Primate of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) Patriarch Sviatoslav (Shevchuk) appealed to Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov and the first deputy of the Ministry for Regional Development and Building, head of the organizing committee for the celebration of the 1000th anniversary the St. Sophia Cathedral, Mykola Soroka, with a request to include in the anniversary celebration a Divine Liturgy with the participation of UGCC clergy and faithful.
The letter states that the bishops of the UGCC are concerned that the celebration of the 1000th anniversary will be “one-sided, in favor of one denomination.”
“Indeed, all traditional denominations that emerge from one root of our Kyivan Christian tradition have the same rights and obligations to take part in the planned festivities,” reads the letter.
In the appeal the primate also writes that for all the faithful of the UGCC, one of the four traditional Ukrainian churches – a successor of Volodymyr's baptism – this is a special celebration, as the St. Sophia Cathedral is the embodiment of the common Christian roots of the Ukrainian people, UNIAN reports.