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Christ is risen!

Dear brethren, after i posted a long post to another list about Eastern Christianity and the good work of Patriarch LUBOMYR, someone sent me an offline message that the UGCC seminary in L'viv has ceased receiving married men as candidates for the priesthood. Does anyone on this forum know anything about this?

Wishing everyone the best,
Woody

That is absolutely not correct. There may be some stipultation about living in the same dorm with the wife and children and celibate candidates, but they are still definitely accepted.

With all due respect to my subdiaconal brother, I'm not so sure his
categorical denunication is correct. I have heard from two separate
sources, both in Ukraine within the past year, that this is indeed the
case, or is soon to become the case. It's not that they are moving to
stop ordaining married men, but that they want seminarians to be
unmarried men at the time of their seminary studies, marrying after
their studies are done (and, perforce, before their ordination). I'm told
this is so because trying to accommodate married seminarians was proving
to create numerous problems and greater expenses.

The person to contact on this for a definitive answer would be Fr. Ken
Nowakowsky, the rector of Holy Spirit Ukrainian Catholic Seminary here in
Ottawa, since, I was told, he had a hand in all this when he was in Ukraine two
years ago.

After working for a public university, and dealing with the problems faced by married students there, I can see that this would be a problem. An apartment that can hold one married family, can also hold four unmarried students.

I am curious, if you were to reach the end of your studies, and didn't feel called to be celebate, but were still unmarried--where would you stand? Can you delay your ordination? I've heard of this occuring with one of the Orthodox Churches in the US (I'm sorry, I don't recall which one).

Neil

I'll ask the Patriarch next Wednesday and get the skinny. It was my understanding that the seminary would not house the married men but would accept them with the condition that they had to live off-campus in apartments with their families and were on their own with living expenses.

Yes, Neil, any candidate can request a delay of ordination if there are some personal questions regarding ordination. But after ordination to the diaconate, the marital status is in effect permanent, i.e. the celibate must stay celibate or if married, and the spouse dies, the deacon or priest cannot remarry.

And please give him the best wishes from, I am sure, all of us, for many years!

Psst...+LUBOMYR for Pope!