On the occasion of 125th birthday anniversary of Patriarch Josyf Slipyj, Lviv Polytechnic National University held a meeting with Archbishop Borys Gudzyak, Eparch of St. Volodymyr the Great Eparchy in Paris for Ukrainians of Byzantine rite in France, Benelux countries and Switzerland, President of Ukrainian Catholic University, a famous public figure and leading scientist in the field of Church History.
The meeting entitled «Dialogues with Borys Gudzyak» was organized and held by the International Institute of Education, Culture and Diaspora Relations and Prosvita People’s House of Lviv Polytechnic. Iryna Klyuchkovska, Director of the IIEC, made the opening speech. She said that, although Archbishop is currently living abroad, he continues his work for the sake of Ukraine by integrating our historical, Christian, national values into European environment.
Professor Yuriy Bobalo, Lviv Polytechnic Rector, greeted our guest warmly. He stressed that University academic community was glad to communicate with such recognized moral role model as Borys Gudzyak.
Borys Gudzyak, who was greeted so warmly by those present in the assembly hall of the University main building, made a speech.
– Ukraine is a wonderful country, – he said. – And I believe that we took a great step forward when we started to understand that there was no father-tsar and a magic wand to change Ukraine. We ourselves have to level the playground, we have to fight corruption. We have to work hard and we need brave people to lead this fight. That is why the figure of Josyf Slipyj is so important to us.
Despite exhausting interrogations in Stalin concentration camps, impossibility to sleep and rest well, he did not break. They were trying to persuade him to co-operate with the special intelligence services and Orthodox Church. But he did not give up. Those who knew Josyf Slipyj closer claimed that he called his 18 years of imprisonment the lost time. He was 53 when he was arrested. During long years, he did not have an opportunity to work intellectually – work for the Church and for Ukrainian people.
– Patriarch Josyf Slipyj, – stressed Archbishop Borys Gudzyak, – became the ambassador of all Ukrainians in the world. He worked a lot in the library, researched every token of Ukrainian cultural, historical and church heritage. He wanted to organize Ukrainian university and proclaimed this at the Vatican Council. Being rather elderly, Patriarch travelled to almost all parts of the world, where Ukrainians lived. Thus he changed lives of many people, mobilized them to fight totalitarian regimes, being himself the role model of this fight.
Archbishop figuratively called Patriarch a human coming from the Bible. He was perceived like this wherever he came: all attention was drawn to him. Why is it so? Because spiritual things are always true. The things a person carries in his/her soul are passed to those around him/her. The example of Josyf Slipyj’s life proves that all of us have to use all our opportunities and change our place in the society where we live. We always have to be responsible for our life and our country.
At the end of the meeting, our guest answered questions from those present.
