News and Events
THANK YOU from Korolevo Orphanage
The MISSION SOCIETY would like to share a BIG Thank You from Sister Josaphata & children at the Korolevo Orphanage!
"Thank you very much for such support. We will use this money to meet the needs of the children, to pay for utilities and warm the house in the winter, as well as to pay for the dental treatment of the children we adopted in December 2023". Meet some of the children YOU have helped!
Bishop Nil's Christmas Letter
Christ is born! Glorify Him!
My beloved Brothers in Christ!
We sing many different Christmas carols and carols in our churches on the feast of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ in the flesh. The styhiras of the great evening psalm, the chants of the matins and other texts of the holy fathers, all want to take us back to that exceptional night in Bethlehem, when the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, was born from the womb of the most holy virgin. The composer Saint Romános wrote many wonderful works, but the account of the birth of Christ moves our hearts with its depth and beauty:
"Today the Virgin gives birth to the highest being,
And the earth offers a stable to the inhospitable,
The angels sing praises with the shepherds,
And the wise men of the East approach, guided by the star,
Because for us the little baby, the eternal God, was born."
Almost following the Melodist St Romános, St. Pope John Paul II also invites us to stop with the spirit of faith at the manger of the child Jesus: "Allow us to stop together near the cave in Bethlehem, located south of Jerusalem. There in the stillness of the night we hear the cry of the newborn child... This is the time when heaven is revealed to us. Heaven, which is the world of God, who is in the place of the unapproachable glory of the Word.” (St. John Paul II) God sends his messengers to the shepherds, who stand guard next to their flock: "...the glory of the Lord has shone upon them. They were very scared. But the angel encouraged them: Do not be afraid! I announce great joy to you and to all the people: today the Savior was born in the city of David. He is the Messiah and the Lord.” The shepherds, says John Paul II, the sons of this "people walking in darkness", are also the chosen ones of this historical moment. They were chosen to "see the great light," the Son of God, Jesus Christ. The words of the angels bring great joy to the hearts of simple men, who have been brought up and taught in the spirit of the great promise to Israel, of waiting for the Messiah who will break the shackles. The shepherds, explains II. Pope John Paul II, the first witness to the great mystery of man's liberation and salvation.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes this secret of our faith as faithfulness to God's promise: "Here is the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" (Mk 1:1). God visited his people. He fulfilled his promise to Abraham and his descendants.
The heavenly Father did more than we could have hoped for: he sent us his "beloved Son" (Mk 1:11). Jesus Christ comes to free us, to open the way to the heavenly Father again - teaches the great son of Ukraine, Cardinal Lubomir Husar of blessed memory. Our fallenness, our weakness is no longer an obstacle on the way to salvation, emphasizes Husar, therefore, ignoring everything else, let us pay special attention to the truth that the Lord God really saves us with his infinite love.
My beloved Brothers in Christ!
Especially now, when our people are fighting their war of liberation against the cruel invaders, the cry of the child Jesus has never been so close to all of us, to every single family that has lost a son, a husband, a father. Today, the Lord is close to those who protect us while giving the most precious thing, their life and health. The child Jesus embraces and blesses all those who are having a hard time right now, who have tears in their eyes and a wounded heart.
Following the example of the shepherds of Bethlehem and the wise men from the East, the Mother Church calls us all to be witnesses of Jesus Christ.
God calls us to be witnesses of Jesus Christ in the world and in our environment. In these days, glorifying God with our prayers, let us embrace the defenders of our country, the wounded, the captives and every shelter that is filled with sadness for their loved ones. May Jesus Christ, the prince of peace, grant us his grace and give our country peace and victory!
I send you all my apostolic blessing with all my heart!
Bishop Nil Lushchak, OFM, Apostolic Administrator
Eparchy of Mukachevo
Check out the gallery, below, to see your Christmas card intentions being prayed for at the Cathedral in Uzhorod.
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Christmas Greetings From Ukraine - Bishop Nil & Korolevo Orphanage
Our Chaplain, Fr. Chris Zugger, is pleased to share with you the Christmas greetings of Bishop Nil and the Korolevo Orphanage.
Thank you to all our supporters who purchased Christmas cards - we will shortly be sharing photos of your intentions being prayed for in Uzhorod.
Merry Christmas from all of us at the Mission Society of Our Lady of Boronyavo.
Christ is Born! Glorify Him!
The Family Toll of War
Bishop Nil Lushchak, OFM, administrator of Eparchy of Mukachevo, far right with administrator of Roman rite Diocese, Bishop Mykola Petro, OP, at a meeting at the University of Uzhhorod on The Role of the Churches During the War
Mourners at a double funeral of two local Greek Catholic soldiers in Mukachevo city, June 20
Artem Vistirovskii, killed in action
Bishop Nil Lushchak, OFM, presiding at yet another funeral for a soldier from the eparchy, June 28
Summer Camp for children of soldiers killed in the war - children and mothers went to Austria July 3-7
Art therapy for teenagers with psychologist Diana Sember
Village of Kosivka Polyana
The new Greek Catholic Church of Sts. Peter and Paul - the original church was confiscated in 1948 by the Russian Orthodox
Reconstruction of the spiritual pastoral center for youth named after Blessed Teodor Romzha in the village of Kosivska Polyana, Rakhiv district, Zakarpattia region
This is the reconstruction of the Romzha youth center, in order to provide housing for internally displaced people (refugees from eastern Ukraine).
There are anywhere from 210,000 to 300,000 refugees from occupied villages and places near the front lines who are sheltering in the Transcarpathian Oblast. The eparchy (diocese) of Mukachevo has been providing temporary shelter through Caritas and assisting with rent and housing in parishioners' homes. This will provide long-term housing.
Blessed Petro Pavlo Oros
Petro Pavlo Oros served God all his life. He is a shining example of deep spiritual love for Jesus to Christ. - Bishop Milan Sasik, CM
The Servant of God Petro (Peter) Oros was born on July 14, 1917 in the village of Biri (Hungary) in the family of a Greek Catholic priest. In 1919, the family moved to Transcarpathia. He was orphaned at age nine, and taken in by another priestly family, the Sabovs, in Skoarstke. In 1937, Peter entered the Uzhgorod Theological Seminary, and on June 28, 1942, he was ordained as a celibate priest. He began his pastoral activity in the village of Veliki Komyati in Vinohradiv district. On December 19, 1944, Bishop Theodore Romzha consecrated him as one of the secret auxiliary bishops of the Mukachevo eparchy; he was only twenty-seven years old.
In 1946, he was appointed to a parish in the village of Bilky in the Irshava district. In 1948, the local authorities resorted to various methods of influence in order to persuade Father Peter to convert to Russian Orthodoxy. Because he was one of the few celibate priests, they suspected that he might be a secret bishop. He, like all other priests who did not give in to their convictions, was forbidden to perform pastoral work. But he remained faithful to his vocation, and created a group of
priests who took refuge in the mountains and continued to secretly serve the Greek-Catholic believers in Irshava and Vinohradiv districts. For five years the young bishop carried on his work, sometimes completely alone, from a cabin in the
forest. His co-workers included Father Ivan Margitič (later auxiliary bishop of Mukachevo), Ivan Roman and Ivan Čengeri.
At the beginning of 1953, he was caught, arrested and sent to Uzhhorod, to the KGB detention center, where he was detained for more than two weeks. Due to Stalin’s death and the rapid changes in the USSR, the police were not sure if they should hold him, and he was released. In the summer of 1953, a policeman tried to arrest Father Peter near Imstichevo, but he was lucky enough to escape. In constant danger, without rest, sleep and safe shelter, the tragic day of martyrdom was approaching for Father Peter.
On the eve of the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, August 27, 1953, (Old Calendar) in the village of Veliki Komyati, he served a well-attended Holy Liturgy in the cemetery. On the same day, he went on foot to the railway station, with Catherine Stanko, who went to buy his ticket. Here he was arrested by a fanatic communist policeman who began to take him in the direction of the village. This policeman executed the bishop near a roadside cross. At the foot of the cross, the militiaman ordered the young bishop, who was only thirty-six, "Pray, because it is your end." Father Petro knelt down and partook of the Eucharist, which he had with him. Two shots followed: first he shot the priest in his knee, and then in the head. Mrs. Stanko ran to call people for help. The mayor also came running, and denounced the militiaman for assassinating the bishop. He, told the mayor, "Shut up, because I'll do the same to you." The militiaman later boasted to his friends that he had received a reward of 500 rubles for this brutal execution. While he lay dying the bishop gave Catherine Stanko a list of liturgy intentions from his pocket; the last one read “soul of Petro Pavlo Oros” for he had known his death was coming.
Today Blessed Petro Oros’ relics repose in a chapel next to the church in Bilky, his last parish. A youth pilgrimage comes to the site every year. The ceremony of his beatification, which was to be held in Khust in June of 2023, has been delayed as the government was fearful of a Russian attack.
Blessed Petro Pavlo Oros
