Chaplains of the Knights of Columbus get together for the first time at the All-Ukrainian Congress
The first Congress of Chaplains of Knights of Columbus in Ukraine was held on October 9-10 in Bryukhovychi (Lviv). More than fifty priests of the Greek Catholic and Roman Catholic Churches attended the meeting. This was reported by the UGCC Department of Information on October 15.
There were also National Chaplains of the Knights of Columbus for the Faithful Greek Catholics in Ukraine - Bishop Mykhailo Bubnii, and National Chaplain of the Knights of Columbus for the Faithful Roman Catholics in Ukraine, Archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki. National delegate of the Knights of Columbus in Ukraine, Bohdan Kovaliv, welcomed the meeting, expressing his gratitude to the chaplains for their service, reporting on the Order's development in Ukraine and expressing their hopes for chaplains’ fruitful service in numerous communities throughout Ukraine.
The Congress was also attended by representatives from the Supreme Council of the Knights of Columbus, Shimon Chishek and Leszek Waxmund. Shimon Chishek said that the most important words in his life he heard from the priest. These were words concerning marriage, love, forgiveness, which is the task of every chaplain: “The world needs witnesses to the Gospel at our workplace, in our homes, and schools… We have a special mission in the Church - everyone who looks at our life should not disimprove but see Christ through us."
During his welcome address, Archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki thanked the Knights of Columbus for their charitable support of the Church and emphasized the importance of their service, facilitation of contact with the family, and assistance in teaching responsible parenthood. During the Holy Mass, the Metropolitan said: “Walking the path of faith, bears fruit in the priest’s spiritual life, allowing him to be fruitful in his pastoral work - great deeds are not done alone. Therefore, we must gather people for a common mission of salvation. "
Bishop Mikhailo Bubniy spoke about the essence of the chaplain and his role in the life of the community of the faithful. The Bishop provided guidelines on the basis of "Ten Steps to Chaplaincy" by Archbishop William Lori.
During these days, the Chaplains of both Churches co-ordinated the Liturgy in two rites led by their Bishops and jointly prayed the Rosary, which is a distinctive feature of the Knights of Columbus.
Reference: The Knights of Columbus is the world's largest male Catholic fraternal charitable organisation, a vanguard of active, practising laity and a powerful supporter of the Church in the modern world. It was founded in the last third of the 19th century to help Christian workers and their families in the United States in times of severe economic crisis. Today, the community includes approximately 2 million Catholic men across the globe, from the United States to Ukraine, and is involved in charitable, voluntary work at various levels.
