A meeting of the Permanent Synod of Bishops of the UGCC took place in Donets’k

From February 27 to March 2, 2009, a meeting of the Permanent Synod of Bishops of the UGCC took place in Donets’k. The Permanent Synod is a group of bishops which works on behalf of the Patriarchal Synod and is the deliberative structure for the Head of the Church. "As we already are convinced, when the members of the Permanent Synod are better informed, so we can better prepare a meeting of the Patriarchal Synod. Five years ago we decreed to conduct one of the meetings which take place during the year (mainly there are three of them) outside of the borders of Ukraine, and two others in Ukraine, in Lviv. However this year we decided that in order to better get to know the position of our Church, it follows to hold a session not only in Lviv but also in other cities of the eparchies and exarchates of Ukraine." So His Beatitude Lubomyr, Head of the UGCC, said, explaining the choice of the place of conduct of this synodal session. On Friday, Saturday and Monday, there were formal sessions of the Synod after lunch, there were preliminary planned meetings with clergy, laity, lay organizations, youth of the Donets’k-Kharkiv Exarchate, and representatives of the local civil authorities. On Sunday the members of the Permanent Synod drove to three parishes of the UGCC in Donets’k and to parishes in Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhya and Poltava, where they celebrated pontifical Liturgies and communicated with the faithful. In Donets’k celebrated: His Beatitude Lubomyr and Bishop Stepan (Meniok), Exarch of Donets’k and Kharkiv, in the Cathedral Church of the Protection of the Holy Mother of God; Archbishop Ihor (Voznyak) of Lviv in the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, on the site of the construction of a youth center; Bishop David (Motiuk), Eparch of Edmonton (Canada), and Bishop Paul (Chomnycky), Eparch of Stamford (USA) in the Church of Saint Nicholas. Bishop Vasyl (Semenyuk), Eparch of Ternopil' and Zboriv, visited faithful of the UGCC in Poltava, Bishop Bohdan (Dzyurakh), Secretary of the Synod of Bishops of the UGCC, visited Zaporizhzhya, and Bishop Vasyl (Medvit), auxiliary bishop of the Kyiv Archeparchy, who in those days also stayed in Donets’k, celebrated in Kharkiv. At the completion of the Synod its participants visited the parishes of the UGCC in Donets’k and met with Bishop Stepan (Meniok) and his helpers in the administration of the exarchate. During the meeting members of the Permanent Synod presented them their observations on the modern position of their exarchate and expressed their wishes for the future. Information The Permanent Synod consists of five persons: from the governing authorities to this structure enters the Head of the UGCC, who is the head of the Permanent Synod. Three bishops, members of the Permanent Synod, elect the Patriarchal Synod, and one is appointed by the Major Archbishop. The members of this Synod are elected for five years. In addition, deputies are elected in case one of the members of the Permanent Synod is not be able to participate in its work. During a year there are four meetings of the Permanent Synod, one of which is immediately after the completion of the Patriarchal Synod. The Synod of Bishops of the UGCC which was held in Philadelphia (USA) from September 27 to October 6, 2007, choose new members of the Permanent Synod of Bishops of the UGCC: Archbishop Ihor (Voznyak), Bishop Paul (Chomnycky), Bishop David (Motiuk), Bishop Vasyl (Semenyuk). The composition of the deputies of members of the Permanent Synod of Bishops of the UGCC: Bishop Vasyl (Ivasyuk), Bishop Yaroslav (Pryriz), Bishop Volodymyr (Yuszczak), Bishop Valdemaro (Koubetch).

Information Department of the UGCC