"From words about peace to the conviction of peace"

The presentation of the book under that name took place on January 24, 2009, in Kyiv, at the Saint Thomas Aquinas Institute of Religious Studies (Yakira St., 13), as part of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The presented edition is devoted to the 40th anniversary of the celebration of the World Day of Peace. The book was prepared for publication by the Justice and Peace Commission of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church. The Lviv publishing house Drukars’ki Kunshty published the book. Participating in the presentation was His Beatitude Lubomyr, Head of the UGCC. The main lecture was pronounced by Deacon Mykola Sulyma, vice-chancellor of the Curia of the Major Archbishopric. "The book is a collection of papal messages on the occasion of the Day of Peace. Pope Paul VI began the celebration of this day in 1968, and since that time every January 1st the Christian world turns special attention to the cause of peace and reconciliation," reads the preface. Forty-one appeals of three Holy Fathers are found in the collection: Paul VI, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI. The greater part of the appeals, documents from 1968 to 2001, and also the message for the World Day of Peace in 2008, were taken from the official site of the Vatican, www.vatican.va, and translated into the Ukrainian language. All the other appeals already in Ukrainian translation were reprinted from the “Herald” of the Major Archbishopric of the UGCC. "Peace is not only a state of non-aggression but it is something which above all things begins in the hearts of people. The appeal for peace which is given by the Holy Fathers is foremost an appeal to the internal world, that world which in every Liturgy we pray for,” the Head of the UGCC said in his talk. Thus he noted two ideas: "Presumably, in any state there is no politician who would not talk about peace. Peace is what all wish very much. Peace is an attractive theme which listeners very favorably react to. But without regard to that, there is not a country which would not produce a weapon. We talk about peace and take up weapons simultaneously,” the Head of the UGCC said. "Against the background of such inconsistency the words of the Holy Fathers are heard with much weight, because they come from the mouths of people who are great moral authorities." So His Beatitude Lubomyr explained his opinion of the presented book. In addition, the Head of the UGCC voiced his hope that this book would get into the hands of people who are accountable for the situation in the world and that the offered material will help them better understand how it is necessary to work for the cause of maintaining peace.

Contact the Justice and Peace Commission to purchase the book 

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