PERTH AMBOY, N.J. –– Archbishop Borys Gudziak, Metropolitan Archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, was the main celebrant at a moleben — a prayer service of petitions, praises and hymns to the Mother of God — with Byzantine and Latin-Rite Catholics on May 27. Concelebrating with him were Father Ivan Turyk, pastor of the Ukrainian Catholic Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary where it was held, and Father Orest Kunderevych, pastor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in New Brunswick, New Jersey. 

This beautiful liturgical tradition of the Ukrainian Catholic Church originated at the beginning of the 20th century in Western Ukraine. It became a beloved church function in honor of the Theotokos, the God-bearer. It is used at the parish every Tuesday during May, the special month dedicated to Jesus’ mother. It was prayed in English, Ukrainian and Spanish, and a cappella hymns were sung.

Father Ivan chanted the Gospel according to Luke (1:39-49, 56), which recounts the visitation of Mary to her cousin, Elizabeth. 

Archbishop Gudziak then said, “Christ is risen!” to which the congregation replied, “He is truly risen!”

In his homily, he said it was a joy to celebrate the service and feel the Blessed Mother’s protection and guidance during May. “Mary walks with us. Mary, in an unexpected way, becomes the Mother of God. She accompanies her Son during the whole journey,” he said. 

He spoke of Pope Francis’ compassion and devotion to the Mother of God and how he visited St. Mary Major in Rome before each pilgrimage. “The patronage of Mary led Pope Francis to complete his journey and the cardinals to choose his successor,” he added. 

The archbishop spoke about the 25 wars raging in the world today.

“One of the worst wars in Europe since World War II is the Russian invasion of Ukraine, where countless people have been killed. Last night, I spent the evening with veterans who have amputated legs, torn-out eyes and perforated eardrums. There are tens of thousands of people bleeding like that because of a struggle for power.”

He contrasted the rancorous and expensive U.S. election with the election of Pope Leo XIV, where the cardinals were able “to peacefully pass responsibility from one Bishop of Rome to another.” They were not on a quest for power because “the conclave was a convocation of prayer. Cardinals prayed. Mary was there. Many Rosaries were said by Catholics” as they waited for the billows of white smoke announcing that a new Holy Father had been chosen.

Archbishop Gudziak was present during this momentous occasion. “The new Holy Father surprised the whole world by being an American. His first words were those of peace,” he said, noting that his words echoed a Resurrection proclamation of Easter joy, truth and justice.

He congratulated the Sister Servants of the Lord and Virgin of Matara who were present: “Dear sisters here who are all named Mary; two of you celebrated your final vows. We embrace you with our prayers.”

He said that 64 years ago, his parents were childless after nine years of marriage. Adoption proceedings began because the physician said that his mother couldn’t have a baby. 

But unexpectedly, his mother got pregnant. Because she was 34 years old, which was considered at that time a late age for a first child, there was concern about birth defects. At a moleben like this, also during the month of May, she made a vow to the Lord through the intercession of Mary that if her child were healthy and a boy, she would try to raise him to be a priest. The archbishop only learned of this promise at age 42 — when his mother mentioned it in an interview, and he read it in the newspaper. 

“What a revelation it was,” he said, and added that in the 1970s, even if you went to Catholic schools, few of your friends became priests or nuns. “I attended a Christian Brothers Academy with 600 boys. In my parish, nobody was considering religious life when I started talking about it. This was not encouraged by my parents’ generation. The socio-economic circumstances favored a career in medicine, law or engineering. My mother never said anything, but she supported what was in my heart.”

He believes that it was a mother’s prayer at a moleben like this that nurtured the seed of his vocation. “Dear ladies, mothers, and grandmothers, know that your prayer is very powerful. If you ask what God wants, you just might get it. Open your hearts to Mary and ask her to send graces and blessings to both you and your children.”

This led the archbishop to know “that my life has been guided by the Mother of God. She led me to the priesthood, and I am always moved by these prayer services.”

He also noted that his mother raised her family to respect the commandments and catechism, to pray as a family on their knees each morning and evening, say the blessing before meals, and attend church on Sundays and every feast day. 

“May the protection of the Mother of God be over you, and may the deep spiritual yearnings of your heart be granted by the blessing of God through the intercession of his mother,” he concluded.

After the moleben, Archbishop Gudziak sat down to discuss issues in the Church. 

He said that Pope Leo XIV “is a kind, thoughtful man, a person of prayer, with incredible global experience. He served as the head of the Augustinian Fathers. He is a ‘servant of the servants of God.’ And I think the Lord, the conclave, and the Mother of God, who covered him with her mantle, gave us a very promising Bishop of Rome.”

“Ukrainians are very happy with the election of Pope Leo. On the first Sunday of the Regina Coeli, he expressed that his heart is with the suffering people of Ukraine. He insisted on a just and lasting peace and the release of all the prisoners of war and the more than 19,000 criminally abducted children. He met with the head of our Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, and also with President Volodymyr Zelensky. They both invited him to visit Ukraine,” he said.

“I was present at the Jubilee of Eastern Catholics when the Holy Father urged us to ‘remain strong in your traditions,’” he continued. “Besides the Roman Rite, there are 23 that show a variety of encounters with God, because Church traditions are expressions of people who love the Lord.

“There is richness in this,” said Archbishop Gudziak. “Life in Christ is a big bouquet, and that’s what Pope Leo emphasized.”

 Those who would like to contribute to humanitarian assistance for the suffering people of Ukraine can make donations on the Archeparchy of Philadelphia Ukrainian Catholic Church’s website at https://ukrcatholic.org.