HolHolyy Dormition Pilgrimage Se ee moremore FirstFirst SolemnSolemn CommunionCommunion Sloa Sl oatsburg,tsburg, NYNY ParParish ish PhotosPhotos inin thethe AugustAugust issueissue Augu Augusstt 13-1413-14 O F F IIC IIA L P U B L IIC AT IIO N O F T H E U K R A IIN IIA N C AT H O L IIC E PA R C H Y O F S TA M F O R D ССіівваачч SSoowweerr VOL XXVII; No.. 7 STAMFORD,, CONNECTIICUT 06902 JULY 24,, 2011 www..stamforddiio..org St. Nicholas Parish, St. Andrewʼs Parish, Elmira Heights, NY - May 29th Campbell Hill, NY - June 26th 1st Row: First Holy Communicant Elizabeth Baj and her First Solemn Holy Communion in St. Nicholas Parish was sister Eva Baj. 2nd Row: Very Rev. Yaroslav Kostyk, held on Sunday, May 29, 2011. Parish Administrator Catechist, Dr. Ann Pawliczko; Receiving their First Solemn Communion at St. Nicholas Elizabeth's parents: Olia and Artur Baj. Parish in Elmira Heights were Oleksa Luka Vatamaniuk, Matthew Clark and Mallory Mowchan, pictured here with their parents. After Divine Liturgy, family members were invit- Protection of the Blessed ed to brunch in the Church Annex. Many thanks to cate- chists Mrs. Irene Moffe and Mrs. Joann Evans for all of their Virgin Mary Parish, efforts on behalf of the communicants. Manchester, NH - June 12th MaManyny BlessingsBlessings onon ourour Commun Communicants!icants! We have included half included 1/2 of our parish photos in this issue. The remaining photos will be found in the August issue of the Sower. SS. Peter & Paul Parish, Auburn, NY - May 1st Pictured from left to right, with Fr. Robert Smolley, Parish Administrator, are: Cassandra Gilbert, Mikaela Gilbert, and Giulia Manino, this yearʼs First Holy Communicants at Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish, Manchester, NH. Row 1: Olivia Fritz, Hannah, Marek, Emma Kennedy, Erin Grady, Sidney Gera; Row 2: Quinn LaMontagne, Gavin Moody, William Coleman, David Hribick; Row 3: Sr. Stephanie, SSMI, Religion Teacher, Rev. Ivan Mazuryk, Parish Administrator. 2 JULY 24,, 2011 SOWER HOMILY OF POPE BENEDICT XVI BEATIFICATION OF THE SERVANT OF LLIIGGHHTT OONNEE CCAANNDDLLEE GOD JOHN PAUL II Jerry Costello Divine Mercy Sunday, May 1, 2011 The Christophers Dear Brothers and Sisters, SE SERVINGRVING The book of the Acts of the Apostles states that after a first violent EACH OTHER’SOTHER’S LIVESLIVES persecution, the Christian community of Jerusalem, except for the You’re going to hear more of these 9/11 stories as the Apostles, spread to the surrounding areas. Philip, one of the deacons, 10th anniversary of that somber day draws nearer, and it’s easy to arrived in a city of Samaria. There he preached the Risen Christ, and his proclamation was see why. Here’s one of them, and I think you’ll find, as I did, that supported by numerous healings, so that the outcome of the episode was very positive: “there it’s pretty hard to beat. was much joy in that city” (Acts 8:8). I first came across it in Mike Kelly’s column in The We are repeatedly impressed in a profound way by this expression, which in essence Record, the newspaper that serves northern New Jersey. It’s about communicates a sense of hope, as if saying: It is possible! It is possible for humanity to know two people--strangers to each other, really, even though they true joy, because wherever the Gospel comes, life flourishes, just as arid ground, irrigated by worked in the same big office. One’s a white man; the other is a rain, immediately turns back to green. black woman. Paul Carris, now 55, lives in Hasbrouck Heights, With the strength of the Holy Spirit, Philip and the other disciples accomplished in N.J. Judith Coppin, 61 and retired, is from Brooklyn. Their lives the villages of Palestine what Jesus had done: They preached the Good News and worked became forever intertwined because they met that day, on Sept. 11, miraculous signs. It was the Lord who acted through them. As Jesus proclaimed the coming 2001, and in the process Paul came to understand--with a delay, of the Kingdom of God, so the disciples proclaimed the Risen Jesus, professing that he is the perhaps, but an understanding nevertheless--of what he was put on Christ, the Son of God, baptizing in his name and driving out every illness of body and spir- earth to do. it. Paul and Judith both worked for the Port Authority of “There was much joy in that city”. Reading this passage, one thinks spontaneously New York and New Jersey, toiling away--he as a transit engineer, of the healing power of the Gospel, which throughout the centuries has “watered” so many she as a manager of aviation projects--on the 71st floor of the north populations, like a beneficent river. Several great men and women saints brought hope and tower of the World Trade Center. Everyone knows what happened peace to entire cities — we think of Charles Borromeo in Milan at the time of the plague, of that day. When it became evident that the floor and the building Bl. Mother Teresa of Calcutta, and of so many missionaries, whose names are known by God, would have to be evacuated, Judith felt a touch of panic. With a who have given their lives to bring the proclamation of Christ and make profound joy flower lung disease and terribly swollen legs, she could barely walk a few among men. While the powers of this world sought to conquer new territories for political feet before exhaustion set in. and economic interests, Christ’s messengers went everywhere with the aim of bringing Christ “I thought I might die,” she said. “I remember hoping that it wouldn’t be painful.” to men and men to Christ, knowing that he alone can give true freedom and eternal life. Today That’s where Paul stepped in. He took her hand and too the Church’s vocation is evangelization: whether it be to populations which have not yet promised to lead her to safety, down those 71 flights. And that’s been “irrigated” by the living water of the Gospel, or to those that, though having ancient what he did, holding on to her as countless others rushed by them, Christian roots, are in need of new nourishment to bear new fruit and rediscover the beauty down and down the stairway. They finally reached the ground and joy of the faith. floor and had barely made it to a nearby building when the tower began its final collapse. That’s the first part of the story. Paul found it difficult to think of himself in the role of hero, as Judith depicted him in a widely-circulated Internet tribute to him--so difficult, in fact, that he felt obliged to turn to therapy. He finally broke out of it during a Cursillo retreat he attended--one in which he not only shared his 9/11 experience, but insists that he heard “a voice.” The voice, he is convinced, was the voice of God, and in time he heard it calling him to a life of service in the Church. PERMANENT SYNOD OF BISHOPS MEETS IN ROME Encouraged by his wife, Carroll, and their two daughters, Paul began the arduous preparation called for by the diaconate. That meant five years of work--one year just for applications and interviews, followed by four more of classes, term papers and exams. He was still a Port Authority employee, this time with an office in Newark. Finally the years of hard work paid off, and on Saturday, May 21, in Newark’s Sacred Heart Cathedral, Paul Carris was ordained a permanent deacon. He gave his first homi- ly the following day in his home parish of Corpus Christi in Hasbrouck Heights, calling on the congregation to join him in knowing more about the purpose of living. There was a special guest of honor that day, too--Judith Toppin, who came from Brooklyn for the occasion. “Paul helped me to live,” she said after the ceremony. Paul’s wife, Carroll, stepped in to hug them both. “You saved one another,” she said. For a free copy of the Christopher News Note, , BRING OUT THE BEST IN OTHERS, write: The Christophers, 5 Hanover Square, New York, NY 10004; or e-mail: [email protected]. From June 16 to 21 the members of the Permanent Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Catholic Church met in Rome for their last scheduled meeting before the annual Synod of Bishops to be held in Brazil later this summer. Chairing the meeting for the first time was the newly-elected Head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, His Beatitude, Sviatoslav Shewchuk. One afternoon was devoted to a ССіівваачч SSoowweerr meeting with the Ukrainian Catholic clergy who serve our faithful living in Italy. OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE The fifty clergy serve more than 140 mission stations located throughout the EPARCHY OF STAMFORD country. Pictured above are the bishops with the clergy at the conclusion of their Most Reverend Paul P. Chomnycky, OSBM, D.D., Publisher meeting. Seated from left to right are: Rev. Marko Semehen (Pastoral Sr. Natalya Stoczanyn, SSMI, Editor-in-Chief. The Sower (ISSN 08966184) is published monthly at Coordinator), Bishop Dionisius Lachovicz (Apostolic Visitator for Ukrainian 14 Peveril Road, Stamford, CT 06902-3019. Catholics in Italy), Bishop Paul Chomnycky (Stamford), His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Subscription rate: $20 domestic $25 foreign (checks Bishop Vasyl Semeniuk (Ternopil), Archbishop Ihor Vozniak (L'viv), Bishop David and money orders in U.S. currency only).