Head of UGCC presides over festivities on the occasion of 50th anniversary of Sts Volodymyr and Olga parish in Chicago

On November 11, while on his pastoral visit to the United States, Patriarch Sviatoslav presided over the Chicago Divine Liturgy on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Greek Catholic parish of Sts Volodymyr and Olga, founded by Patriarch Iosyp Slipyij. It is reported by the Department of Information of the UGCC.

“This parish is a symbol of revival, healing, as well as a witness to the resurrection of the Ukrainian Church in the United States. Even when the Church was persecuted in her homeland, the light of hope shone upon our people. Today we want to thank God for our great confessor of faith, the witness of the resurrection and the carrier of God's power of Patriarch Yosyp Slipyi,” the Head of the UGCC said in a speech during the festive Liturgy.

The First Hierarch continued: “The main hero of the holiday is the community of the Church of Sts. Volodymyr and Olga. I came to you to greet you and to thank you on behalf of the whole Church for your work, ministry, prayer, and all things that you do (possible and impossible) to support the development of our Church,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav.

According to the head of the UGCC, this solemnity is not just a feast of this parish, but of the entire UGCC.

In addition, a patriarchal charter was read out to the parish and parishioners on the occasion of the anniversary celebrations, as well as a memorial table for the fourth patriarchal visit on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the parish of St. Vladimir and Olga Patriarch Sviatoslav was blessed.

The head of the UGCC expressed his deep gratitude to Bishop Venedykt (Aleksiychuk), the ruling bishop of the Diocese of Chicago, for organizing a visit and ministry.

On November 12, the Head of Church will visit another parish of the UGCC in Chicago, St. Joseph the Bethroned. Here, at 18:30 the Divine Liturgy will be held.

The Cathedral of Saints Volodymyr and Olga is a temple of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, located in the Ukrainian Village district of Chicago. This is one of the main centers of the Chicago Diocese of the UGCC.

The Parish of Saints Volodymyr and Olga in Chicago was founded in 1968 by Patriarch Josyp Slipyi and Bishop of the Chicago Diocese, Yaroslav Gabro.

The construction had lasted from 1971 to 1973. On May 20, 1973, His Beatitude Joseph blessed the newly built cathedral.

The architect of the church is Yaroslav Korsunsky. He offered a design of this church in the Byzantine-Ukrainian style popular in Ukraine during the 11-13th centuries.