On October 18, His Beatitude Sviatoslav solemnly handed over 30 volumes of the publishing series “Kyivan Christianity” to the Vatican Apostolic Library.
This event brought together representatives of the clergy and scholars from Ukraine and the Holy See in the center of the Catholic Church. Addressing Fr Mauro Mantovani, Prefect of the Library, and his staff, the Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church stressed that this collection could be viewed as a “baptismal certificate” of the Kyivan Church, which was born in the period of undivided Christianity. This was reported by the Information Department of the UGCC.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav emphasized that this solemn transfer of books “has its own symbolism and is a sign of God's providence: we are handing over this scientific heritage to you during the Synod convened by Pope Francis in the Vatican, as the Synod is a testimony to the integrity and unity of the Church, as it was in the period of the birth of Kyivan Christianity.”
Therefore, it is also symbolic that among the guests of this event was Metropolitan Job Getcha of Pisidia, who is participating in the Pontifical Synod as a “fraternal delegate” from the Patriarchate of Constantinople. “As this scientific work tells about the history of Kyivan Christianity, which includes both Orthodox and Catholic periods, it can be fully considered an ecumenical study. We have previously handed this collection to His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew,” said the Head of the UGCC.
Fr Mauro Mantovani emphasized that this collection is a great achievement for the Apostolic Library and opens up the opportunity for its visitors to get acquainted with an important page of the history of the Eastern Church.
At the end of the event, the delegations signed official certificates of transfer of 30 volumes of the Kyivan Christianity series to the Vatican Apostolic Library.