The cornerstone of the foundation of a new Greek-Catholic church in Spain was blessed

Sunday, 02 September 2012, 22:19

On August 26, 2012 in the city of Hueleva in Spain, Bishop Dionysius (Liakhovych), the Apolostic Visitator for Ukrainians in Italy and Spain blessed a cross, the cornerstone, and the icon of the Equal to the Apostles Saints Cyril and Methodius, whose name this cathedral will bear. This event was greatly applauded by Ukrainians in Spain, and present at the consecration were Greek-Catholics from Seville, Kharez, Almera and Portugal -- informed the press-service of the parish of Sts. Cyril and Methodius.

Before the blessing, Rev. Dmytro (Savchuk), the pastor of the local UGCC read the Foundation Certificate in both Ukrainian and Spanish, which was placed in a capsule. Bishop Dionysius was greeted by Ukrainian children and Rev. Sviatoslav (Myroniuk), chaplain of the dioceases of Granada and Cordoba (Spain). It is to be noted, that the guests from Portugal presented the parishioners in Huelva with an icon of Sts. Cyril and Methodius.

After the blessing, Bishop Dionysius led a Pontifical Divine Liturgy in St. Peter’s Cathedral. In his sermon, the hierarch emphasized the importance of building a new UGCC church in Spain “because the Ukrainians who live here are no longer workers, but a new Ukrainian diaspora.”

He thinks that the future cathedral should not only become a significant spiritual center but also an active cultural center which will help the faithful who are presently far from their land “not to lose Ukraine in their hearts.” The Bishop thanked Eparch Jose Vilaplan for supporting UGCC’s development in the city of Eciji, the representatives of the mayor and the government who approved the allocation of this land for building this church.

After the Liturgy, children and youth presented a concert honoring Ukraine’s Independence Day.

As a momento of the day, Bishop Dionysius gave each parishioner a small icon of the Blessed Virgin of Hoshiv.

UGCC Department of Information