Exarchate of Odesa
About
The exarchate of Odesa is a part of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church with the center in Odesa city. The exarchate embraces the territory of the Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, and Kirovograd regions. Thus, the total area is 110 961 km2 and the number of settlements is 3 855. Concerning the population of the territory of the exarchate, it equals 5 591 800 people.
Coat of arms of the exarchate of Odesa
For the sake of pastoral ministry, the exarchate of Odesa is split into 5 deaneries.
- Kirovograd deanery (15 parish communities)
- Mykolaiv deanery (12 parish communities)
- Odesa deanery (13 parish community)
- Skadovsk deanery (5 parish communities)
- Kherson deanery (10 parish communities).
According to the statistical data from 2015, there are 100 thousand Catholics in the exarchate of Odesa. Of them, 44 priests of whom 39 are eparchial and 5 hieromonks perform their ministry. Also, in the exarchate, there are monastic communities with 5 monks and 7 nuns. In general, the structure of the exarchate unites 74 parish communities.
Charity organization Caritas Odesa operates in the exarchate. Besides this, some single parish communities lead social ministry. For example, the youth community Mercy exists at the Cathedral. Among charitable events it is worth mentioning School Bagback for Refugee Children, Charitable Toy on Saint Nicholas Day, Christmas Nativity Scene, Saint Dinner for refugees on Christmas Day, and others.
Location
Materials
Bishop
Since April 7, 2014, the Reverend Bishop Mykhaylo Bubniy has been the ruling eparch of the Exarchate of Odesa.
The cathedral is the Church of Saint Apostle Andrew First-called in Odesa.
History
On July 28, 2003, the Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, with the blessing of the Pope, established the Exarchate of Odesa-Crimea with its center in Odesa. The Reverend Bishop Vasyl Ivasyuk became the first Exarch. The exarchate included Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, Kirovograd regions, and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.
On October 19, 2003, Exarch Vasyl Ivasyuk celebrated his first Episcopal Divine Liturgy in Odesa. On December 11, 2005, His Beatitude Lubomyr Husar consecrated the church of St. Andrew the First-Called in the city of Odesa which became the Cathedral of the exarchate of Odesa-Crimea.
In 2014, because of the military invasion of the Russian army and illegal annexation of Crimea, the question of carrying out pastoral ministry on the occupied territories and the creation of administrative church structures was raised. Therefore, on February 13, 2014, with the blessing of the Apostolic Capital, a new exarchate of Crimea was established with its seat in Simferopol.
At the same time, in the Vatican, it was informed that the pontiff took into consideration the questions of the establishment of the exarchate of Crimea in the UGCC, which had been separated from the Odesa-Crimean exarchate of the UGCC, and the assignment of Exarch of the Odesa — Crimean exarchate Vasyl Ivasyuk as the eparch of the Kolomyia-Chernivtsi UGCC. As the result, the pontiff gave his consent for the Synod of Bishops of the UGCC to choose the first Exarch of Odesa. Fr. Mykhaylo Bubniy was Prior of the Redemptorist Monastery in Ivano-Frankivsk and pastor of the parish of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. A new Exarch was given the titular seat Thubursicensis-Bure. It was the beginning of the new exarchate of Odesa.
The ordination of the new Exarch of Odesa and the Administrator of Crimea took place on April 7, 2014, in the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Kyiv. The enthronement was held on April 12 of the same year in the Church of Saint Apostle Andrew the First-Called in Odesa.
Contacts
Address: St. Lieutenant Schmidt, 22/12, Odesa 65012, Ukraine
Phone: +380 (48) 232-58-90
Fax: +380 (48) 232-58-89
Email: [email protected]
Website: ugcc.od.ua