Cardinal Lubomyr Husar meets with officials in Washington (03/27/05)

Cardinal Lubomyr Husar meets with officials in Washington

by Serhiy Zhykharev
Ukrainian National Information Service

WASHINGTON - On Friday, March 4, Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, leader of the Ukrainian Catholic Church visited Washington, and held a number of meetings regarding the freedom of religious practices for the Church, as well as societal changes in Ukraine after the Orange Revolution.

Accompanying the cardinal was Archbishop Stefan Soroka, metropolitan of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States, and the Rev. Robert Hitchens, rector of St. Josaphat's Ukrainian Catholic Seminary in Washington.

In a meeting with Ambassador John Tefft, deputy assistant secretary of the European and Eurasian Affairs Bureau at the U.S. Department of State, Cardinal Husar expressed his concern regarding the restrictions that are imposed on the faithful of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church (UGCC) in the Russian Federation. The cardinal remarked that considering the long and complicated history of the Ukrainian nation's oppression by Russia, it is difficult to estimate the number of ethnic Ukrainians residing in the Russian Federation; however, multiple attempts by the UGCC to organize parishes and send pastors to Russia have been met with resistance from the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Cardinal Husar noted that, on the federal level, there is legislation protecting the right of religious freedom for all Russian citizens, though local authorities often contradict this legislation and court decisions pose obstacles to registering the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic communities. "It is understandable that the federal government has difficulties following all such cases simply because the local governments are very far removed physically. Nevertheless, we believe that the federal authorities tacitly endorsed their illegal actions. We believe that the Russian government has to put forth more effort for local officials to conform to the law," commented the UGCC primate.

Ambassador Tefft replied that he is aware of this problem and that Protestant denominations that have attempted to set up congregations in Russia also have met resistance.

"I assure you that we are already working with this issue. I will personally send a message to our Embassy in Moscow to raise this issue in the meetings with Russian authorities," said the ambassador. He also mentioned that these problems were pointed out in the State Department's Annual Human Rights Report for Russia, which triggered a very negative reaction from the Russian government.

In other meetings throughout the day, Cardinal Husar visited with Mykhailo Reznik, Ukraine's ambassador to the United States. The ambassador warmly greeted the hierarch as they spoke about the new Ukrainian government and its many opportunities. Cardinal Husar mentioned the faithful in Ukraine and their peaceful resistance against the autocratic regime and its falsification of the November 21 presidential election.

The day began with a meeting with Mark Levin, executive director of NCSJ, an advocacy group for Jews in the former Soviet Union. The discussion centered on restitution of religious communal property in Ukraine and the formation of a council of religious denominations. Mr. Levin thanked Cardinal Husar for his ecumenism, especially in light of the dramatic events of the Orange Revolution in Ukraine. Brief mention was also made of the Jackson-Vanik amendment and the need to rescind its application to Ukraine.

Accompanying the religious leaders of the UGCC during their various meetings were Michael Sawkiw, Jr., president of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA), and Serhiy Zhykharev, director of congressional relations at the Ukrainian National Information Service (UNIS) in Washington.

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