On October 2, on the first day of the XVI General Assembly of the Pontifical Synod, which is taking place in the Vatican for the second consecutive year in October, His Beatitude Sviatoslav presented to Pope Francis a delegation from the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
This was reported by the Secretariat of the UGCC Head in Rome.
Its members included His Eminence Bishop Bohdan Dziurach, Apostolic Exarch of the UGCC in Germany and Scandinavia, and Bishop Teodor Martyniuk, Assistant Bishop of the Ternopil-Zboriv Archdiocese.
During the audience, the hierarchs thanked the Holy Father for his constant support of Ukraine during the difficult time of the war. They asked Pope Francis to pursue the efforts of the Holy See to establish a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.
In response, the Pope thanked the UGCC delegates for their active participation in the work of the Synod and the tasks of the Church in the conditions of war in Ukraine. He assured of further support from the Catholic Church, in particular through diplomatic and humanitarian channels.
The Pope declared October 7 the Day of Prayer and Fasting for World Peace, calling on Christians to pray for an end to wars. On October 6, he himself will lead such a prayer on the rosary in front of the icon of the Mother of God in Rome.
