Ukrainian Catholic ChurchAustralia, New Zealand and Oceania
Bishop Mykola blessed the students of the parish school in Melbourne for the new school year
February 11, 2024
On Saturday, February 10, Bishop Mykola Bychok celebrated the Divine Liturgy for students, parents, and teachers of the Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Ukrainian Brotherhood School in Melbourne. Those present started the new school year with a joint prayer in the Cathedral.
The Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Ukrainian Brotherhood School in Melbourne was founded on July 28, 1951, by Fr. Ivan Prasko. It was the first Ukrainian parish school in Australia. Initially, the school operated at the Roman Catholic Church of St. Augustine in central Melbourne. On February 14, 1976, Bishop Ivan Prasko blessed the newly built school near the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul. Today, it is one of the largest Ukrainian Saturday schools in Australia, where Ukrainian language, history, and catechism are taught.
Bishop Mykola Bychok, Eparch of Melbourne, served the Liturgy for the beginning of the school year in co-service with the administrator of the parish of Sts. Peter and Paul, Fr. Andriy Mykytyuk. Students, parents, and teachers joined the prayer in large numbers.
After the Divine Liturgy, the bishop addressed those present with the word, emphasising that Christ is the first teacher who teaches us not only how to live but also how to communicate with God and how to pray. Bishop Mykola encouraged everyone to pray daily, saying, “Prayer is our conversation with God. Saying the prayer ‘Our Father,’ we thank God and ask him for something. Therefore, it is important to pray in the morning and in the evening and to listen to Christ, who teaches us how to walk in this life.”
At the end, Bishop Mykola blessed everyone, sprinkling them with holy water, and wished the students, parents, and teachers a good, successful, and fruitful school year.
