The ceremony of inauguration of the Ukrainian Catholic University of Pope St. Clement I, based at the Lviv Theological Academy (LTA), took place in Lviv on 29 June 2002. Representatives of various churches and educational institutions took part. The inauguration itself was preceded by a number of talks and other activities held the week before.
The activities dedicated to the opening of the first Catholic university in Ukraine started in the building of the LTA on 25 June 2002. On that day, Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), appointed Father Borys Gudziak, Ph.D., rector of the UCU and announced the members of the senate of the UCU. Instructors, students and guests of the LTA/UCU had a chance to participate in a number of activities, liturgies and also plenary sessions. Some of the themes presented were “Humanities,” “The Mission of the University in the New Century,” “Theology,” “the Identity of Theological Study in the UCU,” “The UCU in the System of Higher Education,” “The UCU in the Context of Europe,” “History and Traditions of the UCU in Rome,” and “Students and the Mission of the UCU.”
On 29 June 2002, Cardinal Husar, metropolitans and bishops of the UGCC, Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, rectors and professors of Ukrainian and Polish higher educational institutions, senators, and instructors and students of the UCU participated in the inauguration ceremony in Lviv “From its very birth, the UCU unites people who seek truth, value beauty and cherish love… Today, when we are bringing to life another university, the natural question of how it differs from all the others arises. Just as with other universities, the UCU is called to seek eternal values. But, in addition, it should help us to look on the world with Christian eyes. This is the specific task of the UCU… I hope that the UCU will lay the solid groundwork for a better future for our Church and our people,” said Cardinal Husar in his greeting.
Archbishop Nikola Eterovic, apostolic nuncio in Ukraine, greeted the episcopate of the UGCC and the administration of the UCU on behalf of His Holiness Pope John Paul II and Archbishop Angelo Sodano, Secretary of State for the Vatican.
Archbishop Vsevolod Maidanskyi greeted the assembly in the name of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. He emphasized that the LTA had always propagated ideas of cooperation between Christians of different confessions and expressed his hope that the UCU would preserve that tradition.
The administrations and student bodies of the National University of the Kievan-Mohyla Academy, Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv, Ivan Franko National University in Lviv, Catholic University in Lublin, Poland, and representatives of city and regional authorities sent their greetings to the UCU.
Father Borys Gudziak thanked everyone for their participation in the historic event of inauguration, during which the hopes of noted metropolitans of the UGCC and whole generations of activists of the church and the Ukrainian nation came true.
The UCU has become the 107th institution among registered universities of Ukraine.
Source: Press service of the LTA