The New Evangelization in Ukraine Is Based on the Blood of the Martyrs
For many years Catholics in Ukraine have paid dearly for their fidelity to God, even with their blood. They suffered humiliations, were discriminated against and experienced the persecutions and catacombs of the 20th century.
A great host of lay people and ecclesiastics had the courage to persevere bravely to the end, remaining always faithful to Christ and his Church despite imprisonment and deportation to concentration camps and hard labour. So many people paid with their lives for their fidelity to God.
The testimony of the martyrs, many of whose names are unknown to us but are written in golden letters in God's heart, must not be lost. Future generations have the right to know what happened in the 20th century to the noble Christian land of Ukraine.
Young people must know the history of men and women who did not retreat in the face of danger and sacrifice. The Church in Ukraine must continue to live by these heroic examples. The martyrs' legacy is one of priceless faith.
Ukrainians wait with trepidation and emotion to be able to embrace John Paul II in June. It is a visit they have been anxiously awaiting for years. With deep joy, they received the Pope's announcement at the Angelus of 28 January that Archbishop Marian Jaworski of Lviv for Latins and Major Archbishop Lubomyr Husar of Lviv for Ukrainians would be made Cardinals.
During the Holy Year Ukrainian Christians had the chance to make a Jubilee pilgrimage to Rome. They listened to the words of the Successor of Peter. Until a few years ago it was mere wishful thinking to imagine that such a large organized pilgrimage could have left Ukraine for Rome. It is a sign that the times are changing.
On 13 December 2000 the Catholic Bishops of Ukraine, from both the Eastern and Western traditions, wrote a letter to the priests and faithful at the end of the Great Jubilee and in joyous expectation of John Paul II's pilgrimage.
"The Holy Year was important for our reconciliation with God and with others", they wrote. These Bishops, who have known imprisonment and exile, are resolutely looking to the future. It is a look of hope.
In their letter the Bishops speak of the Successor of Peter with deep affection: he was and always will be the rock to which to cling especially in moments of desperation. Unity with Peter was the secret that permitted the Church in Ukraine to resist the bloody persecution. Aware that the Pope's visit is a gift for everyone, the Bishops encourage them to prepare for meeting their long-awaited guest with prayer. For the occasion they have also composed a touching prayer to be recited in all the Latin and Greek Catholic parishes.
On receiving the Bishops of the Greek Catholic Church on 1 December last, John Paul II recalled the extraordinary meeting he had in 1990 with the Ukrainian Bishops, confessors of the faith, and with the prelates of the diaspora. A Church that had been outlawed by the regime in 1946 was emerging from the catacombs. The Holy Father said to the Greek Catholic Bishops on 1 December: "Thirst for God is increasing; people are in a hurry to be led on Christ's path".
After the first efforts of recovery, carried out according to the compelling needs of the moment, today it is necessary to go beyond the reorganization phase that followed the catacomb experience and to move decisively forward with a clear pastoral plan.
The plan must consider the primary need for catechesis and theological formation, while respecting the active role of Church-trained lay people. John Paul II also mentioned the mission of religious, especially those in monastic life, and charitable work.
At the end of January Major Archbishop Lubomyr Husar of Lviv for Ukrainians, successor to Cardinal Lubachivsky, who died last December, made his solemn entrance into St George's Cathedral in Lviv. "The long years of totalitarianism have left a deep wound in our people", Archbishop Husar said. "So many problems cannot be solved all at once. We must deepen the spirituality of our people. A process of this sort takes a long time. Therefore we must not deceive ourselves; the legacy of the past cannot be overcome in one generation alone. I believe that at least three generations will be needed. The scars left by the communist regime are still clearly visible in the lives of the Ukrainian people".
The new evangelization sees Catholics of the Latin rite and those of the Eastern rite together. The Latin-rite Catholics came this year on a pilgrimage to Rome, following the tradition begun by the Servant of God Archbishop Jozef Bilczewski, who accompanied the faithful "to see Peter", to pray at the tombs of the Apostles, to confirm the close bond between Lviv and the Apostolic See. Between May and June 2000, the Ukrainian faithful were accompanied by Archbishop Marian Jaworski of Lviv for Latins.
"Jesus Christ is alive in his Church", the Archbishop said. "His presence is seen in the many forms of witness in the Church. Our times offer the world, before all else, the witness of the martyrs as a radical sign of the presence and action of the Incarnate Word".
"In the world of today", said the Archbishop, "the Spirit of Jesus Christ makes his presence known in various ways: by the witness of priests who have remained faithful to their vocation, by families who are authentic 'domestic churches', by what is achieved in the longing for Christian unity, the celebration of the sacraments through which we participate in the life of God, by the service of charity, by the defence of life and by the new ecclesial movements. They are signs in which we can discern the presence of Christ even in the Church in Lviv".
"After the Second World War", Archbishop Jaworski explains, "our Church was deprived of its Pastor, Metropolitan Eugeniusz Baziak, who was forced to leave the see in 1946. The words of Christ came true: "I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered' (Mk 14:27). Priests and faithful had to leave their parishes, and churches were turned into storerooms and museums of atheism. Everything seemed to be leading to the death of this Church. Of the once numerous clergy (over 1,000), only 11 remained in 1990. And suddenly from that 'remnant', against all human hope, Jesus Christ, the Lord of History, makes the structures of this Church rise again through the Successor of Peter, John Paul II".
"As has happened in the other Dioceses of the former Soviet Union, in 1991 a Pastor was appointed for the Archdiocese. The faithful regained their former churches, they rebuilt them and they began to pulsate with life. The Word of God is preached and the sacraments are celebrated. Everyone who could not publicly receive First Holy Communion and Confirmation, especially children and young people, now solemnly approach the sacraments. Marriages are celebrated; civil unions are sacramentally validated. Jesus Christ is always present in the midst of his people! Priests come from abroad generously to carry out their pastoral ministry. Women religious devote themselves to catechesis. Faith arises from our preaching. Diocesan and religious vocations to the priesthood are on the rise. It has been possible to open a major seminary and to form future priests in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council and the Exhortation Pastores dabo vobis. Christ reaches out to us and is with us. All this has occurred against all human hope".
"The fall of the Berlin Wall", Archbishop Jaworski explained, "was undoubtedly the sign of an historical turning-point for the Churches and for Christianity in Central and Eastern Europe. It was a revolution of the spirit in Christ, the basis of our hope. He has said to us 'Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world' (Jn 16:33)".
This item 3538 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org
