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Dear Alex,
I appreciate what you say, my only comments to that would be that the United States went through that heavy immigration about 100 years ago and you can see the results today. I should remind you that my opinion is skewed by my personal observation and I do not have any hard data to back it up.

As I understand it, (I could be wrong about this) most Greek-Americans do not attend their churches and the churches have been the focal point of Greek culture, along with the Greek schools.

My conversations with various Ukrainians I have met tell me that the tendency is for the Ukrainians to quit the church too, or attend so seldom that they don't bother to register. I have observed this among my own friends. One of whom married a Mexican-American and attended the Roman church.

And many or the modern Ukrainian immigrants are so secularized that they have little interest in joining the local parish. This I have from a very recent conversation with a Ukrainian priest, he attributed this to the communist era.

In my own family, my fathers parents came from eastern Europe (Galicia) and were dead-set against their children marrying outside the Polish nation. Of eight children six lived to adulthood and not one married into the Polish ethnic group, NOT ONE! My mother is Louisiana French and Mississippi WASP and how they ever got together I'll never know.

My mothers brother-in-law was Mexican-American. In his family not one of the brothers or sisters married another Mexican-American. That is the way it can be here.

I don't feel a preference for any ethnic group, I love them all. And I do not think I am unusual in that regard. How many Ukrainian families do you think are following the same path? I wonder if the statistics are available in some form?

How many people of Ukrainian descent live in Canada? How many people of Ukrainian descent attend the Ukrainian churches? What about in the USA?

I cannot answer these questions, I would have to guess.

Your friend in Christ,
Michael

Dear Michael,

Well, our churches in Toronto are truly filled to the brim with all kinds of Ukies, including immigrant ones.

It could be that it is because the Church is the strongest institution here.

There are so many Ukies of the so-called "Fourth Immigration" that they are affecting parish and cultural life in our community for the good - and sometimes for the bad.

My in-laws' parish also has a number of Orthodox Ukie immigrants who appear not to pay too much attention to the differences between Catholics and Orthodox - some send their children to "St Josaphat's" school . . .

But our parishes have Ukrainian Catholic married priests of Chinese background, a couple who is Filipino, Belarusians and others.

As Shakespeare said, "Rome and roome enough!"

Alex

May Almighty God continue to bless the Ukrainian churches with vocations and strength of purpose!

And may the Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God have mercy on us.

Michael, the sinner

Dear Michael,

Well, I think we have so many married priests "over there" because it is a great profession to be in, for one thing.

But even the best professions can have system overload.

In addition, we have all sorts of religious Orders springing up and one bishop commented to me that the UGCC has never had so many priests and religious in its history.

If you guys in the Ruthenian Church want some Carpathian married priests, that can be arranged!

Alex

Wow!!!

Alex, is that really, really true!! " ... all sorts of religious orders.... so many priests and religious...."

Glory to God!! That's wonderful!! Where is that clapping hands "happy face" when I need it?

Is there a master list so men and women may write to them? Or these Religious Orders? Or traditional monastics? Or some sort of combination?

Thank you for sharing the good news! Thank you in advance for any additional information/details/links or whatever the Holy Spirit inspires you to share!

:p :p :p

Dear MB,

The Basilian Press has their Almanac that gives a comprehensive listing of all these Orders - I myself can't believe how many there are and how many priests etc.

Some of them are very Eastern and dress like Orthodox monks and nuns. Others dress like the Latin Orders.

Vocations are truly EXPLODING over there and a number of these are coming over here and, truth be told, are finding a cold shoulder from a number of parishes.

One priest I heard of just this last Sunday who is from there is going around asking people for help as no one wants to accept him.

I can't figure that out . . .

Alex

Basilian Press? Is that Ukranian?

The only addresses I have are, of course, Ruthenian and OCA.

WHere do I find Basilian Press?

Thank you, Thank you.

Dear MB,

Here is their URL:

http://www.pathcom.com/~baspress

They seem to be under construction though . . .

You might try the UGCC site in Lviv as well!

Alex

To OC:
I sent you a private message on this topic.

Dear MB,

Got it!

Do you think I'm condescending?

Alex

To OC--
No. (and thank you)

I love your enthusiasm for the explosion of the number of people consecrating their lives to God although most of it appears to be in Eastern Europe.

I think we in North America will soon have more vocations, too. We will have more priests and more monastics. The Holy Father has asked for the Eastern Catholic Churches to restore their traditions. It has begun.

Maybe we just need to make it clear that it is a very good thing to give God 24/7 of our lives.

I recall a number of months ago a similar Forum discussion about many nuns in Eastern Europe and someone asked, in effect, WHY, and another wise person pointed out, "...it is the apostolic zeal of a persecuted Church..." They couldn't practice their faith publicly but they sure practiced it privately. Perhaps in North America there are many beginning monastics, but we have to almost go "underground" because our churches are still so latinized, etc....

It's all part of God's mysterious ways -- His wonders to perform.

Dear MB,

Your point about the zeal of a persecuted Church is important.

One writer once commented on the difference between the early persecuted Church and the Church after Constantine.

"The same bishop who lost a finger in the Cause of Christ during the persecutions later dedicated the rest of himself to the cause of the state . . ."

Alex

It's funny - I have a co-worker hails from Russian and lived in a couple other cities where he attended the traditional Russian Orthodox churches he grew up with. He'd been attending the local OCA church and opined that some things seemed "strange" to him there, although he couldn't really put his finger on what. He did mention that the church art seemed a little different from what he was used to and he wasn't used to seeing ladies attired quite as they were (no babushkas and some wearing trousers). Anyway, he assumed he was attending a Russian church, because there were Russians there-not realizing that our city has more than one Orthodox church - and in fact, there is a very old school, traditional Russian church in the vicinity. I was amused, though, they he could not at first comprehend the concept of an American Orthodox church. Now that he knows what it is, he thinks it's pretty cool.

A wonderful story! May our goal be that every American comprehend the concept of an American Orthodox Church and of an American Byzantine Catholic Church and join us in worship.

Dear Administrator and Annie,

And let me, as a Ukrainian Catholic, be the first to congratulate you on establishing your own American Church!

If I ever come across a Ukie up here that would like to join an English-only church, I'll be sure to send him or her your way!

But I would do a lot of active outreach for members, if I were you . . .

Best wishes and let us all know how you are coming along!

Alex