.
Would Your Eminence comment on Viktor Yushchenko’s five-year presidency?
“This is a complicated issue, considering that we are in a transition period, so it’s hard to say who has carried out whose duty. After all, these duties have never been clearly formulated, rather dictated by daily realities. In my opinion, President Viktor Yushchenko has tried to awaken his fellow Ukrainian citizens to their national identity. He has digressed into the past, trying to raise matters relating to our history, revealing what was previously obscured. I also think that referring to the past doesn’t suffice these days, although it was a good initiative. Today, we are more or less aware of our noble descent, of our long and eventful history; we have our achievements we can be rightfully proud of; we have strong foundations. We should now look at our prospects with optimism. We have done a great deal of useful work and, of course, we must continue. This process may well take more than a decade.”
Unlike other confessions, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church has never been involved in or with election campaigns. Also, you have always emphasized that your UGCC will never stand aside public life. May I ask whether this presidential campaign has left you impressed in any way?
“I'm hard put to describe it. There were eighteen presidential candidates and I was stunned by the number… Our Church doesn't want to identify itself with any person. We would be happy to accommodate any candidate who would want to visit and seek our blessing. We are offering up prayers for all of them because our Lord God loves them all as His children, just as He knows what's best for us all. The UGCC's stand is that the adherents should carry out their public duty [by casting their ballots], but that we mustn't identify ourselves with any presidential candidate, for such is not the task of the Church. True, those eighteen presidential candidates might get on our nerves as fellow citizens. However, the faithful should trust our Lord to help us run our state, so we're praying for all of them and hope that Jesus Christ will enlighten the Ukrainian people and deliver them from sin.”
Now and then, especially on Christmas Eve, we have heard [Moscow] Patriarch Kirill say that among the circumstances preventing him from visiting Pope Benedict XVI is the situation with the churches in the west of Ukraine. What is your take on the issue?
“What he says is his business, although his statement is startling for two reasons. I don't know how many churches the Moscow Patriarchate has built in the east of Ukraine, but I don't know of a single house of God built in the west of Ukraine which was taken over by the Greek Catholic Church. All we did was to get back what had been taken away from us and handed over to the Moscow Patriarchate some sixty years back. There is another surprising aspect. When people get together to work out an agreement, they cannot put forth conditions that are unreasonable. If we want to cooperate, we must combine efforts instead of trying to push through terms and conditions.”
Last year's academic and rock music festival “With Faith and Love” under your patronage marked a major event in Ukraine's cultural life. Will there be a sequel?
“We would certainly hope so, especially in the east of Ukraine, as we’re convinced that our people need this kind of epitome of beauty and spiritual values. Music is an art that can connect with and reach deep into the human soul, helping every individual to become aware of their own person. I believe that academic and pop music concerts have played a major role. In our understanding, this is what serving people is all about, even in a somewhat nonstandard manner, considering that our flock primarily expects sermons from the Church. But then they partook in the beauty of this form of music. I am glad when our adherents can enjoy such beauty. Life itself dictates the way in which we the shepherds can serve our flock. Time will show the best way.”
