Ukrainian Catholic University opens a center in Poland
The founders of the UCU Foundation in Poland were Fr Rector of UCU Bohdan Prach, eparch of Wroclaw-Koszalin Bishop Volodymyr Yushchak and Rafal Dutkiewicz, a Polish politician and entrepreneur who served as president of the city of Wroclaw from 2002 to 2018. Both are honorary senators of the Ukrainian Catholic University and are well aware of its mission and activities.
"For us, establishing a center in Poland is a very important step. The Ukrainian Catholic university should be where Ukrainians need spiritual and intellectual support. Our task today is to convey God's truth to people, continue to serve them even where they found themselves due to the hard times of war, and help establish closer contacts with the Polish environment. Many Ukrainian and Polish volunteer and public organizations are already operating in Poland, so we are ready to cooperate. But we also hope that our presence there will help build new bridges of solidarity between the EU and Ukraine, " noted the rector of UCU, Fr Bogdan Prach.
According to Bishop Volodymyr Yushchak, more than 100 thousand Ukrainians lived in Wroclaw before the war. Now there are already more than 300 thousand of them. "Some of them will return to Ukraine. But some of them will probably remain. Therefore, the presence of UCU in Wroclaw will be of great importance to the Ukrainian community. Such an institution as the UCU is designed to form and preserve the Ukrainian community in Wroclaw and the region," His Eminence stressed.
The UCU Center in Wroclaw is planned to be located in the city center, next to the buildings of the Wroclaw Polytechnic and the University of Wroclaw, where Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky studied at one time. Nearby there is a street that is named after the Metropolitan's maternal grandfather, Oleksandr Fredr. The library, the Consulate General of Ukraine in Wroclaw, the Cathedral of the UGCC, as well as the bishop's residence are also located in the vicinity.
"It is symbolic to talk about a new Ukraine in the center of Wroclaw," Rafal Dutkiewicz said during the discussion on establishing a center for the UCU Senate meeting. He noted that among the tasks of the UCU Foundation in Poland are the development of science, building a community, supporting Ukraine and expanding contacts in Europe.
Oleg Turiy, UCU Vice-Rector for External Relations, who coordinates preparations for the opening of the center in Wroclaw, said when answering the question of why UCU decided to expand its activities: "We are urged and encouraged. We planned to open a center in Poland before the war, and a full-scale Russian invasion accelerated our plans. We are glad that there are many people in Poland who want UCU to be there for us, and we will do important things together."
Oleg Turiy also added that in the near future, we plan to open a UCU center in Kharkiv.
Father Rector Bohdan Prakh also noted that by expanding its activities in other cities and countries, UCU continues the tradition of its founder, patriarch Joseph Slipyi, who sought to create scientific and educational centers in those parts of the world where there are Ukrainian communities.
Currently, UCU branches operate in the UK (Ukrainian Institute in London), USA and Canada (Ukrainian Catholic University Foundation). In December 2016, the Kyivan center of the Ukrainian Catholic University was founded in the capital of Ukraine.
