“We transfigure our parishes through prayer”: Bishop Andriy Khimyak to priests in Germany and Scandinavia
On April 3, the Apostolic Exarchate for Ukrainians of the Byzantine Rite in Germany and Scandinavia hosted a clergy meeting as part of the Spiritual Impulse program. This time the speaker was Bishop Andriy Khimyak, Auxiliary Bishop of the Kyiv Archeparchy of the UGCC and Secretary of the Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
At the beginning of the meeting, Bishop Bohdan Dziurakh greeted and introduced the new priest to the group of priests of the exarchate, Fr. Ivan Sokhan.
Bishop Andriy Khimyak drew the attention of the priests of the Apostolic Exarchate to Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, emphasizing prayer, service, and fraternal unity in the priestly ministry.
“We need to keep watching that our church is not devoid of God’s grace,” said Bishop Andriy, emphasizing the importance of prayer in God’s church. The bishop also noted that prayer unites and creates the community of Christ.
After delivering the report, Apostolic Exarch Bishop Bohdan addressed the clergy and reminded them of the importance of explaining to the faithful all the changes related to the transition to the new calendar style. They also discussed the status of all the events planned for this year that would take place in the Apostolic Exarchate. In conclusion, Bishop Bohdan thanked all the priests for the participation of their communities in supporting Ukraine and called for further unity in this cause for Ukraine’s victory in the war, which he had previously emphasized in his address “Lent is a time of merciful love.”
The UGCC Department for Informationbased on the materials ofthe Apostolic exarchate of Germany and Scandinavian countries
