UKRAINIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH OF THE USA
CONSISTORY OFFICE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
PRESS RELEASE

Memory Eternal: Holodomor Ecumenical Lecture at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles!

“Strangers No Longer: Ukrainian Catholics and Orthodox Remember the Holodomor” was the topic of a lecture presented by His Grace Bishop Daniel of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA and Right Rev. Dr. Andriy Chirovsky, professor of Theology at Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies, Saint Paul University in Ottawa, Canada.

The Huffington Ecumenical Institute at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA welcomed the faculty, students and community of greater Los Angeles Metropolitan area on Wednesday, November 16, 2011 for an afternoon of reflection, prayer and discussion centered on the Genocidal Famine - Holodomor in Ukraine of 1932-1933. 

The day began at 2PM with the opening of an art exhibit of Holodomor sketches by Eugenia Dallas, who also presented a short reflection on the lives of millions of people that perished during the horrific years of Genocidal Famine of 1932-1933 in Ukraine. Later in the day, the participants of the conference reviewed a documentary “Genocide Revealed” directed by Yurij Luhovy.

At 5PM over 150 participants gathered at the University’s Hall for a Memorial Panakhyda service, honoring the memory of the deceased victims of this man-made Famine. The responses to the Panakhyda service were chanted by two choirs: Kobzar Ukrainian Corus of Los Angeles, CA under the direction of Greg Hallick and Select Student Chorus of Loyola Marymount University (Mr. Antonia Alonso - conductor), directed by Rev. Deacon Nicholas Denysenko. The Memorial service was followed by reflections on the way in which memorializing the genocide has brought together Ukrainians of different faith traditions, especially Orthodox and Catholics in the United States. 

His Grace Bishop Daniel and Fr. Andriy Chirovsky were welcomed and introduced to the audience by the Assistant Professor of Theological Studies and Director of the Huffington Ecumenical Institute Rev. Deacon Dr. Nicholas Denysenko. In their engaging lectures Bishop Daniel and Fr. Chirovsky reflected on how the Holodomor has united Orthodox and Catholics in the USA, as well as on implications of shared history and worship for future ecumenical endeavors. Following the presentation His Grace Bishop Daniel and Fr. Chirovsky responded to one another and a Q&A session with the audience. The formal reception concluded the scheduled events of the day.