Author: Askold S. Lozynskyj

May I begin by expressing my sincerest gratitude to God and all those responsible for this gift of unity, enabling all Ukrainians at long last to observe Christmas at one time. To some extent, this is a Christmas miracle. I am looking for more. In the spirit of Christmas, I turn to Pope Francis with...

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) is a geographical appendage or branch of the Russian Orthodox Church – Moscow Patriarchate (ROC). It takes its directives from Moscow and pays subsidies to Moscow. In fact, for a long time, even after Ukraine’s independence, the UOC-MP was the largest contributor to the budget of the...

The territory of today’s Ukraine in the 20th century during the inter-world war period was split essentially between a repressive Polish dictatorship and a savage and genocidal Soviet Russian regime. Small portions were under Czecho­slo­vakian and Romanian control. In the case of the Soviets, some 7-10 million Ukrainians were starved to death in the years...

On Wednesday, September 6, at 12:30 in the afternoon, the Ukrainian heart of Larissa Lozynskyj Kyj stopped beating. She succumbed to a serious illness that she battled for more than two years, the illness finally overcoming her strong will to live. During this serious illness, when one of the nurses asked her what she desired...

In June 1963, 60 years ago, President John F. Kennedy traveled to Berlin, almost two years after the Communists had constructed the Berlin Wall separating the East from the West. He delivered a most memorable speech in which he expressed solidarity with the people of Berlin. “Today in the world of freedom, the proudest boast...

On August 24, Ukrainians throughout the world will celebrate 32 years of independence. Independence anniversaries are celebrated annually in many countries with much fanfare, but very often without spiritual content. This is not a criticism of these nations. Independence is routinely celebrated because people are self-confident about the future and nothing threatens them. Their borders...

It happened 15 years ago in Bucharest, Romania. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) most significant and powerful member, the United States of America, was prepared to offer Ukraine and Georgia a NATO Membership Action Plan, only to be stymied in its efforts by two militarily insignificant and historically Russia appeasing members, France and Germany....

The recent “almost civil war” and “imminent coup d’etat,” as some have described it, in the Russian Federation has caused some turmoil inside the country, though its conclusion came with the recognition that it was much ado about nothing. Putin and his former so-called “chef” Yevgeny Prigozhin notwithstanding, Russians overall remain supportive of the country’s...

This a personal perspective by a Ukrainian-American who was born in the United States as the son of immigrant Ukrainian parents, educated in the American system and grounded in American culture of splendid democratic values with an appetite for capitalist gains as espoused in the American dream and the erroneous belief in American exceptionalism. To...

A cemetery is often more than a burial place. It is many times a museum and monument to history. I recall that, when my children were young, we visited Lychakiv Cemetery in Lviv in order to educate them (and myself) about a part of Ukrainian history that specifically deals with Western Ukraine. Frankly, I hesitated...

Every year, Ukrainians observe various historical events and honor notable individuals from the nation’s past. This became more complicated during an already more than year-long war. What hasn’t changed, however, are Ukrainian religious rites, in particular, because in times of grief and danger, people find the need to pray more. Ukrainian chaplains perform a great...

Two recent events – U.S. President Joe Biden’s unannounced visit to Ukraine and Vladimir Putin’s version of a state of the union address – evoked different emotions, yet strangely drew in me similar conclusions. A long-time friend of mine from Russia (He is not Russian; there are more than 100 different nationalities in the Russian...