A new cathedral in Kiev”It is the first step of the Greek-Catholic Church towards embracing modern architecture”. Msgr. Gianfranco Ravasi, President of the Pontifical Council for Culture thus welcomed the news of the establishment of the Resurrection of Christ Patriarchal Cathedral in a new district of Kyiv during his visit to Ukraine. The façade of the Cathedral, according to Fr. Pedro Fedyuk, general director of the patriarchate property, is due to be completed by next fall. “I noted – said Msgr. Ravasi – that the designers managed to combine two completely different dimensions. On the one side the traditions of the past, the codified tradition; on the other the attempt to embrace something new. Innovation within tradition”, aims to bring the cathedral “close to modern culture”. Archbishop Ravasi conveyed his appreciation also for the bulding’s location “in the new area of the city”. This is “important’, he said, since “in Western Europe new churches are characterized by modern building/architectural criteria”. “This factor is critical” to the communication with contemporary faithful, the prelate remarked. However, Msgr. Ravasi guarded against the risk of “neglecting the details, the style and even of losing the churches’ sacred connotation”. As relates to the new Cathedral in Kyiv he concluded: “A church isn’t only a place for prayer. It’s also a symbol. This is why the presence of an important basilica in our secularized world is rich with meaning even for the bystanders”. Father Fedyuk made known that “permanent electric cables will be installed soon”. “We are expecting funding for the completion of the façade”. Although, he added, “also the roof is in need of insulation and waterproofing”. Catholic university and special services “It unfortunately appears that the government doesn’t trust its people”, declared the dean of the Catholic University in Lviv Fr. Borys Gudziak, commenting on the authorities’ reactions to his memorandum on the visit of an agent of the Security National Service (SBU) a few weeks ago, following the students’ participation in peaceful demonstrations against the new government (cf. SIR Europe n. 40/2010). In an interview to press agency Unian, reported by Ukraine’s Religious news (Risu), Fr. Gudziak remarked that SBU’s behaviour is “anti-democratic” and “this scares the population, bringing back memories of the Soviet era”. In commenting on the institutions’ reaction to the memorandum, the dean of the Atheneum pointed out that what has been described by a government official as “shameful and unacceptable” is considered “normal routine” by the SBU spokesperson. “These two stands rule out each other”, said Fr. Gudziak, leading to question which of the two is “the official position”. On the occasion of the visit the dean was asked to sign a letter – which he refused on the basis of incurring in “moral if not even legal responsibilities”. “The document could be used in given circumstances as a tool for exerting moral pressure and even blackmail”, he pointed out. While defending the young agent “who is not guilty of what has happened since he simply followed the orders he was given”, the dean doesn’t exclude the possibility that the special services are collecting information in high education establishments across the country. “I thing that a data collection is under way, it is a practice that was very widespread in the Soviet Union. Maybe in the universities there are special services representatives, but I personally don’t give much importance to these thing, first of all because we have nothing to hide”, secondly because “creating a paranoid atmosphere doesn’t benefit anyone”. “The real problem that must be addressed with clarity, and which is the object of my memorandum – concludes the dean – is that it is the behaviour of people who are afraid of their fellow countrymen. And it’s very sad that the government doesn’t trust its own people”.Pilgrimage in LavrivOn June 19-20, on the occasion of the feast of Saint Onuphrius, a pilgrimage for religious vocations will head to the monastery of Lavriv, the most ancient monastery devoted to the Saint. The monastery, that for many years served as an ecumenical centre, includes also a large necropolis where repose the Orthodox Metropolitan bishops – which include Macarius Ligaridu from Jerusalem -, Greek-Catholic bishops and Moldavian dignitaries along with prince Lev who became a monk in the last years of his life with the name of Onuphrius and established himself in the holy site owned by his family. The pilgrimage will leave at seven a.m. on Saturday June 19 from the miraculous image of the Mother of God in the Nativity church of Sambir, where are kept the relics of Saint Valentine, and head to Lavriv, 29 km’ distance. On Sunday 20 the pilgrims will attend the holy liturgy and the Via Crucis in Lavriv.
