Ecumenical "unity prayer service" of UGCC, Phanar, RCC and OCU held in Kyiv
The head of the UGCC and the exarch of the Phanar declared their desire for "our unity".
The Ecumenical "prayer of unity" was held at the Resurrection Cathedral in Kyiv (UGCC) on 20 January 2023, where representatives of the UGCC, the Phanar, the RCC, and the OCU participated, reports the press service of the UGCC.
"The unity prayer" was organised by the UGCC Сommission on Inter-Faith and Inter-Religious Relations.
The Ecumenical prayer was led by the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Sviatoslav Shevchuk. Apostolic Nuncio to Ukraine Visvaldas Kulbokas (RCC), Exarch of the Phanar in Kyiv Mykhailo Anishchenko, representatives of the OCU and Protestants also took part in it. In the course of the service, petitions were proclaimed "for the sincere desire for the unity of our people".
Sviatoslav Shevchuk stated that "the archdiocesan prayer expresses God's deepest desire for unity among the disciples”.
The Exarch of the Phanar stated that "all Christian jurisdictions are making efforts to bring this desired unity closer by all possible means". According to him, "one must bear witness to one's desire for unity. It is that unity for which the Lord Jesus Christ prayed”.
The prayer service ended with a prayer for Ukraine, "Great God, One".
As earlier reported, the head of the UGCC said that Ukraine would have a single Church of Catholics and Orthodox Christians.
