The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical Engagement
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) is an Eastern Catholic Church that lives according to the Ukrainian–Byzantine Christian theological, liturgical, canonical and spiritual tradition and is in full and visible communion with the successor of Peter. Unity with the Roman Apostolic See has becom...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-04-01
|
| Series: | Religions |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/4/457 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849713755474100224 |
|---|---|
| author | Roman Fihas |
| author_facet | Roman Fihas |
| author_sort | Roman Fihas |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) is an Eastern Catholic Church that lives according to the Ukrainian–Byzantine Christian theological, liturgical, canonical and spiritual tradition and is in full and visible communion with the successor of Peter. Unity with the Roman Apostolic See has become one of the most important foundations of the UGCC’s identity, enriching its church life and strengthening its ecumenical ministry. As a sui iuris Church in the “family” of Catholic communion, the UGCC actively develops its ecumenical commitments with the Orthodox Churches and Protestant ecclesial communities. In this article, we will briefly examine how the UGCC developed its communion with the Bishop of Rome and how communion with the Apostolic See was a blessing for this Church, but at the same time sometimes became a threat to its existence in times of persecution by totalitarian regimes. We will also present the current religious context in which the UGCC operates, analyze some of its most important ecumenical initiatives and examine its participation in the development of interfaith dialogue in Ukraine. We will consider the challenges that the Russian invasion has brought to the UGCC and other religions in Ukraine, and how the UGCC, by developing communion with Rome, manages to witness the Gospel of life in the difficult circumstances of war and death. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-5cd85c26d15743eeb81fa855697f6874 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj-art-5cd85c26d15743eeb81fa855697f68742025-08-20T03:13:53ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442025-04-0116445710.3390/rel16040457The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical EngagementRoman Fihas0Institute of Ecumenical Studies, Ukrainian Catholic University, 79000 Lviv, UkraineThe Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) is an Eastern Catholic Church that lives according to the Ukrainian–Byzantine Christian theological, liturgical, canonical and spiritual tradition and is in full and visible communion with the successor of Peter. Unity with the Roman Apostolic See has become one of the most important foundations of the UGCC’s identity, enriching its church life and strengthening its ecumenical ministry. As a sui iuris Church in the “family” of Catholic communion, the UGCC actively develops its ecumenical commitments with the Orthodox Churches and Protestant ecclesial communities. In this article, we will briefly examine how the UGCC developed its communion with the Bishop of Rome and how communion with the Apostolic See was a blessing for this Church, but at the same time sometimes became a threat to its existence in times of persecution by totalitarian regimes. We will also present the current religious context in which the UGCC operates, analyze some of its most important ecumenical initiatives and examine its participation in the development of interfaith dialogue in Ukraine. We will consider the challenges that the Russian invasion has brought to the UGCC and other religions in Ukraine, and how the UGCC, by developing communion with Rome, manages to witness the Gospel of life in the difficult circumstances of war and death.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/4/457interconfessional relations in UkraineUkrainian Greek Catholic Churchcommunion with the Bishop of Romeecumenism |
| spellingShingle | Roman Fihas The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical Engagement Religions interconfessional relations in Ukraine Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church communion with the Bishop of Rome ecumenism |
| title | The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical Engagement |
| title_full | The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical Engagement |
| title_fullStr | The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical Engagement |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical Engagement |
| title_short | The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Its Communion with the Bishop of Rome: Nurturing Its Ecumenical Engagement |
| title_sort | ukrainian greek catholic church and its communion with the bishop of rome nurturing its ecumenical engagement |
| topic | interconfessional relations in Ukraine Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church communion with the Bishop of Rome ecumenism |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/4/457 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT romanfihas theukrainiangreekcatholicchurchanditscommunionwiththebishopofromenurturingitsecumenicalengagement AT romanfihas ukrainiangreekcatholicchurchanditscommunionwiththebishopofromenurturingitsecumenicalengagement |