New Ukrainian cardinal connected to Eastern-rite Catholics here

Three weeks ago, the Pope named two Ukrainian Catholics as new cardinals. One of them, Archbishop Lubomyr Husar of Lviv, the head of the Eastern-rite Ukrainian Catholic Church, has ties to the Watervliet parish.

Rev. Michael Myshchuk, pastor of St. Nicholas, remembers the archbishop as a "very smart man who explained very difficult terms in simple ways."

'Wonderful news'

"We're all very excited about this wonderful news," said Father Myshchuk. "He is one of the most knowledgeable people I know."

Rev. Vladimir Marusceac, administrator of Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Church in Troy and dean of the rite in the area, told The Evangelist that "the Ukrainian Catholic Church has embraced Cardinal Husar and wishes him the very best as he continues to lead our church to a high level of spirituality.

"He is an extremely educated man who truly deserves this honor, and we will support him in his endeavors and pray for his success. As for the future, the Ukrainian Catholic Church envisions having our own Ukrainian Catholic patriarch."

Memories

"He came to our parish years ago while teaching at Stamford, Connecticut," he said. "Between 1958 and 1969, he was dean of St. Basil's Seminary there and was very good friends with our pastor at the time, Rev. Theodore Humanytsky. He would come to our parish and say Mass, substituting for Father Humanytsky when he was away."

Mr. Kushnir recalls several retreats that Cardinal-designate Husar led for the parishioners of St. Nicholas and noted: "He spoke so interestingly. I remember that people were deeply affected by his every word."

Parish work

In 1967, he received a master's degree in philosophy from Fordham University in New York City, and in 1969 he left for Rome.

In 1972, he received his Ph.D. in theology from Rome's Urbanian University and then studied at a contemplative monastery, becoming a monk of that order. He was elected superior of the Studite Monastery at Grottaferrata in 1974.

'Brilliant'

"This is a wonderful, compassionate and brilliant person," Father Schweigardt told The Evangelist. "He is very well versed. I remember he really had a grasp of both the churches of the east and the west."

In 1977, Cardinal Joseph Slipyj, exiled from Ukraine, secretly ordained Father Husar a bishop, making him a "bishop without a portfolio" for nearly 18 years. At that time in Ukraine, the law banned the Eastern Catholic Church, its bishops were arrested and all its property was confiscated. The Latin church was not outlawed, but it was harassed, and many of its members, traditionally drawn from Ukraine's Polish minority, were deported or exiled.

In secret

When he was elected auxiliary bishop of Lviv by the synod in 1996, he was given responsibility for the administrative duties of the head of the Church, Cardinal Myroslav Lubachivsky. When the latter died in December 2000, Archbishop Husar was appointed administrator of the archdiocese.

Last month, Ukrainian bishops from Ukraine, Poland, France, Italy, England, the U.S., Canada and Australia elected Archbishop Husar as their head. Pope John Paul waited for the election before naming Archbishop Husar a cardinal.

Pope John Paul II said, "In his person, as in that of the prelates mentioned earlier, I try to honor the respective churches, which, especially in the course of the 20th century, were harshly tried and have offered the world an example of so many Christian men and women who have known how to witness to their faith in the midst of sufferings of all kinds, often culminating with the sacrifice of their life."

(02-15-01) [[In-content Ad]]