Ukrainian Catholic ChurchAustralia, New Zealand and Oceania
Proclamation of a pilgrimage centre in Canberra
December 16, 2023
On December 12, Bishop Mykola Bychok, Eparch of Melbourne, proclaimed the Church of St. Volodymyr in Canberra as a place of annual pilgrimage for the faithful of the Melbourne Eparchy of Sts. Peter and Paul.
Pilgrimage is a journey to holy places for religious reasons. It is a kind of physical embodiment of our daily spiritual path to unity with God. The motive for making a pilgrimage may be a desire for spiritual purification and improvement, strengthening of faith, penance for committed sins, or a desire to express a request, for example, for health or spiritual healing. The parishioners also go on a pilgrimage to thank God for his favours. All these intentions are united by the fact that a person seeks to meet God and, for this purpose, leaves his usual life for a certain time.
The first pilgrims in Christianity were people who, after the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, went to the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem as the only witnesses of this great event, which became the beginning of our salvation. Today, pilgrims go not only to places associated with the life and death of Jesus Christ but also to places associated with the lives of the Mother of God, apostles, and saints of the Church; to places glorified by the ascetic lives of monks and nuns; to places where are God’s power of miraculous icons and other Christian relics.
The Church of St. Volodymyr in Canberra was chosen as the place of annual pilgrimage by the faithful of the Melbourne Eparchy, not by chance. On September 25, 2014, the Father and Head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, proclaimed this church a place of pilgrimage for all faithful Ukrainian Greek-Catholics living in Australia during the Bishop’s Divine Liturgy. A copy of the miraculous icon of the Pochaiv Mother of God and the relics of the blessed martyr Volodymyr Pryima, patron of the laity, are also kept here.
It is important for every Christian to experience pilgrimage with the greatest benefit for the soul. Caring for its faithful, the church, as the minister of Redemption, rewards us through the intercession of Jesus Christ, the Holy Theotokos and all the saints, freeing us from temporal punishment for sins that have already been forgiven through the Mystery of Confession. Such a reward is the grace of indulgence in punishment for sins, from which the faithful can benefit during pilgrimage, fulfilling certain conditions. Usually, to receive a remission of premature punishments for sins, it is necessary to be in sanctifying grace (for this, to receive the forgiveness of all sins in the Sacrament of Confession); participate in the Divine Liturgy and receive Holy Communion; and pray in the intention of the Holy Father.
In January 2023, at the request of Bishop Mykola Bychok, the Apostolic Penitentiary (supreme tribunal of the Catholic Church) extended the gift of full indulgence for the parish of St. Volodymyr in Canberra for another 7 years. The faithful who visit the church of St. Volodymyr can be granted a complete remission of premature punishments for sins on the Patronal Feast Day, on the 4th Sunday of every month in honour of the miraculous icon of the Pochaiv Mother of God, once a year on a day chosen by each believer. In addition, since according to the decree of Bishop Mykola dated 12.12.2023, every year on the second weekend of June, the faithful of the Melbourne Eparchy will have pilgrimage to Canberra, the parishioners will be able to receive the grace of a complete indulgence on these days as well.
Pilgrimage brings priceless spiritual fruits to its participants: purification of the heart, conversion, strengthening of faith, and spiritual and physical healing. Therefore, the announcement of a pilgrimage centre in Canberra is a great step for the good and spiritual support of the faithful of the Melbourne Eparchy.
