First Stop = BLESSED VASYL VELYCHKOVSKY, BISHOP and MARTYR

The twentieth century is known as a century of martyrs. Millions of people gave up their lives for Christ. In the Soviet Union under the atheistic regime many Christians, especially Ukrainian Catholics laid down their lives rather than deny Jesus Christ and His Church.

Honoring this sacrifice, Pope John Paul II beatified a number of martyrs for the Ukrainian Catholic Church on June 27, 2001. Among the martyrs was Nicholas Charnetsky and his twenty-four Companions. They all shared their martyrdom under the Soviet regime, mostly during and after the Second W

orld War. Among the Companions was the Redemptorist Bishop, Vasyl Velychkovsky.

You can learn more about his life here.

I visited the Shrine 1.5 yrs ago during a WCACYM annual gathering in Winnipeg and was deeply touched by witness of his life. I promised to bring my family to visit and pray at the shrine, should we ever travel through. Wouldn't you know it - our first day will be in Winnipeg on the day of his FEAST!

We will join in celebrating the Divine Liturgy, community supper and a play highlighting his life. We hope to conclude the night with personal tour of the Shrine and pray as a family .

We spend the night at The Welcome Home Centre this is where the Redemptorists invite lay people to live with them in community for periods of time to experience their life and ministry. Many Ukrainian Catholic young adults from right across Canada have given a year of their lives to serve God in this mission. It is a “time out” to discern the path of one’s life and to make a difference in someone else’s life.

As we begin the first leg of our vacation, I pray that it will become a "pilgrimage" in many ways. What is a pilgrimage? Looking it up...three requisites constitute an authentic pilgrimage: 1) the belief that God responds to prayer 2) the conviction that God is present at holy sites, and 3) the desire to make a sacred journey to a holy site. People undertake pilgrimages to seek guidance for direction in life, to thank you God for favors received, to petition God for spiritual and physical favors, or to atone for sins. I think we will meet these requirements many times over as we travel as a family over the next 10,000 kms!

Warren