Homily by Bishop Mykola Bychok on Sunday of the Holy Fathers

Between the Ascension of the Lord and the Descent of the Holy Spirit, we are experiencing a special time — the Missionary Days. Throughout these ten days of grace, we have an opportunity to reflect on our spiritual life in the Church of Christ on various levels: personal, family, parish, and ecclesiastical. Each of us is called to bear witness to Jesus crucified and risen on the roads of our lives. Today, we are already on the third day of the Missionary Days, with the theme “God is with us, we are God’s!” The Lord has always been faithful to His Word since the creation of the world. When the Son of God became a child, in the first months of His life, He became a displaced person and a refugee in the foreign land of Egypt. This shows us Jesus’ solidarity with all people who, for various reasons, seek refuge in other countries, even to save their lives. God understands the human being like no one else, enriching us with His love. He has a plan for each one of us.

Today, we have all gathered to witness a special event — the ordination of a new priest. At this moment, incredible feelings overwhelm the heart of Deacon Myroslav, his wife Orysia, and their two daughters: Dominika and Doroteia. Although the ordination is an intimate celebration for the person being consecrated, it is a great and joyful celebration for the entire Eparchy of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Melbourne, as diaconal or priestly ordinations are not so frequent in our eparchy. That is why many guests have come to share this joy in the Holy Spirit with the future worker in Christ’s Vineyard.

The priesthood is not just another profession among dozens of other professions in our lives. It is a special vocation through which the priest participates in the ministry of Jesus Christ Himself. Our Lord Jesus, the Eternal High Priest, chose Myroslav and called him to participate in His own priesthood, to be His visible presence among us and to offer Himself for us.

Jesus taught His disciples: “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit” (Jn. 15, 16). These words remain relevant to this day. It is not a person who chooses the priesthood, but God who gives the calling and chooses the candidate for the priesthood. And when he responds to this divine call with humility and trust, we see the power of God’s grace working through him in his life.

Dear Deacon Myroslav! God has a special plan and mission for you: to become His voice for God’s people, to become His hands in supporting the needy, and ultimately, to become a loving father for the flock entrusted to you.

Today’s Gospel tells us about the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus Christ, in which He prays for Himself, His disciples, and those who will believe in the Gospel through the preaching of the apostles and the testimony of their lives. On the Sunday before the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the Church sets before us the example of the Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council, which took place in Nicaea in 325. At that time, there was a priest named Arius who spread false teachings about the divinity of Jesus Christ and thus undermined the faith of Christians. The Holy Fathers gathered together to counteract this danger, rejecting Arius’ false teaching and providing a correct explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ by formulating it in the Nicene Creed.

The faith and zeal of the fathers preserved the unity of the Church and organized Christ’s teaching. Similarly, faithfulness is also very important in our lives. When a child receives the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, the godparents promise in the name of the newly baptized to make every effort for their spiritual growth, thus remaining faithful to Christ. A doctor, in taking the Hippocratic Oath, swears to remain faithful to that oath. A soldier, on entering the military, swears loyalty to the people and the state. The bride and groom in the Sacrament of Matrimony pledge faithfulness and love to each other, which they are to fulfill in their married life. A priest who receives the Sacrament of Ordination takes an oath in which he promises to be faithful and obedient to his bishop and to fulfill his priestly ministry with dignity. Similarly, every Christian is called to testify their faithfulness to Christ through a devout life.

Before the actual ordination to the priesthood, I encourage you to be very attentive, as Deacon Myroslav will circle the altar three times, kiss the four corners of the altar, and approach the hierarch, thereby showing obedience and faithfulness to the Church of Christ. He will then make a profession of faith.

During the moment of ordination, the bishop will lay his hands on the head of the candidate for priesthood and recite this prayer aloud: “Divine grace, which always heals the sick and fulfills what is lacking, sets the devout deacon Myroslav in the priesthood. Therefore, let us pray for him, that the grace of the Holy Spirit may descend upon him, and let us all say…” Then the choir sings three times: “Lord, have mercy!” From the beginning of the Church’s history, ordination has been performed through the laying on of hands and prayer, first by the apostles and then by their successors, the bishops. At the conclusion of the ordination to the priesthood, the hierarch will present the priestly vestments in parts. Each time these items are given to the priest, the bishop will show them to the faithful, saying, “Axios!” which means “Worthy!”

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! I ask you to pray for your priests every day and help them fulfill their vocation. Let us together build a living and holy Church where the light of Christ shines brightly through the ministry of our priests. Let us lift our hearts in gratitude to God for the gift of the priesthood of Myroslav. Let us pray that as he begins his priestly ministry, he may be filled with wisdom, courage, and love. May his life be a living testimony to the Gospel and a source of grace for all those entrusted to his care. Amen.

See also

January 7 Pastoral visit of Bishop Mykola to Tasmania, January 25–26 January 5 Solemn opening of the Jubilee Year in Melbourne December 30 Bishop Mykola to the members of the CYM in Buxton: “We remember all those who are fighting for independence at this very moment”