Reps of Different Denominations Pray for Christian Unity in Lviv

Representatives of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC), Roman Catholic Church (RCC), Armenian Apostolic Church and the Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith participated in an interdenominational prayer for unity held on January 24 in the chapel of the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU).

The event was organized by the Institute of Ecumenical Studies of UCU as part of the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The participants conducted a joint ecumenical prayer service, reported the press service of UCU.

A representative of the Roman Catholic Church, Fr. Krzysztof Shebla, said after the joint prayer: “The divide between Christians openly contradicts the will of Christ. The divide was caused by our sin and pride.” According to the priest, unification of Christians does not mean liquidation of the denominations. “It is about unity in diversity where Christian denominations can share the richness of the Liturgy and theological heritage, for the truth is one.”

Fr. Vasyl Sahan, who represented the Zolochiv Deanery of the UAOC, commented on the joint ecumenical prayers conducted in Zolochiv since 1994: “They are a model of the Christian spirit and respect for all Christians.”

It is symbolical that the ecumenical prayer for unity was conducted in the chapel of UCU. “It contains images of saints of different denominations – Orthodox, Roman Catholics, beatified representatives of the Armenian Church,” said a worker of the Institute of Ecumenical Studies of UCU, Fr. Roman Fihas.