Who We Are
Although we
have our own Patriarch and Bishops, we are Catholics in
union with the “Pope of Rome”, who is also simultaneously
the Head of the Western Church and the “Bishop of Rome”. By
virtue of the Communion of our Patriarch and Church in
Kyiv-Ukraine with the Head and Church in Rome, we are a
Catholic Church, sharing in the same belief, faith and
sacraments as all Catholic peoples. Thus, all Catholics who
liturgize (attend Vesperal Liturgy or Matinal Liturgy or
Divine Liturgyn or the Typika Liturgy) with us, fulfill
their Holy-day and Sunday obligations, as attendance at Mass
would do in their own churches. Being Eastern Catholics, we
have an equally apostolic approach to theology,
spirituality, church law and liturgical tradition, as do
Western Catholics. However,
most people’s first exposure
to us occurs when they witness our repetitive, timeless, and
non-rational way of Liturgy (celebrating and expressing our
Catholic Faith), geared towards effecting the
subconscious. This is where our Eastern-Byzantine customs
and traditions are most conspicuous to a Western, or
non-Christian.
At the Last
Supper, which we call the “Mystical Supper”, after Jesus
changed bread and wine into His own true Body and true
Blood, He told His disciples to, “Do this in memory of
Me.” This they did. As the disciples brought the Gospel
to different parts of the world, they adapted ceremonies of
the Divine Liturgy to the customs and music of that people.
In the end, four great Centers of Christianity emerged with
distinctive Christian customs, but the same Faith. One
Center was Western, located in the great city of Rome.
Three Centers were Eastern, located in the great cities of
Jerusalem, Antioch and Alexandria. A couple of centuries
later, when the capital of the Roman Empire was moved to the
Eastern city of Byzantium, renamed Constantinople, an
adaptation of the Antioch way of celebrating liturgy was
made. Thus, a new Eastern Center of Christianity arose in
Constantinople and became known as the Byzantine Church.
This Church’s missionary work especially that of Sts. Cyril
and Methodius, began to reach out to the Slavic peoples of
Eastern Europe. Various rulers of state, who were often
canonized as “enlighteners” or “equal’s-of-the-apostles”
collaborated with the clergy. For example, the Church of
Kyiv-Ukraine, and her Daughter Churches (such as the Church
in Russia), commemorate Saints Volodimir and Olha, as such.
For many historical, political, social and economic reasons,
and some theological ones as well, not all of the Eastern
Christians were able to maintain an uninterrupted Communion
with the Church in Rome, when she and the Church in
Constantinople progressively took steps to break communion
with one another, during 1054-1204. Although each of the
Eastern Churches has a history all its own, those who are in
Communion with the Church in Constantinople are generally
referred to as “Eastern, Russian or Greek Orthodox”.
Meanwhile, those who never lost, or renewed, their Communion
with the Church in Rome are generally referred to as
“Eastern Catholics”. The majority of these follow Byzantine
theology, spirituality, liturgy and church law. But not all
of the Eastern Catholics are “Byzantine”. (Other names
include the Austro-Hungarian term “Greco-Catholics”, which
is still used occasionally; however, the term “Uniate” is
pejorative and should be avoided). Furthermore, both
Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholics are comprised of
ecclesiastical jurisdictions arising from their ethnic or
geographic points of origin, for example: Abyssinian
(Ethiopian), Albanian, Armenian, Belarusian, Bulgarian,
Chaldean (Iraqi), Coptic (Egyptian), Croatian, Georgian,
Greek, Hungarian, Italo-Albanian, Japanese, Malankarese
(Indian), Maronite (Lebanese), Melkite, Romanian,
Russian, Ruthenian (Sub-Carpathian), Serbian, Slovak,
Syrian, Syro-Malabarese (Indian), Ukrainian, etc.
When
these people migrated to the United States, they brought
their treasure of Faith, as it was incarnated in their
persecuted homelands. It was vital that they be able to
communicate not in the language of foreign invaders, but in
the language reserved for those who are near and dear, first
of whom is God. Nevertheless, a valid concern and tension
arises if one is mindful that to be Catholic (Universal), by
definition, means to be open to people of all ethnic
backgrounds and races. Thus, even as we respect our
original languages and cultures, Eastern Catholics strive to
welcome anyone whom our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ,
wishes to add to our family. We do not mistake uniformity
for unity; for, we believe that our ability to accept one
another lovingly is what reveals our
real
Catholicity. We believe that East and West were (and can
again be) complementary, rather than contradictory. So, it
follows that the entire
Catholic Church, be it Eastern or Western, is the heir to a
Faith in God, one in the Holy Trinity: Father, Son and Holy
Spirit. This is essential in our journey to God. It is
both traditional and modern, and emphasizes that through our
union with Christ, we become God-like and His beloved
children. We believe that God is with us and that in Holy
Communion we receive the Body and Blood of Christ, the Son
of God, by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Our St
John the Baptist Parish belongs to the St. Josaphat Eparchy
(Diocese) in Parma, Ohio. Along with our eparchies in
Chicago, IL and Stamford, CT, we are part of the Archeparchy
(Archdiocese) of Philadelphia, PA; together these four are
an integral part of the world-wide
Kyivan (Ukrainian) Catholic
Church, with its Patriarch and Synod of Bishops,
in Kyiv-Ukraine, which is in union with the Pope of Rome,
supreme pastor of the universal Church.
Everyone is
Welcome !
Are You
Looking for A Spiritual Home?
If you are looking for
a spiritual home, consider our Parish Community, which is
founded on one of the most important gifts of the Holy
Spirit: the fullness of Holy Tradition, just as it was
handed down to us from Jesus, to the apostles, to the
bishops. Although containing many written documents, Holy
Tradition includes the total life and experience of the
Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, with all of its elements
organically linked together in real life. They cannot be
separated or isolated from each other. The Bible is in
first place. It is followed by the liturgical life and
prayer (public/communal and personal/devotional) together
with fasting and almsgiving, the Church’s dogmatic decisions
and acts approved by Church Councils, the writings of the
Church Fathers, the lives of saints, the church laws, and
the iconographic tradition together with other inspired
forms of creative artistic expressions (hymns, music,
architecture, etc.).
Our Community is
open to any Catholic or to anyone else who:
-
Is
interested in seeking the Lord Who has chosen to reveal
Himself in His Word and in the Sacraments (Holy
Mysteries).
-
Accepts the
teachings of Christ, as entrusted in its fullness, to
the Universal (Catholic and Orthodox) Church.
-
Will help
form a Community based on the Lord Jesus’ love, and
therefore…
-
Wishes to
receive the office of the Pope of Rome as one who
presides in love specifically at the service of the
Lord’s will. This means, in effect, that to be Orthodox
and to be Catholic is not contradictory, as some would
claim, but complementary - universal.
-
Is willing
to grow as a Christian, guided by the authentic customs
of our Ukrainian Catholic Church and lived out in our
American context, and to share these with our community
at large.
-
Is willing
to support the growth of St. John the Baptist Parish,
the St. Josaphat Eparchy (Diocese), and the Ukrainian
Catholic Church in the sharing of his/her time, talent
and treasure.
If this is the type of
spiritual home that you seek, please speak with our pastor.
Divine
Liturgies:
Saturdays at 5:00 pm
recited in English; Sundays at
8:00 am sung by
cantor and with the congregation in English and some Old
Church Slavonic; and 10:30 sung by choir in Old Church
Slavonic. Between Pentecost Sunday and Labor Day there is only
one Sunday Divine Liturgy at
9:30 am.
Typika
Liturgy:
sometimes when there is no Priest, the Deacon may take a
service of Prayers from the Divine Liturgy without the
Consecration but with the Distribution of Holy Communion