Mission of a layman is to fill the world with God’s love, Head of the UGCC during the All-Ukrainian pilgrimage to Stradch

This year’s pilgrimage to Stradch is dedicated to the 80^th anniversary of martyr’s death of blessed Fr. Mykhailo Konrad and a deacon Volodymyr Pryima, the Laity Day, 20th anniversary of Pope's visit to Ukraine and the proclamation of the new martyrs of Ukraine.

His Beatitude thanked God for an opportunity to be together at the prayer.

“We are grateful to make it to this moment amongst difficult times and circumstances, overcoming the newest challenges in order to be here again”, he said.

Commenting on the Holy Gospel (Matt 5, 42-48) the preacher mentioned that it belongs to the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus Christ, in which He was passed to people the Gospel law of love.

In the heart of this new law of Christ is laid the word about love, mainly love to enemies, the Head of the UGCC emphasized. In this Sermon Christ does not merely proclaim the commandments of beatitudes but reveals the face of God to us. He loves us regardless of our attitude to Him. God grants us love notwithstanding our acceptance of it or refusal.

He is convinced that the biggest mischief for a person is to hate one’s enemy as hatred which possesses a human’s heart is a failure.

“To love an enemy means to have an internal spiritual strength to stand up to evil. Even more, this is one of the secrets how an enemy is to be defeated”, explains the Father and Head of the UGCC.

As for him when we love we reduce the amount of evil in the world and become the witnesses of God who loved us first that very time when we were sinners, as apostle Paul says.

Recalling the 80^th anniversary of the martyr’s death of Fr. Mykola Konrad and a deacon Volodymyr Pryima, the Head of the UGCC said that love exactly defeated fear, namely that power enabled them to give their lives for Christ and defeat their enemies that way. Defeat those who were killing them.

Celebrating the 20^th anniversary of Pope's visit to Ukraine, the Head of the Church cited his words: “Do not be afraid of God’s love, because love is the power which gives us life”.

His Beatitude Sviatoslav emphasized that today the Church especially prays for the laity, saying that God loves us unconditionally. In his opinion a layman is the one who knows how to love, who is baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity. The layman has a special mission to carry out in this world – to fill the world and own families with God’s love.

At the end the Head of the Church encouraged the faithful to accept that love which God sends through the Divine Liturgy, going to confession and taking communion.

The UGCC Department for Information