Just glorious - thank you.

Who is the kindly elderly bishop being assisted by the seminarinas(?) in grey cassocks? I can't make out his face well.

Actually, I'm not sure. Somebody on this board should be able to answer that question.

Dn. Robert

The pictures are so beautiful, thank you for posting them.

That is Bishop Julian (Voronovsky), of Sambir-Drohobych.

I am certain that it is Vladyka Ivan (Semedi), Emeritus of Mukachevo.

Many years,

Neil

Thanks for posting.

Interesting ... so have the deacons retained the wearing of kamilavki or recently recovered the wearing of the hats under Vladyka Milan?

That defiinitely is not Bishop Ivan (Semedi). I have met him in the past. I have never met Bp. Julian (Voronovsky). I thought he was younger. He does have a reputation as a "Vostochnik". The facial hair would go along with the reputation. As to deacons wearing the kamilavka, I pretty sure that that has been recently re-discovered (In OCA, the wearing of the kamilavka by priest or deacon only occurs as a privilege granted by the Bishop for good service. This should also be the case with Greek Catholics, but I don't think it is.). The odd thing is that Rome has appointed RC priests to head up both Mukachevo and Presov. Both have turned out to be "Vostochniks", whereas thir cradle Greek-Catholic predecessors (esp. Hirka in Presov) were in more of a "Latiniak" mold. Go figure!

Dn. Robert

The Protodeacon is Fr. Marian Medvid, originally from Medzilaborce,Slovakia. He is a former seminarian of the Russicum in Rome. He served under Bishop Milan (Chautur) of Kosice and now is serving under Bishop Milan (Sasik) for the Eparchy of Mukacevo.

I was there. It was indeed magnificent.

To help with captions for the photos:
1) the lineup of bishops at the beginning of the Divine Liturgy in the Pro-Cathedral in Mukachevo, the name of the see, which took place earlier in the week before the feast day; the Cathedral is in Uzhorod about 100 km away.
2) Bishop (now Metropolitan) Jan Babjak of Preshov gives the final blessing at the end of that same Divine Liturgy
3) faithful venerate a large icon of Blessed Theodore placed in a special location in the front of the pro-cathedral
4) Bishop Szilard Keresztes of Hajdudorog, Hungary conducts a Panachida (Memorial Service) in Hungarian at the tomb of the last Greek Catholic monk at the monastery in Mukachevo which is now Orthodox
5) this was the procession at the end of the feast day liturgy in Uzhorod when all went to the rear of the cathedral outside to conduct a Panachida for Empress Maria Theresa and other benefactors of the Cathedral; the seminarians are assisting Bishop Julian of Sambir-Druhobich of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church; I don't believe Bishop Semedi was well enough to attend; I don't remember seeing him there for this event.

Videos of all the liturgical services from that week celebrating the 60th anniversary of Blessed Theodore's martyrdom last November are being edited and will appear in the next month or two on www.oltvweb.com for viewing and/or purchase. They will be an edited combination of local TV coverage and my own personal video recordings (from on the "inside").

Jack