On February 19th, the Ukrainians of the greater Hartford area, in Connecticut, gathered to pay honor to His Beatitude Patriarch Josyf Slipyj’s eighty sixth birthday. Approximately two hundred people congregated in the auditorium of St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic School to attend the ceremonies.
The program commenced with an introductory speech by Very Reverand Stephan Balandiuk, the pastor of the local parish. Father Balandiuk touched briefly on the lack of affirmation of the Patriarchate by the Holy See, and the great sufferings of the Ukrainian people. Due to this fact, the Pastor, with the typical erudition, hailed Ukrainians to gather around the Church and Bishops in order to attain national unity and freedom. Afterwards, the President of the local chapter of the Society for the Patriarchal System, Bohdan Stelmach, introduced the principal speaker of the evening, Reverand Alexi Floridi, Ph.D. Author of several books on the subject of Soviet affairs, Reverand Floridi began his oration with references to the Sakharov Hearings, held in Rome in the autumn of 1977; on human rights violations in Eastern Europe. The Patriarch had been invited to these hearings as a witness, but was dubious as to whether he should attend. Finally, the Patriarch decided to attend the Hearings, as we know, without the Vatican’s permission. Greeted with a standing ovation, «the old soldier of Christ» testified to the violations of religious freedom to which his nation had been subjected over the years by the Communists. Reverand Floridi found significance in the concluding statement made by Patriarch Slipyj at the Hearings: «The violation of the divine truth and justice has to be repaired. To the men are to be returned their rights, and this should be supported by our prayers and protests.»
Throughout his oratory, Reverand Floridi made his audience aware of the fact that the freedom of the worship in the Ukraine is directly related to the free and independent Ukraine. This theme was underscored by Leonid Plushch, and by the Russian democratic dissident Mr. Alekseyeva.
Also, the failure of the «Ostpolitik» pursued by the Vatican proved to be not effective and counterproductive. This can be best exemplified by the «great achievement» that the Holy See scored in Czechoslovakia. For the price of recognizing present Czechoslovak boundaries and political status, the Vatican received in return formal recognition of the Archbishop of Prague. Lately, however, the Vatican has very cautiously expressed some uncertainties with regards to the effectiveness of the «Ostpolitik» by carefully criticizing the lack of religious freedom in «certain regions.»
Reverand Floridi called on the Ukrainians to support patriarchal institutions, especially the Ukrainian Catholic University and its enormous research, education, and publishing activities.
Proceeding Reverand Floridi’s speech, was a recital of «Blaxheny Muzh» by Mrs. Ola Yakymiw, written by Ewhen Zawadowych, followed by the singing of «Prayer for the Patriarch’’ by St. Michaeal’s Church Choir, under the direction of Alexander Pryshlak. Afterwards, the crowd was delighted by seven year old Kalyna Derech Maslovska, who reiterated a poem written especially for her, by Ewhen Zawadowych, which she had recited before the Patriarch last October in Rome. The festivities concluded with the singing of «Bohze Velyky».
Orest B. Stelmach
