“I Am Prayerfully Accompanying a Great Man and Christian to His Eternal Home”, UGCC Head on the Death of Leonid Rudnytsky
The Father and Head of the UGCC, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, expressed his condolences to the head of St. Sophia Religious Association of Ukrainian Catholics in the United States, Iryna Ivankovych, on the death of Leonid Rudnytsky, professor, doctor, Ukrainian philologist, Germanist, Slavicist, teacher, contributor and co-editor of numerous American and Ukrainian encyclopedias, president of the World Council of the National Academy of Sciences, and foreign member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.
In his letter of condolence, His Beatitude Sviatoslav emphasized that “during 2004–2018, Leonid Rudnytsky headed the St. Sophia Association in the United States. Preserving and strengthening the postulates of the founder, Patriarch Josyf, he implemented many worthwhile projects in cooperation with you.”
He expressed the hope that “Mr. Leonid’s zeal, his tirelessness in work and service for his Church will strengthen your efforts and inspire you for new achievements.”
“I will prayerfully accompany to his eternal home a great man and devout Christian, whose life was deeply rooted in faith in the resurrected Christ and exemplified by virtuous living. The Lord blessed the late man with a long life, and he made his years remarkably fruitful. It would be impossible to list all his achievements in this brief letter. I believe that many generations will enjoy his rich scientific, cultural, and spiritual legacy. Just looking at a small part of it, you realize how much a person who sincerely loves God, his Church, and his native people may accomplish! I thank the Lord for sending him to our Church as a layman. ‘With great pleasure and heartache I remember our meetings and conversations that left a profound imprint on my heart,’ said His Beatitude Sviatoslav.
“May the Lord God, whom Leonid Rudnytsky served with such devotion, forgive him for all his sins and introduce him to the Heavenly Kingdom. I commend the soul of the newly deceased Leonid to the hands of God’s infinite mercy and say with faith: ‘Grant unspeakable glory of Your likeness, O Christ, to him who has passed to You, where the dwelling place of those who rejoice is and the voice of pure joy,’ the Head of the UGCC wrote with sorrow.
It is worth noting that Professor Leonid Rudnytsky worked at the Shevchenko Scientific Society, was a founding member of St. Sophia Association, and was actively involved in the Ukrainian Free Academy of Sciences and the leadership of the Ukrainian Catholic University in Philadelphia.
Leonid Rudnytsky also played a pivotal role in defending the underground Church, advocating for its recognition and contributing to the celebration of the millennium of Christianity in Ukraine.
In 1974, he became a part of the first group of faithful gathered by His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Josyf Slipyj to found St. Sophia Religious Association of Ukrainian Catholics in the United States and was appointed by the Patriarch as Director of the Ukrainian Catholic University of Philadelphia.
From 2004 to 2018, Dr. Rudnytsky served as the 5th President of the Religious Association of Ukrainian Catholics “St. Sophia”, USA. Prior to him, the Society was chaired by Patriarch Josyf Slipyj, Bishop Ivan Khoma, Dr. Roman Navrotsky, and Professor Albert Kipa. He devoted more than five fruitful decades to the development of the ideas of the Society’s founder, Patriarch Josyf Slipyj.
The UGCC Department for Information
