On September 8, the faithful of the UGCC in Ukraine and several other countries of the world celebrate the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary for the first time
On September 8, 2023, in Ukraine, Poland, Australia, Oceania, Germany, Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, and Kazakhstan, the faithful of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church celebrate for the first time the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was celebrated on September 21 before the calendar reform. This is the first of the twelve major holidays of the church year, which began on September 1.
Bishop Venedykt Aleksiychuk, Bishop of the Eparchy of St. Nicholas with its seat in Chicago, spoke about the meaning of the first feast of the church year. “This holiday tells us, in my opinion, a vital thing — the Mother of God has fulfilled her mission,” said Bishop Venedykt.
According to him, Mary, through her righteous, pious, holy life, became open to conceive God’s Son and fulfill God’s will for her.
“We do not just have to celebrate this holiday one more time, either according to the Julian or now the Gregorian calendar,” the bishop emphasized, “The main thing is that each of us realizes that just as Our Lady had her vocation, so each of us has our own task. The Blessed Virgin Mary understood and fulfilled her task in the best possible way. And what about us?”
It is important to note that the bishops of the UGCC, who are gathered at the Synod in Rome these days, prayed together the Great Vespers with the Litany on the evening of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
We remind you that on September 1, 2023, the UGCC in Ukraine switched to a new style for fixed holidays while preserving the current Paschalia. The Synod made this historic decision of Bishops of the UGCC in Ukraine at its 93 rd session held in Lviv-Briukhovychi on February 1–2, 2023.
Following the UGCC in Ukraine, the UGCC in Poland, Australia, Oceania, Germany, Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, and the Apostolic Administration for Catholics of the Byzantine Rite in Kazakhstan and Central Asia adopted the new style.
We inform all the faithful that on September 8, Zhyve Television will broadcast the festal Divine Liturgy. The broadcast will take place from the procathedral of Hagia Sophia in Rome.
The UGCC Department for Information
