With great joy and gratitude to God, we invite the faithful to attend the ordination of Subdeacon Christopher Chiu to the Holy Diaconate through the laying on of hands and the invocation of the Holy Spirit.
The ordination will be celebrated by the Most Reverend Michael Kwiatkowski, JCD, Bishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Eparchy of New Westminster.
📅 Sunday, May 17, 2026 ⏰ 11:00 AM 📍 Eastern Catholic Church Richmond 8700 Railway Avenue, Richmond, BC
This sacred moment in the life of the Church is a beautiful witness of faith, vocation, and service to God’s people. We invite clergy, parishioners, family, and friends to join in prayer for Subdeacon Christopher as he begins his ministry as a deacon in Christ’s Church.
A reception will follow the Divine Liturgy and ordination service.
Please keep Subdeacon Christopher in your prayers as he prepares for this important step in his vocation and ministry.
As we continue our Decade of Mission 2026 preparing for the Feast of Pentecost, today we reflect on Christ’s promise to send us the Holy Spirit — the Advocate, the Spirit of Truth.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks words of deep comfort to His disciples: “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever” (John 14:16).
The disciples were troubled and afraid as Jesus spoke about His coming Passion and departure. Yet Christ assured them that they would not be abandoned. He promised the gift of the Holy Spirit, who would strengthen, guide, and remain with them always.
Today’s reflection is offered by Fr. Mykhailo Postolyuk, who reminds us that the Holy Spirit is God’s answer to human fear, anxiety, and uncertainty.
The same transformation that took place in the apostles is needed today in our marriages, families, and communities. Fear has become a common burden of our time: fear of the future, fear for our children, fear caused by war, suffering, instability, and uncertainty. Yet where the Holy Spirit dwells, fear does not have the final word.
The Holy Spirit brings:
peace instead of panic,
courage instead of despair,
patience instead of anger,
and love instead of division.
In our family life, the Holy Spirit teaches us:
to forgive,
to truly listen,
to remain loving during conflicts,
and to preserve peace within our homes.
Bishop Michael Kwiatkowski continues to encourage all faithful of our Eparchy to open their hearts to the action of the Holy Spirit through daily prayer, reflection, and family unity during these Mission Days.
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Saturday, May 16 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever” John 14:10–21 Reflection by Fr. Mykhailo Postolyuk
📺 Please find today’s video reflection below: https://youtu.be/k4IWHYhOwb4 ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Missionary Tasks for Today:
Personal level: Name one of your fears to God today and ask Him to fill your heart with peace and trust.
Parish level: Help your parish become a place where people can overcome fear and open themselves to the Holy Spirit.
Mission level: Support someone experiencing fear or anxiety with a word of encouragement or prayer.
May the Holy Spirit enter our hearts and homes with His peace. May He strengthen every family burdened by fear or uncertainty. And may He guide us to live with courage, faith, and hope as witnesses of Christ.
As we continue our Decade of Mission 2026, today we reflect on Christ as the foundation of marriage and family life.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells His disciples: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
These words remind us that every Christian family is called not simply to live together, but to journey together toward God. In a world filled with confusion, division, and uncertainty, Christ remains the true path that leads families to peace, unity, and authentic happiness.
Today’s reflection is offered by Fr. Richard Soo, who invites us to rediscover Christ at the center of marriage and family life.
Bishop Michael Kwiatkowski continues to encourage all faithful of our Eparchy to: • pray together as families, • reflect daily on the Gospel, • support one another in faith, • and become witnesses of hope and truth in the world.
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Friday, May 15 “Christ – the Way, the Truth, and the Life of Marriage” John 14:1–11 Reflection by Fr. Richard Soo
Missionary Tasks for Today: 1. Personal level: Ask yourself today: what can I do to help my family move closer to God?
2. Parish level: Reflect on how you can help your parish become a more vibrant place of proclaiming truth and new life in Christ.
3. Missionary level: Help at least one family who has not yet found—or has lost—their path to God to rediscover it.
May Christ guide our families on the path of truth and life. May our homes become places of prayer, forgiveness, and love. And may the Holy Spirit strengthen every family suffering from fear, separation, or hardship.
Our Church begins the Decade of Mission 2026, a special time of prayer, reflection, and spiritual renewal leading us from the Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord to the Feast of Pentecost.
This year, the Decade of Mission is dedicated to the Ukrainian family, which continues to suffer deeply from the consequences of war, separation, pain, and uncertainty. Throughout these days, we will pray for the preservation and renewal of our families, so that our homes may become true “domestic churches,” filled with God’s peace and love.
This initiative has been especially blessed and encouraged by
Bishop Michael Kwiatkowski,
who invited all faithful of the Eparchy to unite in daily prayer and reflection during these Mission Days.
Bishop Michael especially encourages all faithful to:
• take part in this spiritual journey,
• gather together in family prayer,
• reflect on the Word of God,
• and share these materials with relatives, friends, and fellow parishioners.
Each day until Pentecost, a different priest of our Eparchy will guide us through a daily reflection, prayer service, or Moleben connected to the Gospel reading of the day.
We will also send daily messages and video reflections throughout the Decade of Mission.
📺 Please find today’s video reflection below:
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Thursday, May 14 — Feast of the Ascension
“Peace Be With You: Hope for the Ukrainian Family”
Luke 24:36–53
Reflection by Fr. Mykhailo Ozorovych
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May this Decade of Mission become a blessed time of healing, reconciliation, and renewal for our families, our parish, our Church, and Ukraine.
May the Holy Spirit renew our families, strengthen our faith, and fill our hearts with God’s peace.
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Thursday, May 14 (Feast of the Ascension)
“Peace Be With You: Hope for the Ukrainian Family” Luke 24:36–53 — Fr. Mykhailo Ozorovych
On this day of the Ascension of the Lord, the Gospel tells us how the risen Christ stands among His disciples and says to them: “Peace be with you!” This is not merely an ordinary greeting. In the biblical sense, peace (shalom) means fullness of life, reconciliation with God, and inner wholeness. At that moment, however, the disciples are filled with fear, confusion, and guilt after the Passion of Christ. Therefore, Jesus first seeks to embrace them with His peace.
It is important to note that Christ brings this peace with the wounds in His hands and feet. He does not hide the marks of His suffering after the Resurrection, although He could have appeared without them. The Lord keeps them as a sign that true peace is always connected with sacrifice. Thus, the peace Christ brings is not the absence of difficulties or pain, but the fruit of love that has passed through the Cross and proved stronger than death.
These words resonate deeply today, as in the fifth year of full-scale war the Ukrainian people bear the heavy burden of loss, pain, and uncertainty. These wounds have especially affected the Ukrainian family. Sadly, we are witnessing one of the highest divorce rates since Ukraine’s independence, and a demographic crisis of alarming proportions, with deaths nearly three times exceeding births. War not only takes lives—it exhausts relationships and destroys family bonds.
That is why the theme of the family is central in the life of our Church today. This was evident in last year’s Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Rome, whose main theme was “Pastoral Care of Families in Time of War.” Today, one of the most important tasks for both the Church and our nation is the preservation of the Ukrainian family. Our families, marked by many wounds, need the Church’s support more than ever to receive the peace with which Christ came to His disciples.
In time of war, it is especially important that our families are not left alone with their pain, crises, and fears. The Church is called to be present—to support, to listen, to heal, to help restore unity, and to teach that love which is not destroyed even in the midst of trials. For this reason, this year’s Decade of Mission is dedicated to family life. From today until the Feast of Pentecost, we will reflect day by day on passages from the Gospel of John in the light of married and family life. Together we will seek answers to important questions: how to preserve love in times of trial, how to learn unity, forgiveness, sacrifice, and mutual support, and how to build a family centered on God.
May this time become an opportunity not only for deeper reflection, but also for the renewal of our family relationships, shared prayer, and the rediscovery of God’s beautiful plan for marriage and family. For it is through strong, loving, and faithful families that the Lord will build a bright future for the Church and for Ukraine.
Missionary Tasks:
1. Personal level: Commit during the Decade of Mission to attend the principal services of your parish in order to properly prepare for the Feast of Pentecost.
2. Parish level: Propose to your parish priest a concrete form of support for families: a common prayer gathering or a small support group for couples experiencing difficulties.3. Missionary level: This week, take a concrete step toward a family or person experiencing crisis or who
Ukrainian Catholic Church Українська Греко-Католицька Церква
Prot. 2026/ENW/073
PASTORAL APPEAL of the Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of New Westminster to the Faithful on the Occasion of Mission Days 2026
Christ is Risen!
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Each year, our Church faithfully embraces the beautiful tradition of Mission Days (Декада місійності), a special period of prayer, reflection, and renewed evangelical zeal AND ACTION in all our parishes throughout the world.
This year, Mission days 2026, which begins on the Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord (Thursday May 14, which coincides with Canada’s annual March for Life this year!) and concludes on the Feast of the Descent of the Holy Spirit (May 24), is dedicated in a particular way to the family.
As we enter the fifth year of the full-scale war in Ukraine, we cannot ignore the deep wounds inflicted upon families - separation, loss, uncertainty, and suffering. In this context, our Church invites us to turn our hearts toward God with renewed trust and hope. The central prayer intention of these ten days is the preservation and renewal of our families, so that our homes - sometimes marked by pain (as in Ukraine) or other challenges - may once again become places of peace, healing where the faith is lived as true domestic churches that radiate hope into the world.
During these ten days, we are encouraged to reflect daily on passages from the Gospel of John, as seen through the lens of married and family life, and to respond through concrete missionary actions on a personal, parish, and broader community level.
This year, I am especially grateful to the priests of our Eparchy, who have generously undertaken a unique common initiative. In addition to the celebrations and reflections in your local parishes, each day from the Feast of the Ascension to Pentecost, one of our priests will offer a pre-recorded Moleben or some other prayer service, together with a reading of the prescribed Gospel passage and a brief reflection.
These daily spiritual offerings will be made available on the official Facebook page of our Eparchy, making it possible not only for our faithful locally, but also for those beyond our Eparchy, to unite with us in prayer and preparation for the coming of the Holy Spirit.
I warmly invite each of you to:
take part in this spiritual journey,
gather with your families in prayer,
reflect on the Word of God,
and share this initiative with your relatives, friends, and fellow parishioners.
Let us make Mission Days a time of grace - when our families are strengthened, our faith renewed, and our hearts opened more fully to the presence of God. Let this period especially serve as a reminder and encouragement for us to fulfil our divine calling to share our faith with those around us and to transform the society around us into one that reflects Christ’s Gospel teaching without compromise!
May the Risen Christ bless your homes with peace, and may the Holy Spirit descend abundantly upon our families, our Church, and our world.
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