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Prayers are requested for the health of our former eparchial bishop, Kenneth Nowakowski. Bishop Kenneth is in hospital in the UK, where he is now bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Holy Family of London, after being diagnosed with COVID-19.

Bishop Ken Nowakowski


O Holy Father, Physician of souls and bodies, You sent your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, to heal every infirmity and to deliver us from death. Heal your servant Kenneth of every spiritual and bodily ill which afflicts him. Restore him by the grace of your Christ through the prayers of our most holy Lady, the Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, and of all your Saints. For You, our God, are the Fountain of healing, and we glorify You together with your only-begotten Son, and your Consubstantial Spirit, now and ever, and forever. Amen.

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in response to the vandalism of a Ukrainian Catholic church in Calgary, in the wake of media coverage of Residential School burial site discoveries.

Dear Ukrainian Catholic Faithful,

Слава Ісусу Христу! Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Many of us were saddened earlier this week when we learned that the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Parish, Calgary, had been vandalized by individuals acting on their own—not once but twice, alongside many other Roman Catholic parishes throughout Calgary.

While the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Canada never ran Residential Schools, we can relate to the pain and suffering that our Indigenous brothers and sisters are enduring in the recent recovery of the graves of hundreds of children found in several cemeteries in western Canada.

The Ukrainian community readily acknowledges that if it were not for the help of the Indigenous Peoples, our ancestors would not have survived those first harsh winters in the late 1890s when Ukrainian immigration to Canada began, nor what medicines to use, nor how to navigate the land. The story of the meeting of our two peoples is most recently told in song and dance in the 2018 Ukrainian Shumka Dancers’ Ancestors and Elders production, a story of strength and sacred bond among peoples.

Dear faithful, the Indigenous Peoples in Canada now need our prayers, support and action as they seek truth and reconciliation regarding the tragedy of Residential Schools. If for no other reason, we can relate to their suffering and loss for we too know suffering and loss. Millions of our people were starved to death under the Soviet Communist Regime in the Holodomor Genocide of 1932-1933. In Canada, during World War I, thousands of our people were taken away from their families, stripped of all their possessions, and held in some 24 internment camps as enemy aliens, some whose burial sites are still unknown. And since 2014, some 13,000 have died and 30,000 wounded in the “forgotten war” in eastern Ukraine at the hands of Russian aggressors.

Dear parishioners of Assumption Parish, Calgary, I share in the hurt and pain caused you by the recent vandalism at your holy place of worship, and I pray that words of peace and reconciliation prevail over criminal acts of vandalism and hate.

Dear faithful, but now, above all, it is a time to listen attentively to our Indigenous brothers and sisters, no matter how painful the reality of Residential Schools. They must speak. We must listen. Only then will truth be told, and heard, with the hope of reconciliation and a strengthening of the bond of our two peoples.

God bless,

Bishop David

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Moleben to the Mother of God

Father Yuriy at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Parish, Victoria. 7PM 16 June 2021.

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Moleben to the Mother of God

Father Yuriy at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Parish, Victoria. 7PM 9 June 2021.

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Moleben to the Mother of God

Father Yuriy at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Parish, Victoria. 7PM 2 June 2021.

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Moleben to the Mother of God

Father Yuriy at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Parish, Victoria. 7PM 19 May 2021.

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Moleben to the Mother of God

Father Yuriy at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Parish, Victoria. 7PM 5 May 2021.

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Heraldic emblem of His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk

Christ is Risen!

Bearing torches let us meet the bridegroom, Christ, As He comes forth from His tomb, And let us greet, with joyful song, the saving Pascha of God.
—Ode 5, Paschal Canon

Beloved in Christ!

Today the heart is jubilant, the soul rejoices, feet rush to church, arms stretch out to the Lord, resounding song comes from our mouths, for this day is truly the feast of feasts and solemnity of solemnities: ‘Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and to those in the tombs bestowing life!’ As smoke which is blown away by the wind, and as wax which disappears in fire (see. Ps 67:2-3), so today all our anguish, worries, doubts, and fears dissipate and lose their power over us: ‘This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it’ (Ps 117:24).

Let us meet... Christ, as He comes forth from His tomb...

We go to encounter the One, who emerges from the grave, having undergone horrific torture, suffering, and death. In rising, Christ passes from death to life. He emerges from the confines of a limited and narrow tomb, with the entrance closed by a stone and signed with a seal. Christ passes by the guard, placed there at Pilate’s command. The glorified body of the Saviour cannot be held, neither by time, nor by the space of earthly human existence, as we pray in the Anaphora of the Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great: ‘He loosed the pangs of death, rising on the third day and making a way for all flesh to the resurrection of the dead—for it was not possible for the Prince of life to be mastered by corruption.’

Christ opened a new Pascha of God, for not Moses, but the God-Man leads humankind—not from Egyptian captivity, but from death to life, and from earth to the heavens. The paschal matins service depicts this paschal movement, this exodus of the New Covenant as that of a Bridegroom emerging from the wedding chamber. This image is familiar to us! Already, during Passion Week, the Church prepared us for the coming of Christ the Bridegroom: ‘O faithful, let us be on fire with love for the Bridegroom, and with lamps burning, let us go out to meet Him. May the light of our virtues shine brightly, and may our faith be radiant. With the wise virgins, let us prepare to enter the banquet hall of the Lord; for the divine Spouse offers us the crown of immortality.’ (Great Tuesday, Matins, Lenten Sessional Hymns). And lo, the grave is transformed into a chamber, with Christ’s Resurrection funeral services are transformed into the joy of encountering the Bridegroom, who dispels sorrow, fulfils the time of expectation, and invites us to the paschal feast of the Heavenly Kingdom. With Christ’s Resurrection, we become partakers of eternal life—not observers, but real participants in the life of God’s children.

Bearing torches let us meet the Bridegroom!

This past year we have lived as if in a tomb ‘behind the locked doors’ of quarantine restrictions that periodically intensified. Our churches and monasteries in some parts of the world were truly inaccessible to worshipping faithful, out of concern for the safety and health of both clergy and religious, as well as the laity. However, today Paschal Matins help us accept these restrictions as a form of expectation—of the exodus and of the risen Bridegroom-Christ, whose arrival is awaited vigilantly in the night by the wedding guests (see Mt 25:1-13). And here we sense that this time is approaching. The Bridegroom draws near, announcing to us that the exodus has begun. The light of hope shines through, that with God’s help we will be able to emerge from this global ‘incarceration,’ to return from the virtual world to the expanse of our churches and communities, in order to pray together ‘with one heart and one voice’ in God’s assembly. But for this to happen, is it especially important that the torch of the Resurrection—the light of faith, hope, and love—not be extinguished.

In going out to meet the risen Christ this paschal night we carry our torches of faith! Even in circumstances of strict quarantine we’ve learned to practice our faith, to differentiate between its substance and its forms of expression. We may have had to change our practices and customs, but we did not weaken our relationship of faith with our Lord God, a faith that filled our life with light through prayer and daily reflection on the Word of God, through participation in the Divine Liturgy in a different way, through a heartfelt desire to receive the Body and Blood of our Saviour. The torch of faith in us did not go out.

We carry today the torches of our hope! Drawing strength from our faith, we have fostered expectations that we will overcome and survive these complex times. Christian hope gave us strength to continue living, to adapt to a culture of preserving a healthy life in these new circumstances. We shone our torches of faith and hope in the resurrection even as we mourned our dead. When the world became disoriented and lost its bearings, the torch of Christian hope helped us find an exit-exodus, move towards an encounter with the Bridegroom, who today joyfully and victoriously emerges from the tomb!

We are encountering the risen Christ, carrying our torches of love in action—of God and neighbour. As the wise virgins of the Gospel parable (see Mt 25:1-13), this pandemic night of waiting for the coming of the Bridegroom filled our lamps with works of mercy and service to our neighbour. We understood that we will find our way out of these complex circumstances of life only if we create authentic and vibrant Christian communities, built on mutual assistance and sacrificial service to one another. The torch of love for neighbour in us did not die out, and on this paschal night it allows us to go out to meet the risen Christ!

And let us greet, with joyful song, the saving Pascha of God.

We joyfully praise Christ, who emerges from the tomb, as a spring bird, who, with the thaw, begins to sing louder and more cheerfully, and does not cease, even when it senses that the branch on which it is perched is swaying—for it knows that it has wings of faith, hope, and love! Let us gaze upon the body of Christ, covered in wounds from brutal scourging, without breath or life. A body crucified and buried, it would seem, irrevocably and forever. And yet, the Spirit of God revives this broken human body, which in the brightness of Divine glory comes out to meet us and lay a path for us to eternity. This is the salvation of which we sing today: “O Son of God, who are the giver of life to the whole world, for this the whole world glorifies You.”

Therefore, if we are under the impression that humanity has become like a body tortured unto death by the pandemic—and our people suffer this evil in the midst of the horrors of war, which continue now for the eighth year—let us gaze towards the Bridegroom, who emerges from the tomb fully alive and surrounded by light, and let us not doubt even for a moment, that a light-filled resurrection also awaits us, that we too are true partakers of the Resurrection which we celebrate today by the power and action of the Holy Spirit!

Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ! On this bright, joyful day I greet all of you with the Pascha of our Lord. Especially in this Year of St. Joseph the Betrothed I greet all our husbands-fathers. My wish for you is that you be a light of faith, hope, and love for your families, models and icons of God’s love, fidelity, courage, creativity, industriousness, patience, openness—for your beloved spouses and children. Christ is the only icon of God the Father, but children, as they grow up, develop an image of Him on the basis of their family experience and the example of their dad.

I greet those who in this pandemic feel lonely and abandoned. Remember: when you pray, the risen Lord is always with you, and by the power of Christian prayer you are united with the entire community of His Church. You are not alone!

I greet all the sick and frail, as well as medical professionals and your family and friends, who care for you. On this feast of victory over death I ask you: cherish the gift of life, and embrace bodily suffering as sacrifice in prayer, for this is “a spiritual fragrance” pleasing to the Lord.

To our soldiers and to those who remain in occupied territories and in Crimea, I send you my sincere paschal greeting and assure you of my prayers, that the risen Lord strengthen you and keep you alive and healthy.

I embrace with a fatherly love all the clergy, religious, and faithful in Ukraine and throughout the world, and sincerely wish you all a blessed Easter feast, a tasty sharing of our traditional blessed egg, and a Paschal joy that is full of light.

The grace of our Risen Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Christ is risen!—Truly, He is risen!

✙ SVIATOSLAV
Given in Kyiv at the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ,
on the day of our Venerable Father and Confessor Theophanes of Sigriana,
Our Holy Father Gregory the Dialogist, Pope of Rome,
and Blessed Priest-Martyr Omelian Kovch
March 25 (12), AD 2021

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The Resurrection of Our Lord
Matins, Divine Liturgy, and Blessing of Paschal Food

Matins, followed by Divine Liturgy of our Father among the Saints John Chrysostom, celebrated by Father Yuriy at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Parish, Victoria. 8AM 4 April 2021.

At the commencement of the Divine Liturgy, after the priest has exclaimed, Blessed be the Kingdom… and the people have responded, Amen, the clergy sing the Paschal Troparion once and the people repeat it. Then, the clergy sing the first half, and the people conclude it:

Paschal Troparion: Christ is risen from the dead, * trampling death by death, * and to those in the tombs * giving life.

First Antiphon
Verse: Shout to the Lord, all the earth, * sing now to His name, give glory to His praise.
Refrain: Through the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour, save us.

Verse: Say unto God, “How awesome are Your works! * Because of the greatness of Your strength Your enemies will flatter You.”
Refrain: Through the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour, save us.

Verse: Let all the earth worship You and sing to You, * let it sing to Your name, O Most High!
Refrain: Through the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour, save us.

Third Antiphon
Verse: Let God arise, and let His enemies be scattered; let those who hate Him flee from before His face.
Troparion: Christ is risen from the dead, * trampling death by death, * and to those in the tombs * giving life.

Verse: As smoke vanishes, let them vanish, as wax melts before the fire.
Troparion: Christ is risen from the dead, * trampling death by death, * and to those in the tombs * giving life.

Verse: So let sinners perish before the face of God, but let the righteous be glad.
Troparion: Christ is risen from the dead, * trampling death by death, * and to those in the tombs * giving life.

Entrance verse: In the churches bless God, the Lord from the fountains of Israel.
Troparion: Christ is risen from the dead, * trampling death by death, * and to those in the tombs * giving life.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Now and forever and ever, Amen.

Kontakion, Tone 8
Though You descended into a tomb, O Immortal One, * yet You destroyed the power of Hades; * and You rose as victor, O Christ God, * calling to the myrrhbearing women: Rejoice! * and giving peace to Your Apostles: * You, who grant resurrection to the fallen.

Instead of “Holy God” we sing: All you who have been baptised into Christ, you have put on Christ! Alleluia!

Prokeimenon, Tone 1
This is the day which the Lord has made; * let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Verse: Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever. (Psalm 117:24,1)

Epistle : Acts 1:1–8
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles
In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This,’ he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; for John baptised with water, but you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’ So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’

Alleluia, Tone 1
Verse: When you rise, You will have compassion on Sion. (Psalm 101:14)
Verse: The Lord looked down from heaven to earth to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free the sons of those put to death. (Psalm 101:20)

Gospel : John 1:1–17
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.”’) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Instead of ‘It is truly...’ we sing: The Angel cried out to the One full of Grace: O chaste Virgin, rejoice! And again I say, Rejoice! Your Son has risen from the tomb on the third day, and raised the dead. Let all people rejoice! Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem, for the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! Exult now and be glad, O Sion! And you, O chaste Mother of God, take delight in the resurrection of your Son.

Сommunion Hymn
Receive the Body of Christ; * taste the fountain of immortality. * Alleluia, alleluia, * alleluia.

[A private prayer of spiritual communion:
My Jesus, I believe that You are present in these Holy Gifts!
I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot receive You now,
I place before You my whole life and hope, O loving Master;
and I ask, pray, and entreat You: Make me worthy to partake in a mystical way
and with a pure conscience of Your awesome and heavenly Mysteries:
for forgiveness of sins, for the pardon of offences, for communion of the Holy Spirit,
for the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven, for confidence before You,
and not for judgment or condemnation.
I embrace You as You enter and abide in me, and I unite myself completely to You.
Permeate my soul and body, and never permit me to be separated from You.
Amen.]

Instead of “Blessed is He” we sing: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death by death, and to those in the tombs giving life (1x).

Instead of “We have seen the true light” we sing: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death by death, and to those in the tombs giving life (1x).

Instead of “Let our mouths be filled” we sing: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death by death, and to those in the tombs giving life (3x).

Instead of “Blessed be the name of the Lord” we sing: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death by death, and to those in the tombs giving life (3x).

At the end of the Liturgy we sing: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death by death, and to those in the tombs giving life (3x).
And to us he has granted life eternal;* we bow down before his resurrection on the third day.

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Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 31 March 2021.

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Divine Liturgy with Sorokousty

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria.
9AM, Saturday 27 March.

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Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 26 March 2021.

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Feast of the Annunciation

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 25 March 2021.

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Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 24 March 2021.

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Divine Liturgy with Sorokousty

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria.
9AM, Saturday 6 March.

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Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 5 March 2021.

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Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 3 March 2021.

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OUR LENTEN JOURNEY: LITURGICAL EXPLORATIONS

Sunday, Feb 28 at 11:30 AM

Make your Lenten journey with seasoned liturgists who will guide you through the liturgical services of Lent, encourage you to delve into the depths of Lenten mystagogy, and clarify the meaning of some ancient texts and traditions.

Speakers
Deacon Daniel Galadza, S.E.O.D. in Byzantine liturgy, a research fellow at the Centre of Advanced Studies of the University of Regensburg, Germany.
Very Rev Mark Morozowich, S.E.O.D. Dean of The School of Theology and Religious Studies at Catholic University of America and Associate Professor of Liturgical Studies/ Sacramental Theology.
Most Rev Bohdan Danylo, STL. Ukrainian Catholic Bishop of Saint Josaphat in Parma

Moderator
Most Rev Hlib Lonchyna, S.E.O.D.

Topics
Departure. A roadmap of Lenten services with Deacon Daniel
Along the way. The Presanctified Liturgy explained by Father Mark
Destination. Liturgies of Great and Holy Week services with Bishop Bohdan

To join
The event will be held in English via Zoom video conferencing.
Please register to get the link to participate..

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Divine Liturgy with Sorokousty

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria.
9AM, Saturday 27 February.

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Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 26 February 2021.

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Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

From Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker parish, Victoria BC.
6PM, 24 February 2021.

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Saint Ephrem the Syrian, from a 16th Century Russian manuscript

Our Lenten mission will take place online this year, and will focus on the penitential prayer of Saint Ephrem the Syrian.

Each of the two sessions will be introduced by Bishop David, who will lead the opening prayers, and will be conducted by eparchial clergy.

Part 1  Friday 26 February, 7:30PM
Reverend Mykhailo Ozorovych
Reverend Andriy Malysh

Part 2  Friday 5 March, 7:30PM
Reverend Yuriy Vyshnevskyy

(Event registration now closed.)

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Icon of the Suffering Lord

While public gatherings remain suspended in British Columbia, Father Yuriy will livestream video of Sunday Divine Liturgy and other Lenten services from Saint Nicholas parish in Victoria. These videos will be available here or via the Saint Nicholas site. In the Ukrainian Catholic Church, Lent begins this year on Monday 15 February. The schedule of services for each week of Lent will be posted on our services times page.

 

In addition to livestream video of services from Victoria, we will have communal celebration of Vespers on Saturday evening at 7PM, via video conferencing. If you would like to participate in this and are not already receiving details from Father Yuriy, please contact him.