UOCC

Holy Family American Orthodox Church /
U.O.C.C.

Member parish of the
Ukrainian Orthodox Catholic Church

Pastor: Father Richard O’Connell Reed,
O.S.B., Obl.

BEVERLY HILLS, FLORIDA 34465

PHONE: (352) 586-5996

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The Ukrainian Orthodox Catholic Church is not a new jurisdiction adding to the
already multitude of jurisdictions in the Church Catholic today but rather a
Western Rite expression of the ancient faith established by the successors to the
Apostle Andrew through the Apostolic See at Constantinople and the Apostle Peter
through the Apostolic See at Antioch.

The Ukrainian Orthodox Catholic Church has perfect continuity and Apostolic
Succession from Jesus Christ and the Apostles from the birthday of the Church at
Pentecost. We have maintained the true Succession of Apostolic Truth as well as
the valid tactile Succession from the Apostles by the laying on of hands.

The reason for a Western Rite is to recognize that many in the Church identify
with North America and the West as their cultural foundation and desire to
express the faith in Western terms. It is not a different faith from their fathers
and mothers who came to North America from ancient Scythia (Ukraine) but it is
expressed in Western terms. There is only one Holy Orthodox Church that is
larger than any one nationality, culture or tradition. There is only one Holy
Orthodox Church identified by those having valid tactile Succession from the
Apostles through the laying on of hands, true succession of Apostolic truth and
the love of Christ which binds all together in love.

We recognize the Patriarch at Constantinople as Primus Inter Pares but we do not
define Orthodoxy in terms of subjugation to any one Patriarch. Union with a
Patriarch is not the litmus test for Orthodoxy.

The beginnings of our American experience, is the story of Father Ivan Wolansky,
a Ukrainian Catholic Priest who came to America in December of 1884. He came
here with high hopes, great expectations and a wife.

Father did not expect to have any problem with the Latin Rite Catholic Bishops
and Priest in the United States, however, they rejected him as not being a Catholic
because he was married.

Father Ivan went to visit the Latin Rite Archbishop, +Patrick Ryan, in
Philadelphia. He never was able to receive an audience with His Eminence because
as soon as it was discovered he was married the doors were closed. After several
attempts to build a bridge of cooperation and fraternal Christian charity he was
told that the Latin Rite Bishop did not even consider Father to be a Catholic.
There was no objection to Father, other than he was married.

The Latin Rite Bishop viewed Father Ivan as competition. The man made
regulations of the West were seen as definitive of who is and who is not a
Catholic. It was the arrogance of western Vatican style Catholicism that was
expressed and also the ignorance of the local Bishop regarding Eastern Rite
Catholics. It is important to remember, all these men were in full union with
Rome and when they rejected Father Ivan they rejected another Priest in full
communion with Rome as not being a Catholic on the basis of his marital status.

In 1880, the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith issued a decree
requiring all Priests who came to America to have faculties from the local Latin
Rite Ordinary. It further mandated celibacy for all clergy. This obviously was a
concerted effort to exclude Eastern Catholics and a denouncement of all Eastern
clergy who elected to come to America. It also relegated all Eastern Catholics to a
position of second-class status. Orientalium Dignitas issued in 1894 by His All
Holiness Leo XIII, Bishop at Rome and Patriarch of the West, required
subordination of Eastern Rite Catholics to Latin Rite authority but allowed the
use of the Eastern Rite.

In 1889, Father Ivan established a parish church named Protection of Our Lady.
Father Alexius Toth (Later St. Alexius Toth) became the administrator shortly
thereafter. Father Toth presented his credentials to the Latin Rite Bishop, +John
Ireland. When it was discovered that Father Alexius was a widower Bishop Ireland
told him he also was not Catholic and even added that the Greek Catholic Bishop
of Presov, +Ivan Valia, (also in union with Rome) was not Catholic either (So much
for fraternal charity and the brotherhood of clergy).   Not content to be personally
insulting, Bishop Ireland further demonstrated his arrogance and unholy purpose
by declaring that no Priests were to associate with Father Toth and issued a
mandate to be read in all parishes that none were to attend Mass or receive the
Sacraments from Father Toth. As a Professor of Canon Law, Father knew his rights
under terms of the Unia and rejected the unlawful declaration of +John Ireland.

Father responded by gathering eight other Eastern Catholic Priests. They found
that the Eastern Rite Catholic Bishops were no more disposed to help than the
Latin Rite Bishops, so much did they fear the Latin Rite Bishops and Rome. Father
Toth and his congregation, guided by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, made the
decision to return to Holy Orthodoxy that was the religion of their ancestors.

In 1891, the last year of his Episcopal service, His Eminence + Vladimir
Sokolovsky Russian Orthodox Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska received Father
Toth, Mr. Paul Podany the parish Warden, and the congregation into Holy
Orthodoxy.    Subsequently in that same year some of the people and clergy decided
to use the Western Rite Orthodox Liturgy, hence was born the Ukrainian Orthodox
Catholic Church. The people were the impetus for this glorious event, with no
pressure or force from the Priests or others outside. In addition, the Holy Spirit
led 304 local Greek Catholics who also embraced the true religion of their
ancestors and were received into Holy Orthodoxy. The parish church established by
Father Ivan Wolansky, Protection of Our Lady in Minneapolis, transferred into
Holy Orthodoxy and became the center for the Divine light of truth and the
blessings of the Holy Spirit in the area. So powerful was the working of the Holy
Spirit, that in a short time, thousands were compelled by the truth of Holy
Orthodoxy to embrace the ancient faith of the Apostles and were received into the
Holy Orthodox Church. This was nothing short of another Pentecost.

Many of the Eastern Catholic Priests also embraced Holy Mother Church and were
received into Holy Orthodoxy. Among the many Priests received into the
Orthodox Church were Father Alexander Stephanovich Dzubay who would later be
consecrated to the Holy Episcopacy on 7 August 1916 by Archbishop +Evdokim
(Basil Mikhailovich Meschersky) and Bishop +Alexander (Alexandrovich
Nemolovsky). Bishop +Stephen (Dzubay) served as Bishop of the Vicariate of the
Aleutian Diocese from 1916-1917. So much were Orthodox hated by the Latin
Bishops, they called Orthodox Priest vykroplenci which was a derogatory term
meaning “pseudo priests".

One year later, on May 13, 1917 (O.S.) Archbishop +Evdokim (Basil Mikahailovich
Meschersky), (Russian Orthodox) assisted by Bishop +Alexander (Nemolovsky) and
Bishop +Alexander Stephanovich Dzubay of Pittsburgh, consecrated Father
Aftimios Ofiesch in St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church in New York City.
Bishop +Aftimios was consecrated for Brooklyn, New York. In 1922, Metropolitan
Platon (Rozhdestvensky) assumed leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church in
North America having received the appointment by Patriarch (Saint) Tikhon of
Moscow and all Russia. In 1923, Metropolitan Platon, with the approval of
Patriarch Tikhon elevated Bishop +Aftimios to the position of Archbishop.

                 In a Tomos issued in 1924, Ecumenical Patriarch Gregory VII granted
autocephalous (independent) canonical status to all the Ukrainian and Polish
Churches.

         Archbishop +Aftimios (Ofiesch) assisted by Bishop +Emmanuel (Abo-Hatab)
Bishop of Montreal and Archbishop +Elias of Tyre and Sidon consecrated Bishop
+Sophronios (Bashira) on May 26th, 1928 as Bishop of Los Angeles, California.

         Archbishop +Aftimios (Ofiesch) assisted by Bishop +Sophronios (Bashira)
consecrated Eastern Rite Bishop, Bishop +Joseph Zuk as the first American born
Bishop for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church on February 7, 1932.

      With the consecration of Bishop +Joseph Zuk, the return to Orthodoxy was
complete. Ukrainians who came under the secular control of the Roman Catholic
Polish Kingdom were isolated from both Moscow and Constantinople and found
themselves oppressed financially and legally. In order to preserve their Church in
Polish lands, the Ukrainians proposed a treaty between Kiev and Rome, as between
two Sister Churches by which the Ukrainians would recognize the primacy (not
Supremacy) of Rome and Rome would allow the Ukrainians to maintain their own
Hierarchy, Liturgy, Theology and customs (Treaty of Brest 1596).

      Two years later in 1598, Rome had a change of heart and rescinded the Treaty
of Brest issuing the Papal Bull, Magnus Dominum which nullified the Treaty (so
much for written agreements and guarantees) and said that the Church at Rome
and the Church of Christ are co-terminous and because the Church at Rome is the
ONLY true Church and ALONE is the Ark of Salvation, those who desire
membership cannot make preconditions but must make absolute submission. The
Ukrainians had burned their bridges behind them and had no place to go, hence
they submitted to the yoke of Rome. They were told they were repentant
schismatic who were allowed to function according to their own Rites by
dispensation and not by any inherent right of their own.

    Archbishop +Sophronius (Bashira) of the Greek Diocese of Los Angeles with
Albanian Metropolitan +Theophanies (Noli) of Boston consecrated Archbishop
+Christopher (Contogeorge) on February 10, 1954 at the Church of Sts. Constantine
and Helen in New York City. He was Consecrated Bishop of Philadelphia. In 1947
he became Metropolitan of Pentapolis and Exarch for the Greek Orthodox
Patriarchate of Alexandria, Egypt and all Africa in the U.S.A.

  Archbishop +Christopher (Contogeorge) with Albanian Metropolitan
+Theophanies (Noli) on August 25, 1934 at the Church of St. John the Baptist in
New York City consecrated Archbishop +Arsenios (Saltas). In 1954, he was made
Exarch of the Patriarchate of Alexandria, Egypt and all Africa in the U.S.A.

Archbishop +Christopher (Contogeorge) with Bishop +Ambrosius of Aman, Jordan,
in accordance with orders from the Holy Synod of Moscow, on November 3, 1935
consecrated Archbishop +Nicholas (Kedroffsky) as Archbishop of North America and
the Aleutian Islands. The Consecration took place at the Russian Cathedral of St.
Nicholas in New York City.

Archbishop +Nicholas (Kedroffsky) with Archbishop +Arsenios (Saltas) and
Archbishop +Benjamin (Fedchenkoff) of the Moscow Patriarchate in 1935 at the
Russian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Nicholas in New York City consecrated
Bishop+Joseph (Klymowycz) of Springfield, Massachusetts for the Russian
Jurisdiction.

Archbishop +Christopher (Contogeorge) with Archbishop +Arsenios (Saltas)
consecrated Archbishop +Konstantin (Jaroshevich) in 1949 for the Patriarchate of
Alexandria.

Metropolitan +Joseph (Klymowycz) with Archbishop +Konstantin (Jaroshevich) on
October 14, 1950 at Springfield, Massachusetts consecrated Ukrainian
Metropolitan Nicholas (Bohatyretz) for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

Metropolitan +Joseph (Klymowycz) with Archbishop +Konstantin (Jaroshevich)
and Ukrainian Orthodox Metropolitan Nicholas (Bohatyretz) and Metropolitan
+Joseph (Zielonka) and Metropolitan +Peter Williamowich on October 15, 1950 at
Sts. Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church in Springfield, Massachusetts
consecrated Bishop +Peter Andreas (Zhurawetzky)

In 1978, Archbishop +Peter (Zhurawetsky) assisted by Greek Archbishop +Joachim
(Souris) and Greek Bishop +Lavrentios (Maniatakis) consecrated Metropolitan
+Nicholas (Llnyckyj) for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

May 13, 1989, Metropolitan +Nicholas (Llnyckyj) assisted by Bishop +Christopher
(Jones) and Bishop +David (Quilliams) consecrated Metropolitan +Yuri (Spaeth) for
the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church.

On January 17, 1999 Metropolitan Archbishop +Yuri (Spaeth) assisted by
Archbishop +Matthew (McCarthy) consecrated Archbishop +Michael Damian-
Benedict (Palladino) for the Athonite Benedictine Fathers of the Ukrainian
Orthodox Catholic Church.

On April 25, 2001, Metropolitan Archbishop +Michael Damian-Benedict (A Schema
Benedictine Monk) assisted by Bishop +Martin-Benedict (Tindall) and Bishop
+Brendan Nuadha (Donovan) consecrated Bishop + Brian Joseph Kennedy, (a
Stavrophore Benedictine Monk) for the Athonite Benedictine Fathers of the
Ukrainian Orthodox Catholic Church.   (Bishop +Brian Kennedy, O.S.B. became a
Schema Monk on February 22, 2002 at the Monastery of the Dormition of Mary in
East Chicago, Indiana.

  As shown above, our history is marked by a cooperation and fraternity with the
larger Orthodox faith community.

There is always a group process underlying such phenomena as establishing a
Western Rite. The promotion of Western Rite Orthodoxy faces many challenges
from some of the Ethnic Orthodox as was true from the very beginning in 1891.
Many Ethnic Orthodox to this very day do not accept a Western Rite Orthodoxy.
Western Rite Orthodoxy existed from the very earliest times of the Apostolic
Church and has always been resisted by some. A Western Rite Orthodoxy was
imperative in 1891 because many children of the Immigrants born in the United
States had started to go to the Episcopalian Church and the Roman Catholic
Church because it was more reflective of their American / Western phronema.

  A Western Rite Orthodoxy is evidence of a faith capable of remaking our
contemporary society. Western Rite Orthodoxy celebrates our North American
community in which all are cherished because we are all Americans. Western
Orthodoxy is equal in dignity to the Orthodoxy found in the East. Canon 6 of Nicea
required we form a new jurisdiction rather than operate as a dependency of an
Eastern jurisdiction.   For this reason (to comply with Canon 6) the Ukrainian
Orthodox Catholic Church was established as a group distinct from any Eastern
Orthodox Church body. Vladimir Lossky in 1937 wrote to the members of the
Commission for Occidental (Western) Orthodox affairs: None of the Eastern
Churches such as Constantinople or Russia can appropriate for itself the territory
of the West. (Example; North America)

        An American Orthodox Church can only be born from the same Western soil
as the result of a restored Occidental (Western Orthodoxy) with it's own traditions
and spirituality. Supporting this view are such great Greek Canonists as
Balsamon and Zinaras who have stated that according to Canon 6 of Nicea the
native Church of the West cannot be a diocese of an Eastern Church, all the more
so since Orthodoxy is not limited to only territories of Eastern Europe.

        Monseigneur John of Saint Denis said in Presence Orthodoxe de 1983 n.3,
page 18, "It is necessary to be careful not to identify the Orthodox Church, the
Mother Church, with the Eastern Churches. The one is universal, the others are
limited geographically, culturally and Ritually; they are local." He goes on to say:
The West must never forget to discern within Orthodoxy that which is universal
and that which is local. If one desires that ones joining be organic, stripped of
that which is exotic and artificial, it is necessary that one
"MAKE ONESELF ORTHODOX BUT NOT TO THE POINT OF MAKING ONESELF
EASTERN."

         The challenge to the Western Rite is to sustain the true Orthodoxy handed
down from our parents while building an American expression of the ancient faith
of true Orthodoxy in such a way as to honor our parents, their faith and
traditions. The challenge to the Western Rite is to build an American expression
of the faith that is truly Orthodox and yet faithful to the promise that is America.

SEE ALSO: http://web.archive.org/web/20020423190631/http://www.
theamericanorthodoxchurch.com/aboutus1.html

Father Richard Reed, O.S.B. Obl.

frrick@gabrielschapel.com

copyright 2001, UKRAINIAN ORTHODOX CATHOLIC CHURCH

AMERICAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

Ukrainian Orthodox Catholic Church