On behalf of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Patriarch Sviatoslav (Shevchuk) congratulated the Polish Bishops' Conference on the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations with the Holy See.

This is reported by the Department of Information of the UGCC.

In a letter addressed to the Head of the Bishops' Conference of Poland, Archbishop Stanislav Gondetsky, the Head of the UGCC is asking to accept his heartfelt congratulations and expresses fraternal unity in the Lord Jesus Christ.

According to the Head of the UGCC, the centenary of the establishment of the Polish Bishops' Conference and the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations with the Holy See can be a good opportunity to deepen cooperation between our communities in the spirit of mutual exchange of gifts.

“We do not want to limit ourselves to high declarations, but - in the name of Christian love - we want to make further specific steps together with the Polish hierarchs to unite our communities. Such steps may include joint prayers, solemn celebrations of the Eucharist in the Latin and Greek Catholic rites, pilgrimages to holy places important to both peoples,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav.

The Patriarch of the UGCC recalled that St. John Paul II not only called for dialogue but also supported all initiatives of local church communities.

"On behalf of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, we declare our desire to continue this prophetic vision of the Pope, expressed in dialogue and reconciliation among all the peoples forming the European community, which also included Eastern European countries, among which he envisioned a special place for Poles and Ukrainians,” goes the text.