Metropolitan Antony Marks the 13th Anniversary of His Enthronement as Metropolitan of the UOC of the USA
"For thirteen years, the Lord has entrusted you with the sacred responsibility of shepherding His flock in this land, calling you to the high and demanding ministry of primatial service. Through humility, steadfast faith, and unwavering commitment to Holy Tradition, you have guided the Church with wisdom and pastoral sensitivity, preserving unity, strengthening ecclesial life, and bearing witness to the Gospel of Christ in word and deed.
Under your archpastoral leadership, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA and Diaspora has remained firmly rooted in the canonical order of the Orthodox Church, faithful to the spiritual heritage received from our forebears, and attentive to the pastoral needs of clergy, parishes, families, youth, and seminarians. Your devotion to prayer, your love for the Divine Liturgy, and your fatherly care for those entrusted to you have been a source of encouragement and stability in times of both joy and trial.
In recent years, marked by suffering and upheaval in our ancestral homeland, your voice has been one of compassion, truth, and hope. Through prayer, pastoral advocacy, and charitable action, you have reminded the faithful that the Church is called to stand alongside the suffering, bearing the light of Christ and proclaiming the hope of the Resurrection even amid darkness.
On this anniversary, the Council of the Metropolia, the Consistory, and the clergy give thanks to God for your faithful service and pray that the Lord will continue to grant you strength of body, clarity of mind, peace of heart, and wisdom from above, so that you may continue to shepherd the Church “in the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3).
May the Most Holy Birth-Giver of God, the Protectress of our Church, cover you with her honorable veil. May the holy hierarchs and confessors of our Church intercede for you. And may the Lord grant you many blessed years to guide His people in faith, hope, and love", wrote Archbishop Daniel on behalf of the Council of the Metropolia, the Consistory, and the clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA.
