Head of the UGCC meets with the new Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine
At a meeting held on August 25 at the residence of the Head of the UGCC in Kyiv, His Beatitude Sviatoslav and the newly appointed Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine, Natalka Cmoc, agreed to promote cooperation between the Church and the Canadian Embassy for the welfare of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.
Ms. Natalka Cmoc, embarking on her diplomatic mission to Ukraine these days, has replaced Ms. Larysa Galadza. The meeting with the Head of the UGCC was one of the first after her appointment. His Beatitude Sviatoslav noted that he was glad to meet Ms. Natalka, a descendant of Ukrainian immigrants in Canada. “We are pleased to know that the Ukrainian community in Canada is once again presenting Ukraine with a Canadian ambassador,” he emphasized.
During the meeting, the Head of the UGCC discussed with the new Ambassador of Canada the circumstances in which she began her work in Ukraine. “A friend in need is a friend indeed, and today Canada is a true friend of Ukraine, a great country that stood by our Motherland in the grueling moments of our history,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav, thanking Canada for supporting Ukraine.
The diplomat inquired about the ministry of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in the conditions of war. “Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, we, as a Church, have found ourselves on two front lines: the information and humanitarian ones,” said the Primate, “Canada has been a good ally on each of them.”
In the dialogue with the Embassy of Canada, the Patriarch said the Church learned to formulate the message about Ukraine to the international community correctly. Ms. Natalka noted that the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which has its structures worldwide, is a mighty voice of Ukraine to the international community in conveying the truth about Russian aggression.
As for humanitarian challenges, His Beatitude Sviatoslav stated that through international solidarity, Ukrainians won a victory on the humanitarian front, as the humanitarian crisis of unfathomable proportions after World War II did not turn into a catastrophe. The Ambassador of Canada noted the vital role of the Ukrainian-Greek Catholic Church in this context.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav thanked the head of the diplomatic mission for supporting the Embassy of Canada for one of the projects to combat the consequences of Russian aggression — training the UGCC clergy to heal war wounds. The training will start in a few days in September. Ms. Natalka assured that she would attend the training and meet with priests, as well as experts, psychologists, and doctors who will teach them how to minister in the new circumstances effectively.
Eventually, His Beatitude Sviatoslav and the newly appointed Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine, Ms. Natalia Cmoc, agreed to develop the existing cooperation between the UGCC and the embassy, in particular in the field of social service, which the UGCC exercises through Caritas Ukraine and the Patriarchal Foundation “Wise Cause.”
The UGCC Department for Information
