Third "Generations of Faith" Program
Held at St. Vladimir's
on Long Island
November 13, 2011
"A place of tranquilityÛ in the presence of God" was the theme
of the third Generations of Faith Program (GOF) conducted at St. Vladimir's
Ukrainian Catholic Church in Hempstead, NY on Sunday, November 13, 2011. The
inaugural
GOF was conducted in November of 2010, and a second program in the series took
place in March of 2011.
Organized by Dr. Cathy Szul, President of the Rosary Altar Society, the third
bilingual program focused on how the liturgical services for the dead are actually
a most profound direction about "learning to live" by God's commandments
and statutes in hopes of eventually being in Godês presence for the rest of
eternity. Two of the featured speakers spoke in Ukrainian, and two in English.
Almost forty parishioners and guests of all ages attended the event.
Dr. Szul began the program by singing excerpts from the Parastas and
Panakhyda to demonstrate how they consistently refer to our aspirations
of entering into
Godês
presence by living His "statutes, laws and precepts" in our daily
lives.
"When and why do we pray for the deceased" was the topic of a presentation
by Parish Choir Director Maria Olynec. She described some relevant Ukrainian
cultural-religious customs, such as that of setting an extra place at the table
on Christmas Eve in honor and memory of our departed. In addition, she pointed
out the various times that we pray for the dead during the Divine Liturgy. |
Ola Bodnar, Maria Olynec, Dr. Cathy Szul, Ola Pyszczymuka |
Parishioner Ola Bodnar, who arrived from Ternopil, Ukraine several years ago and prepared her presentation with the help of Ola Mendryk, also a recent arrivee from Ukraine, spoke about our need to reconcile with God as sinners who have strayed from Him. She presented questions based on the Ten Commandments that are useful in examining our consciences before receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession), and emphasized the unique importance of Confession as a means of reconciling with God.
The fourth speaker, Ola Pyszczymuka, a member of the Parish Pastoral Council, examined several virtues vis-ö-vis their opposing vices. She gave special attention to the need for taking great care in our everyday speech to ensure that what we say is not hurtful to others, but rather healing and nurturing. She also emphasized the virtue of being joyful as a means of expressing gratitude for Godês blessings and as a way to lift the spirits of others.
After leading a spirited question and answer session about purgatory, hades, hell and the fates of various unbaptized persons and pagans, Dr. Szul closed the program by illustrating how the Beatitudes, precepts for life that were given to us by Jesus Himself in the Sermon on the Mount, offer a unique guiding light for helping us to be as close as possible to God while still on earth.
Lunch was then served by members of the Rosary Altar Society. In addition to the Rosarians, many other parishioners contributed to the exceptional success of this program. Translations of the multi-page bilingual handouts were made by violinist Inessa T. Dekajlo. Parish Center Director Stepan Kunitsky and his wife, Ukrainian School Principal Slava Kunitska, assisted with copying the instructional materials, setting up of the sound system, and offering a great deal of moral support. To commemorate the event, photos were taken by Peter Zapryluk and Andrij Szul.
Following the program, parishioners commented that they appreciated the opportunity
during this pre-Advent program to reflect as a community on topics based on
core scriptural and liturgical practices. A number also observed that opportunity
for this type of "intimate
group interaction" is an essential dynamic often missing in our busy parochial
and family lives today. (AVRS)
