www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology June 27th: Happy Feastdays of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and Martyrs of Ukraine

Happy Feastdays!!!!!!

June 27th is the feastday of the miraculous icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Patroness of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, aka the Redemptorists (Roman and Byzantine-rite). The icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is enshrined in the church of Saint Alphonsus in Rome and is considered to be the most well known image of the Theotokos since it can be found in virtually every Catholic (Eastern and Roman) and Orthodox church in the world.

I have had a personal devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help since I was a child as a result of going to parochial school staffed by the Redemptorists. I have a great affection for the Redemptorist order since it was from them that I learned my Catholic faith as a boy and I credit them for my being a practicing Catholic to this day. I still have the holy card of Our Lady of Perpetual Help that was given to me during that time and it is one of my treasured possessions. I do have devotion to Our Lady through other icons( Pochayiv, Ostrabrama, Kazan) but the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is the icon I most cherish. I regard her as my personal patroness.

I credit her with granting me a favor that was considered not possible for me to receive at the time, but after specifically praying to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, I received the favor and it lead to the best years of my life.

The eyes of Our Lady of Perpetual Help are so penetrating, as if see can see right into my soul! How can I keep anything from Her? She has been such a consolation to me during difficult times, especially when my mother passed away. Everytime I look into the eyes of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, it's as if she says to me, "I am your Mother. What can I do for you? May I console you? Let me carry you in my arms as I carry my Son." I am affected by these words even as I write this.

A good website for information on the history of the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual help can be found at: www.praiseofglory.com/redemptorist/omph.htm [praiseofglory.com]

This June 27th, 2002 also happens to be the very first feastday of Blessed Nicholas Charnetsky and 24 Companions, and of Blessed Emilian Kovch. They, along with Blessed Josaphata and Blessed Theodore Romzha, were beatified one year ago today by the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, during his apostolic visit to Ukraine. During the Divine Liturgy of Beatification the Holy Father announced the feastdays as follows:

1) Blessed Nicholas Charnetsky and 24 Companions- June 27th
2)Blessed Nicholas Kovch-June 27th
3)Blessed Theodore Rohmza -November 1st
4)Blessed Josaphata Hordashevska-November 20th

What a joy that day was!

How providential that the beatification of these holy Ukrainians (plus Ruthenian and Russian) should take place on the feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help since four of the martyrs( Bl. Nicholas Charnetsky, Bl. Vasyl Velychovsky, Bl. Ivan Ziatyk, and Bl. Zenobius Kovalk ) were members of the Redemptorist order.

Let's us pray fervently for the canonization of these great martyrs for the Faith!

Our Lady of Perpetual Help, pray unto God for us!
Blessed Nicholas Charnetsky and 25 Companions, pray unto God for us!
Blessed Emilian Kovch, pray unto God for us!

[ 06-27-2002: Message edited by: griego catolico ]

Dear Griego,

Yes, a great Feast day!

But the Eastern Feast of the Mother of God of the Passion (aka Our Lady of Perpetual Help) is on May 13th and again in August!

There is a beautiful Akathist to the Mother of Perpetual Help that the Byzantine Redemptorists have published in their "Redeemer's Voice."

Another Redemptorist Confessor is Metropolitan Vladimir Sterniuk who spent ten years in Siberia and was under house arrest by the Soviets 18 times.

I hope our Latin Redemptorist friends are paying close attention to the swelling ranks of Byzantine Redemptorist sanctity!

Could you remind them?

And don't you just love their long Rosaries?

Alex

[ 06-27-2002: Message edited by: Orthodox Catholic ]

I would also like to wish a happy feastday to the Russian Byzantine Catholic community worlwide on the feastday of their exarch, Blessed Leonid Feodorov.

Blessed Leonid is the only non-Ukrainian among the "24 Companions".

[ 06-27-2002: Message edited by: griego catolico ]

Dear Griego,

That's O.K., we adopted him!

Alex

Dera Alex,

Wow, thanks for your quick response!

Yes, the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a version of the icon of Our Lady of the Passion. The feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is only on the liturgical calendar of the Redemptorists order. Thus, the only Easterners who would celebrate this feast would be the Byzantine-rite Redemptorists.

The Latin-rite Redemptorists have a "Mass of Our Lady of Perpetual Help" for use on June 27th. Do you know if the Byzantine-rite Redemptorists have proper prayers(tropar and kondak) for use during the Divine Liturgy of that day?

Yes, the Latin-rite Redemptorists have acknowledeged the sanctitiy of their fellow Byzantine-rite members. I am on the mailing list for a Redemptorist newsletter titled, "Redemptorists in Action". Several months ago, one the issues was devoted to the Blessed Byzantine-rite Redemptorists. The article is on-line. You can read it at:
www.redemptorists-denver.org/news/ria-oct01.html [redemptorists-denver.org]

And, yes, I do love their rosaries!

God bless you,
griego catolico

[ 06-27-2002: Message edited by: griego catolico ]

Dear Griego,

A quick response is not necessarily a good thing!

It could mean that a person needs to get a life.

My parish uses the "one size fits all" Troparia and Kondakia for Feastdays of the Mother of God. Apart from the Akathist, I haven't heard of other separate propers for this great Icon.

Alex

Alex,
There is an Akathist to our Lady of Perpetual Help?!! Where can I get it!

Dear Friends:

The "Novena to Our Mother of Perpetual Help" was done every Wednesday throughout the year in ALL parishes in the Philippines (when I was still there more than 15 years ago).

AmdG

It;'s hard to believe that a year ago today I witnessed the Beatifications of the Martyrs of Ukraine in L'viv. It was truely and amazing experience (not to mention a long 6 hour one standing ankle high in mud ).

Blessed Mykola and Companions Pray for us Amen.

Dear Griego,

The "Redeemer's Voice Press" of the Redemptorists of Yorkton, Saskatchewan have it.

I have a copy but it is with the rest of my library right now - packed away in boxes until I can move in to our new home.

Please remind me in a few weeks time, and I will send you a photocopy!

Alex

If anyone is in the Ottawa area:

Prykhod Sviatykh Boho-ottsiv Iokamya i Anny v
Ottavi

Feast of Blessed Nicholas of Volynia and the 24 New-Martyrs, including Clement of Univ and Leontii of Petersburg
June 27 O.S./July 10 N.S.

On the eve of the feast -- 7:00 pm All-Night Vigil
On the day of the feast -- 5:00 pm Divine Liturgy

All are welcome!

Even though Blessed Leonid wasn't ethnically Ukrainian, he was received as a Greek Catholic by Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky and studied at the Studite lavra on Skarga Street in L'viv (which was decorated Old-Believer style) with Blessed Klementy Sheptytsky before beginning his missionary work with the Russian Catholic church under the ompophorion of Metropolitan Andrey.

Metropolitan Andrey also arranged Blessed Leonid's priestly ordination by the Bulgarian Catholic bishop Kyr Michael Mirov in Constantinople. He was introduced to Pope Leo XIII (author of Orientalium Dignitas) personally by Metropolitan Andrey.

Dear Friends,

Metropolitan Andrew seemed to have close relationships with all of the Popes during his episcopate. The last was Pius XII (1939-58). Blessed John XXIII served as nuncio in Bulgaria in the 1930s. Does anyone know if Metropolitan Andrew knew him or had any interaction with the Bulgarian Churches during this time?

Have a Blessed Day!!!!

John
Pilgrim and Odd Duck

Dear John,

Yes, the two knew each other and Blessed John was particularly interested in the Eastern Church when he was in Bulgaria.

When he became Pope, some staunch Orthodox known for their barbs at the Latins applauded him, saying he was the first Pope since the schism who could lay claim to understanding a thing or two about the Eastern Churches.

His familiarity with the Ukrainian Church led him to place the freeing of Met. Joseph Slipyj at the top of his priority list . . .

Alex

Ligouri Press, the publishing arm of the Redemptorist Order has two new publications on the Blessed Byzantine Redemptorists.

The first is a booklet titled, "A Life of Blessed Basil Velychkovsky", by Fr. John Sianchuk,C.Ss.R.

The second is a book titled, "Blessed Bishop Mykolay Charnetsky, C.SS.R., and Companions: Modern Martyrs of the Ukrainian Catholic Church," also by Fr. John Sianchuk, C.Ss.R. This book is available online through the Borders Books website. Here is the link: www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/076...-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/104-0960704-5129522 [amazon.com]

[ 08-10-2002: Message edited by: griego catolico ]