A three-day conference of military chaplains started at the UGCC today

Tuesday, 08 December 2020, 15:42

On Tuesday, December 8, the XIV All-Ukrainian Conference of Military Chaplains of the UGCC began. Due to quarantine restrictions, the event takes place online in the format of a zoom conference. It is moderated by Father Andriy Zelinsky, SJ.

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At the beginning of the conference, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Father and Head of the UGCC, addressed the participants with a welcoming speech. The Primate stressed the importance of all chaplains to be united in the Holy Spirit.

His Beatitude Sviatoslav explained that the Holy Spirit is the source of the gifts that chaplains have been receiving. “It is a medium for sharing gifts and ministry. For we can learn to serve one another only by the example of our Savior, being under the influence of His Spirit,” the bishop is convinced.

His Beatitude Sviatoslav also presented honorary awards to the priests who have recently started their chaplaincy service - the Cross of the Military Chaplain - and observed that the cross is not a pious church attribute, but a symbol, sign and flag of victory.

Bishop Mykhailo Koltun, head of the Military Chaplaincy Department of the Patriarchal Curia of the UGCC, then greeted the community of military chaplains. The Bishop urged the military clergy to always remember that the Church is called to bear witness to Christ in special circumstances and to base their sermons on the teachings of our Church. According to him, it is through the ministry of the clergy that society is transformed.

The motto of this year's meeting of chaplains is the words - "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others" (1 Pet. 4:10).

We would like to add that for three days the participants will hear reports from law enforcement agencies on the current state of meeting the spiritual and religious needs of personnel, namely from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard of Ukraine, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine.

The military chaplains of the UNIFIER training mission will talk about the main challenges and opportunities of chaplaincy in the US and Canadian Armed Forces.

The activities of the Department of Military Chaplaincy in 2020 will be presented by Fr. Andriy Zelinsky. The participants will also discuss the issue of chaplaincy in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic and methods of overcoming crises.

Photo: Fr. Roman Shkribenets’

The UGCC Department for information