“Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Mt. 25, 40) Dear clergy, religious, and faithful! Responding to the outbreak of the global pandemic virus COVID-19, which has been spreading with lightning speed across the globe, we, bishops of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States, united in solidarity, wish to address you with assurances of … [Read more…]
History of the Pochaiv Icon of the Mother of God JULY 2ND, 2010 by admin No one really knows how the Pochaiv Icon of the Mother of God came into existence. Its designer and year and location of creation have all been lost to history. The written history of the icon begins in 1559, when the … [Read more…]
The Ukrainian Catholic Church has a particular reverence for Saint Josaphat, archbishop of Polotsk, who gave his life in 1623 as a witness to the importance of Church unity. The Orthodox Churches of the East had been in schism with Rome since the year 1054. A major attempt at reunion in 1439 had ended in … [Read more…]
We fly to thy patronage, O Holy Mother of God. Despise not our prayers in our necessities, but ever deliver us from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin. The above text is the oldest known prayer honoring Mary as the Theotokos, or Mother of God. It originated in the city of Alexandria, Egypt, which … [Read more…]
The year was 988. Prince Volodymyr (Vladimir) of Rus’ (the ancient name for Ukraine) had consolidated his power, and was hoping to make a lasting name for himself by raising his people up to the status of a great nation. Among the obstacles he faced was the fact that all the great nations he knew … [Read more…]
Since the founding of this parish 30 years ago, we have had numerous priests serve as pastors and administrators of St. Mary Protectress Ukrainian Catholic Church in Apopka, Florida. Those priests, listed in chronological order, were: 1980-1985 Rev. Andrij Nazarevych о. Андрій Назаревич 1980-1985 Rev. Wasyl Stankaninych (assisted) o. Василь Станканінич (помагав) 1986 Rev. Bohdan … [Read more…]
The first Ukrainian family to settle in Apopka (Kowalchuk) arrived in June of 1972. At that time, probably very few people in this area had heard of Ukrainians or Ukraine. Stephen Kowalchuk was a real estate broker with his own firm, who published notices about Apopka in Ukrainian newspapers (e.g., Svoboda). Thus, with time, more … [Read more…]
