Members of the Eparchy of New Westminster participated in truly timely and important webinar on “Canadian Churches and the War in Ukraine: Ministry in the Canadian Context Since the Full-scale Invasion”. The online meeting, conducted via Zoom, gathered a vast number of people from across Canada to discuss their experiences in welcoming newcomers from Europe over the last four years since Russia began its brutal invasion of Ukraine. Canada was one of the countries to immediately offer a place to stay to Ukrainian families who wanted desperately to escape the death and destruction of war. In fact, Canada was very generous in offering documentation, material assistance to the temporarily displaced Ukrainians so they could find a place to live, work and receive the care they needed. This displacement has dragged on. In a few days, this war may enter its fifth year!
However, besides great governmental programs, the people from Ukraine also needed hands-on help by volunteers who would guide them in finding work, an apartment where to stay, furniture, how to find medical help and enrol their children in school, etc. Ukrainian organizations like the Ukrainian Canadian Congress really stepped up in all provinces. Faith communities – leading among them the Ukrainian Catholic and Orthodox Churches – also immediately mobilized themselves to offer charitable help and accompaniment in these early months and even to the present day.
The main speakers at the webinar were four panelists – four priests who in various ways were in the thick of the effort to help the “refugees” when they began arriving by the hundreds and then thousands. The panelists included: Fr. Cornell Zubritsky (Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Edmonton); Fr. Andre Lalach (of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Saskatoon); Fr. Volodymyr Bashutskyy (Archeparchy of Winnipeg) and the Eparchy of New Westminster’s Fr. Mykhailo Ozorovych. Each of the speakers shared about the experiences that they personally had in receiving newcomers. [BTW, the term and status appropriate to the newcomers from Ukraine was clarified early on in the discussion. They are not acknowledged as “refugees” actually, but rather “evacuees” or “temporarily displaced” persons.] They shared about the challenges, but also the joys and blessings. The challenges, as one would expect, included finding resources, initial language barriers, helping people adapt to a new cultural and social reality. The blessings, on the other hand, were often connected with those challenges as members of parishes stepped up to help, mentor and accept changes to their communities to accommodate the new people who needed, above all. understanding and help.
The seminar was hosted by Newman Theological College in Edmonton as part of their ongoing launch of the new programming in Eastern Christian Theology. Deacon Cyril Kennedy, an assistant professor at the College, moderated the online gathering and kept it moving along to allow the speakers to share their thoughts, engage each other for clarification and then give ample opportunity to the all the participants to ask questions and comment.
More similar webinars were promised for the near future. The public will certainly look forward to the announcements.
