Enthronement rite served for Bishop Brian Baida of the UGCC, Eparch of Toronto and Eastern Canada

This is reported by UGCC Information Department.

Metropolitan Lavrenty Gutsulyak of Winnipeg and Metropolitan Borys Gudziak of Philadelphia of the UGCC performed the rite of enthronement.

Therefore, Bishop Brian Baida led the Episcopal Liturgy.

The head of the UGCC, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, sent a congratulatory letter on behalf of the Synod of Bishops of the UGCC, in which he noted that this event is a sign of God's blessing both for the Diocese of Toronto and for the entire Church.

"We welcome you as the ruling eparch of the Diocese of Toronto, as the successor of your predecessors, in particular, Isidore Boretsky, who was at the origins of this church structure, and the bishops who sacrificially worked on its development – Korneliy Pasechny and Stepan Khmilyar. Bishop Lavrenty Gutsulyak, who is the spiritual father of our Canadian archdiocese, will pray with you this festive time for your diocese. Cooperate with him to deepen the spiritual life in the archdiocese and develop it," the Primate's message of greetings reads.

The head of the UGCC also mentioned his great predecessor, Patriarch Iosyp Slipyi, who visited Canada three times after his release from exile in Siberia, as the head of the Church in the underground, and bequeathed a great future to this diocese to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church: "on this day we want to remember our glorious predecessor, Patriarch Joseph, who visited the Diocese of Toronto in the 70s-80s of the last century. According to the Patriarch, who served 18 years in Soviet camps, he was struck by the flourishing of the diocese and its great opportunities. He foresaw its spiritual uplift, which would give rise to numerous vocations to the priestly and monastic life."

In his speech, Bishop Brian Baida mentioned those who "are now experiencing martyrdom in Ukraine" and congratulated the newly arrived Ukrainian refugees. "I sincerely thank our newly arrived faithful from Ukraine, which is now at war. You inspire me and all of us to be brave in the face of those who do not respect human dignity. We continue to pray for you, for your families and for all those who donate their time during this war," Bishop Brian said.

As reported, on April 28 of this year, His Holiness Pope Francis, after blessing the decision of the Synod of Bishops of the UGCC, named Bishop Brian Baida, CHNI Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Diocese of Toronto and Eastern Canada.

Prior to that, starting from 2008, Bishop Brian served as bishop of the Diocese of Saskatoon.

Reference

His Eminence Brian Baida was born in Saskatoon, Canada, on August 21, 1961.

He entered the small seminary of the Redemptorist Fathers, and the novitiate was held in Novovomovok (Wisconsin, USA). He made his eternal vows on September 13, 1986.

He was ordained as a priest on May 30, 1987.

He received a bachelor's degree in philosophy from St. Michael's College in Toronto in 1982 and a master's degree in theology from the same institution in 1986. He received a Bachelor's degree in pedagogy in the University of Manitoba in 1991 and a Bachelor's degree in Oriental Sciences at the Sheptytsky Institute in Ottawa in 1998.

He served in various parishes and educational institutions of the Ukrainian Redemptorist Fathers in Canada, including the College of St. Volodymyr in Roblin, and the Redeemer's House in Toronto. In Winnipeg, there was a "House of Acceptance" that took care of poor and rejected people.

On May 2, 2008, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him bishop of Saskatoon, UGCC. Bishop Brian's episcopal consecration and enthronement took place on June 27, the same year.

Since November 9, 2019, he has also served as the Apostolic Administrator of the UGCC Diocese of Toronto.