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Eparchy of Mukachevo contact information:
Bishop Milan Shashik
Vul. Zakarpats�ka 18, m. Uzhhorod, 88017, Ukraine
Telephone +38 (03122) 4-39-66; tel-fax (0312) 61-22-26
e-mail: eparchygc@mail.uzhgorod.ua


Uzhhorod Theological Academy of Blessed Theodore Romzha
Rector: Father Taras Lobska
Vice-Rector: Father Ivan Shemet
Vul. Patrusia Karpats�kyy, 2-a
m. Uzhhorod, 88015, Ukraine
Rector�s Telephone +38 (0312) 66-50-75
Students� Telephone +38 (0312) 66-40-90
e-mail: seminary@mgce.uzhgorod.ua

Periodical �Blahovisnyk�
Ludwig Philip, Editor
Vul. Patrusia Karpats�kyy, 2-a
m. Uzhhorod, 88015, Ukraine
Telephone +38 (0312) 66-22-17
e-mail: evd@mail.uzhgorod.ua

There are also addresses for Basilian monasteries of men (in Broniava, Imstychevo, Malyy Bereznyy � Chernecha Hora is, alas, still in other hands).
I don't have access to a complete directory of the Eparchy, which is a pity. Perhaps our Administrator could get one and post it?
the spelling "uzhgorod" is an obvious Soviet hangover, but at least it demonstrates that when some of us mention the russification campaign under the tender care of the USSR we are not telling fibs.
I would hate to guarantee that any of the people whose e-mail addresses and telephone numbers are supplied above can cope with messages, let alone conversations, in English. They can certainly cope with Ukrainian and with Russian - though Russian is unlikely to make the caller popular, unless he begins by announcing a LARGE donation. I plan to attempt to subscribe to Blahovisnyk.
The seminary is calling itself an Academy. I rather wonder who has bestowed this status, and on what basis. Perhaps I'll send them an e-mail and ask for their catalogue.
Incognitus

I hear there is a new television program that runs weekly in Transcarpathia. Some of the dialogue follows...

"We are UKRAINE. You Rusyns WILL BE ASSIMIALATED! RESISTANCE IS FUTILE!!

It is a political drama of the Ukrainian government. Patrick Stewart plays the role of President Kuchma!

Dave, I'm thinking about joining that New Uzhorod Eparchy!

Ung-Csertezs

Dear Hritzko - aka seven of nine,
Carpatho-Rusyns, I suppose, celebrated in ~ 1863.
:p

Djs,

Live long and prosper "V"! Mnohaja Blahaja L'ita!

U-C

Dear Incognitus,

You are the little trouble maker aren't you?

Where do you get this stuff ?

So what am I supose to say ?

Maybe something like this (in Ukrainian but with a Valley girl accent):

"So, like you see there is this administrator of the Byzantine Forum's News section of the Ruthenian Church USA who claims that there is mass unrest of the 'Rusyn' people in Zakarpattia, 'cause he had this conversation with some dude way back when (even though the administrator can't speak Ukrainian, and like he thinks all hell is going to break loose straight out of da teddy Romzha school of halleluja, and like I'm really worried that the whole region is going to become unstable and like that is really going to make people feel bad, and ...and ..... soo - does your seminary have any Mad Rusyns ready to go nutso if they see a Ukrainian (ie; a reflection of themselves in the mirror?)"

OH PLEASE - YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS ?

O.K - I will try anything once.

Hriztko

Hritzko:
Please consider Tony's advice.

SLAVA ISUSU CHRISTU!

Incognitus wrote: "...Rector: Father Taras Lobska..."

If I'm not mistaken, Fr. Taras spells his last name LOVSKA.

At least, that's how he spelled it when he was here at my parish and when I met him in Rome...

hope this helps...

mark

Frankly, I'm not really sure what Tony is saying.

Do you mean to "seek medical treatment" because I do not agree with what you are saying in spite of the fact that I can back up everything I say with scholarly material
or
That I'm involved in some "Chauvenistic" plot to destroy a people and deprive them of their rights even though I have proven that nobody is being deprived of anything - but that has not stopped the Administrator from repeating some absurd statments which he is unable to support at all ?
or
That I'm now part of the "opressors", just as we were "oppressed" even though I have clearly proven that there is no oppression ? Perhaps this is the fuel that fires you.
or
That I'm involved in a "smear campaign" or "malice", or.........

It' time to get on the 'reality bandwagon'. - The truth shall set you free.

Hritzko

Hritzko,

If you wish for anything you say to be taken seriously you must make some attempt to get the facts correct.

First, I have never stated that there is �mass urest of the �Rusyn� people in Zakarpattia�. For the most part the people there do not care what Ukrainians think of them. It is only when people like you attempt to shove something down their throat that they get annoyed. I do know that they especially get annoyed by people who attempt to rewrite history and claim that they are really Ukrainian and not the separate ethnic group of Carpatho-Rusin.

Second, it is not necessary to speak Rusin or Ukrainian in order to have an understanding of what the people of Transcarpatia believe about themselves. They do visit here often and many of them speak English. Many have visited my parish during the last 10 years, enough for me to understand their positions on these issues.

Third, when you call you might ask to speak with Father John Zeyack, an American who is on the facility there. He is fair person and will help direct you to enough people to answer your questions.

I had a communication this morning from a friend of mine here in America who is hosting a seminarian from Uzhorod this summer. He suggested that someone with an axe to grind (you) would probably not be willing to grasp the reality, even when confronted with it directly when you speak with people from Transcarpathia. If you are actually willing to speak contact the seminary, it might be best if you had someone who is not Ukrainian to review your questions to make sure that they are fair and balanced before you ask them. I have no doubt that your current plan to ask about �Mad Rusyns� will only get you labeled as a nutcase.

Admin

Dear Mark,

Thanks for that observation. The Latin 'b' letter did not sound correct to me either.

The Ukrainian Cyrilic letter 'b' is pronounced like the Latin letter 'v' and I'm sure whoever was translating from Ukrainian to English made this mistake. Mixing letters from one alphabet with another is very common when people write fast - I do it all the time. I hope you didn't think that I only make mistakes in English - my French and Ukrainian can get just as 'choppy' at times.

Again, thanks for your help and I should have a full report by next Monday afternoon.

Hritzko

Dear Mark - your correction is accurate; I did indeed (inadvertently) mis-spell Father Taras Lovska's surname. My apology to Father Taras, and to anyone who has been inconvenience.

Dear Hritzko,
Trouble-maker? Who, me? And the information on contacts in Transcarpathia came from this year's Svitlo Calendar [which has been described as "Svitlo kotre ne svitit" but in this instance it's probably accurate, or reasonably accurate).
What are you supposed to say when/if you get somebody on the phone? That's not for me to decide. If you care to call them in the first place you probably have some idea of what you wish to discuss.
It occurs to me that someone with the appropriate abilities and qualifications (I have neither) might want to organize a web-page for the Eparchy of Mukachevo (sort of tri-lingually: one in Ukrainian, one in Englsh, and one in . . . well . . . what several posters term "Rusyn". I have searched diligently, since languages interest me, but I have not succeeded in locating a dictionary of Transcarpathian Rusyn. Still, if there truly are people in Transcarpathia anxious to maintain that they are speaking a distinct language they could do a lot worse than to compile a dictionary, convince the Bible Society to publish the Bible in this idiom (how's that for a neutral term?), and codify some examples of literature written over the years in that particular vernacular. In fact, there's a possible topic for your phone conversation if you actually find yourself speaking with someone who is of that point of view.
Just for the record, I have met Bishop John Semedij, Bishop Joseph Holovach, and Bishop John Margitych, and had not the slightest difficulty communicating with them in standard Ukrainian. For that matter, I had no difficulty in communicating with anyone on Transcarpathia in standard Ukrainian. There wasn't so much as an upraised eyebrow. The only other language I remember hearing in Transcarpathia is standard Russian, spoken (in the Soviet days) by employess in the Hotel Zakarpattia and a very few public functionaries. No doubt if I had looked I could have found Hungarian speakers, Slovak speakers and Romanian speakers, but I wasn't looking (I don't speak any of those languages, so finding people who do would have done me little good).
By itself, that is not conclusive proof that the inhabitants of Transcarpathia are Ukrainians - one can easily find people whose first language is not the historic language of their own ethnic group (very few Cornish people speak Cornish; very few Manx people speak Manx, to offer only two examples). Still, it's not insignificant either.
Incognitus

Dear Hritzko,
If you're really going to telephone Transcarpathia (and I wish you all the luck in the world in getting a decent line), it truly would be well to plan your questions carefully and make sure that you ask the same questions of several different people. That way it will make some sense to compare the responses. I shall be waiting with bated breath for your report.
It's almost impossible, but if you can manage it it would be nice for your interlocutors to be unable to tell what side you're on - because otherwise many people will naturally be inclined to tell you what they think you want to hear.
If I may ask a personal favor - you and I seem to share a depraved sense of humor. Nevertheless, Theodore Romzha is a martyr and a saint, so please don't mangle his name. On the other hand, my thanks for that delicious phrase "shcool of hallelujah" - which I plan to use on any number of educational instituions with which I am familiar.
Incognitus

Father Deacon, this is certainly not the case in either the US or Canada. In my diaconal class in Stamford the vast majority were not of Ukrainian nor even Slavic descent, and all Americans. In fact, we only had one "native" Ukrainian speaker, who had emigrated as a child and has been in the US for over 50 years.

All of our services were in English (including All-night Vigil, Vespers, Compline, Hours, etc.) with the exception of maybe one or two Ukrainian DLs we celebrated together with some seminarians from Ukraine.

For those interested Rusyns are registered with the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization.

http://www.unpo.org/member.php?arg=44

Subdeacon Randolph,

I purposely refrained from mentioning the UGCC by name, because I am all too aware of non-Ukrainians serving the UGCC. I know Father Deacon Gary Boyce, who serves the Dormition of God parish in Phoenix, AZ and is not Ukrainian. Perhaps I should have posted, "...in his 'Church'" .