Rev. Father Ihor Papka 860-617-6357 Deacon Jon Messer NHBagpiper@gmail.com Про нас: ми Українська Католицька Церква східного обряду
In Memoriam of Pope Francis Pope Francis has fallen asleep
It is with hope in the Resurrection
which we continue to solemnly celebrate that I share with you my sadness at the death of our Holy Father Pope Francis. Pope Francis lived a life of radical dedication to the Lord and His people, especially the poor and marginalized. He taught us to be ready to leave the sacristy, to be a poor Church for the poor. He helped to free us from clerical illusions, encouraging all of us clergy to be close, intimate, and tender with all people. By example, he touched the untouchables, embraced those from whom many recoil, and spoke directly in an understandable language, trying to reach a world in turmoil.
He cared for the youth and all of creation. He announced the Holy Year of Mercy and the Holy Year of Hope. For many he brought God closer.
By Archbishop Borys Gudziak - Romę, Italy
Walking in pilgrimage between the four major Roman basilicas—Saint Peter’s, Saint Mary Major, Saint John Lateran, and Saint Paul Outside the Walls—in a classic Holy Year pious practice, one senses that over 2,000 years there have been many sensations, triumphant displays in art and architecture, and ambitious declarations of power and prestige. Yet in the context of the centuries, only a few of the 266 popes can be readily identified by most of us. Buildings have been ruined, rebuilt, and ruined again.
It is good to see the people, the delight—the quiet prayer of a grandmother, the wide eyes of small children before images of the Mother of God, the intense and hopeful gaze of cancer patients, the petitions of mothers whose sons are defending Ukraine’s eastern front, the exuberant clapping of teenage followers of Carlo Acutis, who was supposed to be canonized this Sunday, the big smile of a child holding a delicious, dripping gelato; Boy Scouts, religious sisters, uniformed military, carabinieri, hipsters, the old and the young—all are part of the Church, as Pope Francis encouraged us: tutti, tutti, tutti.
Pope Francis “finished the race” (2 Tim 4:7), and there is a hopeful expectation for a new Bishop of Rome.
The message of Pope Francis oriented our eyes toward Jesus and the Gospel, toward the poor and the marginalized, and toward the profound truth that every person is created in God’s image and likeness. This is the most important reason for our commemoration and celebration.
Having visited prisoners during Holy or Passion Week, announced Christ’s Resurrection on Easter, and imparted a blessing Urbi et Orbi followed by a final farewell to the People of God in Saint Peter’s Square, Pope Francis departed to the house of the Father. What a beautiful way to be born into eternity.
In these days of Bright Week—or, as Roman Catholics call it, the Octave of Easter—when the world says its goodbyes, the vacuum in Rome fills with the voices of teenage pilgrims and the hopes of the human race, often floundering in anguish and confusion. The Church will continue to speak for the hungry, poor, and powerless, the dejected and despairing.
One cannot deny that, amid the media din, there is a certain fetish around the character and quality of the casket, curiosity about where and how the deceased will be buried, and, of course, endless gossip about who might be the successor.
Yet there is a special serenity surrounding the death of Pope Francis—a serenity that is by no means silent. It is a tranquility of smiles, a calm full of meaning. The Body of Christ is alive, wounds and all.
An Easter joy quietly reigns. It is in the passage from death to life that Rome and the world—urbs et orbis—find their peace and joy.
LIVE STREAM Sunday May 11, 2025 @ 10am EST
The Slavonic Cross
The cross is the most prominent of all Christian symbols.
It is symbolic of the crucifixion of Christ and His suffering and death for the sins of the world. Constantine, Emperor of the Roman Empire, placed the cross over the symbolic eagles of Caesar, and this emblem has been the standard symbol of Christian faiths the world over. The Slavonic cross is distinctive, especially in that it includes the lower bar or foot rest set at a diagonal. There are several historical explanations for this. Beginning in the ninth century, crucifixes began to have the additional footboard in the shape of a horizontal bar in addition to the earlier form which had an upright bar and a single cross bar. This lower bar provided a place for Christ to rest His feet. Byzantine artists used this form of the cross regularly.
The first Byzantine crosses had the added footboard placed horizontally, but successive Slavonic crosses put the lower bar at a sharp diagonal. This change took place between the tenth and eleventh centuries. One explanation is that it serves as a graphic rebuke to those who held the opinion that Christ did not actually suffer on the cross but only seemed to suffer. The inclined position of the lower bar indicates the intense reality of the suffering in the flesh by Jesus as He hung on the cross. His agony was so intense that His nailed feet wrenched loose the nailed parts of the cross when He thrust one foot down while drawing the other up.
Another religious interpretation is that the right side of the footboard points to indicate the lightened burden for believers and the left side down to indicate the weighing down of disbelievers. The uplifted right side also indicated that on the second advent of Christ, believers will soar up to Him. Christ's head on the cross is also usually inclined to the right, to beckon disbelievers to follow Him, worship Him, and be saved.
Still another interpretation of the slanting footboard is that it symbolizes the part played by those two thieves who were crucified with Christ. The thief on the right repented and is represented by the raised side of the lower crossbar, while the lowered left side represents the other thief who blasphemed Christ during His crucifixion and was condemned. The extra cross bar at the top of the Slavonic cross represents the inscription board nailed above Christ on the cross. The inscription, "This is Jesus, the King of the Jews", was written in three languages, Greek, Latin and Hebrew. One explanation sometimes given in Eastern Church literature is that the Slavonic cross is the replica of the cross planted by the Apostle Andrew when he looked northward over the mountains of the Caucasus and predicted that a great Church would arise. St. Andrew thus became the prophet of the Slav-Byzantine Church. The modern St. Andrew's cross, however, is in the form of an "X", the shape of the cross upon which this disciple was crucified. The Slavonic cross, with its added inscription bar at the top, and one slanting footboard bar below, more fully symbolizes the crucifixion that the commoner simple cross, which has only one upright bar and only one crossbar. NOTE: This cross is used extensively both by Catholics of the Byzantine Rite and the Eastern Orthodox of Slavic descent who share the same heritage of Eastern Christianity.
It was the custom to erect such crosses before the entrance to towns and villages in Central Eurpose to ward off evil and unfriendly spirits, also to serve as a sign of welcome to fellow Christians passing by, and as a pledge to God of their solidarity as a deeply rooted Christian community.
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Help for Ukraine
Ukrainian Now By Tom Paxton and Noel Paul Stookey
Ukrainian Now By Tom Paxton and Noel Paul Stookey
Ukrainian Now By Tom Paxton and Noel Paul Stookey
Ukrainian Cultural Center of New England
Ukrainian Now By Tom Paxton and Noel Paul Stookey
Ukrainian Now By Tom Paxton and Noel Paul Stookey
Ukrainian Cultural Center of New England email (info@uccn.org) and below action button for link to UCCN for all events website:
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