Patriarch Sviatoslav set tasks for UGCC to be fulfilled by 2020
On May 7, 2011, during his stay in Drohobych, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), Patriarch Sviatoslav, met with journalists, seminary students and clergymen. One of the many questions of the journalists was about the future of the UGCC.
In describing his vision of the future of the church in 10 years’ time in its internal, external and territorial development, Patriarch Sviatoslav said:
“The Synod of our Bishops established Team #2, which was to elaborate the vision of what our church should be in 10 years, by 2020. We have chosen ten priorities of what we would like to do during these ten years. Now, Team #3, which is to develop certain mechanisms of implementation, begins its activity. The main questions were the questions of young people, evangelization, inculturation, development of structures of our church, language in the liturgy. The question of language may not be so urgent for Ukraine but when other countries are concerned, it is a very painful question. In 2020, I would like to see our church as a unified organism existing all over the world, speaking different languages, proclaiming the Gospel in different countries, but being the unified church of the eastern tradition. Therefore, taking the advantage of the fact that seminary students are present here, I would like to call the brethren to think very seriously about the missionary ministry.”
The head of UGCC also stressed that it is important to provide spiritual care to all Greek Catholics scattered around the world: “Our task is to follow them where they are. Our people need pastors. In that case, by 2020, we will probably have eparchies, metropolitanates in Africa, in the Middle East and in countries where our people are who need our spiritual care, who need to have the father and want to know that this father from Ukraine really cares about them.”
The head of UGCC visited Drohobych on the occasion of the celebration of the 75th birthday anniversary and 25th anniversary of the bishop’s ministry of the ruling Bishop Yulian (Voronovskyi) of Sambir and Drohobych Eparchy.
