Permanent Council of Ukrainian Orthodox Bishops Beyond The Borders Of Ukraine
04.04.2007, [08:47] // Speech, greeting, press release //
Paschal Encyclical 2007
To the venerable clergy, monastics and all devout children of our Holy Church, entrusted to our care and to our Brothers and Sisters in Ukraine:
CHRIST IS RISEN! INDEED HE IS RISEN!
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice,
and let the whole world, both visible and invisible, keep festival:
For Christ is risen, our eternal joy. (Canon of Pascha)
Dearly beloved in Christ!
Today, on this joyous and saving Day of Christ’s Resurrection the entire world is rejoicing, beaming with the Divine Light. The world of Angels and the Heavenly Church “triumphant” are glorifying the Risen Lord and we - the children of the earthly Church “militant” are called upon to join them. We greet you all, our Brothers and Sisters, on this occasion of the Holy Pascha and proclaim to you “CHRIST IS RISEN!”
No other greeting can bring such radiant joy to a believer’s heart than these victorious words. They remind us of the fact that death has been conquered, that the graves holding our departed loved ones are only temporary and that the time will come when the dead will rise to live a new and eternal life.
This Paschal greeting also tells us that in the earthly life of mankind, any victory of falsehood and evil is only temporary and that in the eternal life goodness, truth and love will forever prevail.
Holy Pascha is for all of us the Feast of Feasts, and the Exultation of Exultations. We perceive this jubilation in our Paschal Services. During this hallowed night God’s special grace can be felt in our churches and our heartfelt prayer lifts closer to our Savior. The clouds of incense fill the temple, as if they were the wings of angels carrying that prayer directly to God’s throne. The joyous greeting of the clergy “Christ is Risen” is answered by the multitude of faithful with a thundering “Indeed, He is Risen!” The light of thousands of candles and the brilliantly white robes of the clergy remind us of the Divine world into which Christ our Savior is risen from the dead. Through His resurrection, our Lord opened the way of resurrection to a new life for each of us as well and He gave us back the right to be God’s children.
We greet you all on the occasion of this glorious Holy Day. Saint John the Theologian writes that the first words Christ the Savior said to his disciples after His Resurrection were “Peace be with you” (John 20:19). These words are of utmost importance to us, because today’s world is in dire need of peace. Saint John the Chrysostom says: “If we lose peace, we will become enemies to those who heard Christ say: ‘Peace be with you’”. Let us therefore preserve this peace and prayerfully beseech the Risen Christ to make it reign in our communities, in our families, and most importantly, in each of our souls.
During these joyful days, when the entire creation is rejoicing, let us thank the Lord in our prayers for having allowed us to witness these Holy Days and to participate in the Paschal services. Let us preserve this Paschal joy throughout the entire year. Let us unite spiritually, let us embrace one another, in order that the benevolent Lord may see love and unity among us and allow us to “glorify His sublime resurrection for ever and ever.”
CHRIST IS RISEN! INDEED HE IS RISEN!
+ Constantine – Metropolitan
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA and Diaspora
+ John – Metropolitan
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada
+ Antony – Archbishop
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA
+ Vsevolod – Archbishop
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA
+ Ioan – Archbishop
Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Diaspora –
Australia and New Zealand
+ Yurij – Archbishop
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada
+ Jeremiah – Bishop
Ukrainian Orthodox Eparchy of South America (UOC of USA)
+ Andriy – Bishop
Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Diaspora –
Great Britain and Western Europe
http://www.uocofusa.org/news/2007/Pascha%20Archpastoral%202007.pdf
http://www.risu.org.ua/eng/news/article;15039/