The Head of the UGCC: The authorities must understand that spiritual needs are fundamental for a human being

This conviction was expressed by Father and Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church His Beatitude Sviatoslav during a sermon to the faithful in the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ.

The preacher noted that in today's Gospel we see Jesus Christ at the well.  And the whole conversation he has with the Samaritan woman is a conversation about the source, about the thirst, about the ability to quench that thirst, about where to get this living water…

 In his opinion, the word about living water especially resounds at a time when we are undergoing quarantine, when we do not have the opportunity to gather in the temple as usual, when today hundreds of thousands of people around the world have the only opportunity to pray on Sunday through online broadcasts of the Divine Liturgy.

“Communicating with our people in quarantine,” said the Primate, “with priests in different countries of the world, we feel that even online broadcasts arouse great faith in every believer.  They arouse this spiritual hunger, because it is not enough to show the source of life through online broadcasting.”

The Head of the UGCC noted that today in different countries of the world, including Ukraine, there is talk of a gradual exit from quarantine and discussions in government offices about what are the fundamental human needs.  "The thirst for God is the basis of people's fundamental right to religious freedom.  That is why we appeal to statesmen: please pay attention to that thirst of man for God, which can be quenched only by the moment of personal meeting and personal partaking of the Holy Sacraments,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav.

The Holy Sacraments are the moment, says the preacher, when the source of life gives us the opportunity to find the meaning of new life in the post coronavirus world.  Even today, Christ wants to touch on our fundamental questions, fundamental life needs and aspirations, so that we can understand how we can survive these difficulties and problems that humanity is facing today.

During the Liturgy, His Beatitude Sviatoslav ordained four deacons.  "Let this be a testimony that even during the pandemic, the Church is alive, life is going on, the Lord God cares for His people, sends them ministers," he said.

The Head of the Church wished the Lord would quench our thirst, eliminate fear and give each of us the joy of meeting God, with another person.  "Seeing another person, we subconsciously consider him a carrier of the virus.  May God help us to discover another person as a carrier of living water,” added the spiritual leader of Ukrainians.

At the end of the Liturgy, His Beatitude Sviatoslav also noted that today Ukraine commemorates the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Political Repressions.  "That is why today we especially prayed for the millions of innocent people killed on Ukrainian soil.  May the Lord rest them in their heavenly homes, and protect the Ukrainian land from any repression," said the Primate.

The UGCC Department for Information