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I should be a member of the Ukrainian Catholic church. Both my parents were, but I was raised outside of the church.

Eventually, I found my way to Christ through the Latin Church in 2004. I was 22, and so I am a member of the Latin church.

When I moved back north, I began attending our local Ukrainian church and fell in love. For awhile, we even had the Divine Liturgy weekly and I should have applied for a canonical switch.

Then COVID happened, and our priest was forced to retire. He died this week, so please pray for him - tomorrow I will be going for his Panakhyda.

A priest from a few hours away took over our parish, but he hasn't been here since December. I watch the Divine Liturgy on Facebook, and attend the local Latin church again but it feels so foreign now.

My heart and soul belongs to the East, but I guess it is too late. I tell myself it doesn't matter where I legally belong, because I know who I am.

But it is so hard.

I would convert to Orthodoxy if there was an Orthodox church anywhere near me.

I mostly feel lost now, and don't know what to do.

Veronica, welcome to the Forum. We are three hours from the nearest parish, so we can kind of relate. We do have Divine Liturgy once or twice a month, although none in February. We basically pray the other services of the Church (Vespers, Matins, the Hours, Paraklesis, etc). There is an excellent resource from Eastern Christian Publications called Byzantine Daily Office, which has the Hours and Vespers for everyday in a format that you don't have to know how to put the services together. Other than that, is the local parish doing anything as a community?

The parish scattered when we lost Msgr, although we keep in touch. I just got back from Panakhyda, and we happily had all but two members of our 9 person community present.

Our church is going to run out of money soon, and close.

Still, I just suggested offering the other services to keep our traditions alive a little longer. The Byzantine Daily Office looks like a great resource, thanks!

Veronica, if both of your parents are/were both canonically members of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, you are already ascribed to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, even if you were baptized or completed the Sacraments of Initiation in the Latin Church.

Thank you, Deacon John.

That is incredible news. I always thought that, because I was baptized as an adult, I was a member of the Latin church.

Greek or Roman - still Catholic...

Veronica, if as an adult you were asked about the Church of your parents (at least of a Catholic father) and if you specifically stated you wanted to be ascribed/enrolled in the Latin Church, then you would be ascribed to the Latin Church. Do you recall?

I was never asked about the Church of my parents. At the time, I didn't realize there were different ritual churches. I thought Ukrainian Catholic was the same as the French Catholic church we have here - just an ethnic thing.

I shall post Msgnr. Chayka's obituary forthwith in the Church News section.

In the meantime, here is a link to an article that Msgnr. Chayka wrote (in Ukrainian) on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Kirkland lake church:
75th anniversary of Ukr Cath church in Kirkland Lake, ON [a.mx.canadianfriendsofukraine.com]


Also, about 10 years ago, a film was made that featured Msgnr. Chayka (as well as woman of Russian descent who also lived up north).
Entitled " Le Cosaque et la gitane ", it portrays them as rather exotic, which I suppose they are to modern French Canadians.
The Cossack and the Gypsy film [f3m.ca]

I believe that Msgnr. Chayka is standing near the front-end loader in the poster:

What great information! Thank you for sharing.

Did you know Msgr?

Although our paths crossed a few times, I can't say that I knew him.
He served my current parish (Holy Ghost) for a while (I remember him attending an anniversary luncheon), but that was before my time.
I did know the late otets Hajmanovich (sp?), a contemporary who, I believe, attended seminary together with Mnsgr.
Chayka, especially the path he chose for himself, was unusual and thus remarkable.

That must have been while Mnsgr. Chayka was working on his PhD.

We used to have lunches every week after Divine Liturgy, and of course had him to dinner when he came to bless the house for Theophany. We had many wonderful conversations about his life, and his frequent promises to find me a nice seminarian to marry!

He was a remarkable man and dedicated priest, and I consider it an honour to have known him.

It is nice to "meet" someone else who has encountered him, albeit in passing.

Nice to meet you as well.

I've a few questions for you, if you don't mind...

Have you seen the "Le cossack et la gitane"?
If so, there's a mention of a (then) new priest who had settled somewhere around Kirkland Lake (if my memory serves).
While I was left confused as to this priest's role, it seemed that perhaps he was to assist Mnsgr Chayka.
Is he the one who served the panakhyda? If not, who did (a Timmins priest, perhaps)?

Lastly, did Mnsgr Chayka ever mention the film?
if so, what was his opinion of it?

I haven't seen "Le cossack et la gitane," and Mnsgr never mentioned it as far as I can recall. He tended to be quiet about things like that.

There's no Ukrainian priest in Timmins. The nearest is in Sudbury. Once St. Vladimir's closes, that will be it for Ukrainian Catholicism in Ontario's Northeast. Our Bishop Administrator, Brian Bayda came to serve the Panakhyda.

A priest did briefly settle here. He did assist Mnsgr Chayka for the better part of the year, but I believe Father Theophan is back in Ukraine now.

Thanks for the replies.
Sad to see the end of an era.
New immigrants are on the way, but they will end up in other places...