DAVISBURG, Mich. — Sacred Heart parishioner Marissa Gross won first place in the Special Needs Class Equestrian Competition at the Oakland County Fair, held in Davisburg, Michigan, July 13. Gross, 26, who has Down Syndrome, began horseback riding eight years ago. READ MORE.

SOLON, Ohio — St. John the Baptist Parish has turned to two martyred bishops for their intercession in reviving the small faith community. About 30 people attended an evening celebration at the church for the reception of the relics of Blesseds Paul Gojdich and Basil Hopko July 23. Father Frank Firko, former postulator for the bishops’ cause of canonization and pastor of Holy Ghost Parish in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, was the keynote speaker. He brought literature about all three martyred bishops, including Blessed Theodore Romzha of the Eparchy of Mukachevo, Ukraine, as well as large icons depicting the lives of the bishops. READ MORE.

BARBERTON, Ohio — Miron Kerul-Kmec Jr. took one step closer to the priesthood this summer. Bishop Milan Lach, SJ, of Parma ordained the 26-year-old to minor orders of lector, reader, acolyte and subdeacon at his home parish of St. Nicholas July 28. At the same liturgy, Bishop Lach blessed the church’s completed icon screen, which was updated over a nearly four-year period with new icons by the subdeacon, who is also an iconographer. READ MORE.

Summer 2019: What do we need? Fewer rainy days and damaging storms? Less bickering and competition among our civic leaders, so they could work together for good and effective government? More people to come to church? Crime and violence to be gone? Peace throughout the world? Healing and health for those who are suffering? Healing the pain of broken relationships? The list could go on and on, and these are but a few of the ills with which we struggle in this time in which we live. However imperfect we think our lives may be with questions such as these, this is the gift of time that God has given to each of us in which to live every day as best we can. READ MORE.

MUNSTER, Ind. — Growing up in Long Island, New York, Father Steven Koplinka never understood why his family, who worshipped in the Roman Catholic Church on Sundays, chose to have funeral liturgies at the local Orthodox parish. It was only in his mid-life, after he was ordained a priest, that his aunt explained that both his maternal and paternal grandfathers were Byzantine Catholics who had immigrated to Long Island from Belarus. “There were no Byzantine Catholic parishes on Long Island in those days, so they went to the Roman parish on Sundays,” he told Horizons. READ MORE.

UNIONTOWN, Pa. — The Sisters of St. Basil the Great gathered July 30, in a spirit of joy and gratitude, to celebrate this year’s six diamond jubilarians and their years of dedicated service to God and the church. Over the years, each jubilarian in her own way expressed her commitment to be a praying, healing and life-giving presence in the Byzantine Catholic Church in the United States. READ MORE.

Basilian Sister Ann Fedyszak (formerly Sister Aloysius) died at Mount Macrina Manor Aug. 12. She would have celebrated her 65th anniversary of religious life Sept. 15. Sister Ann was born in Warren, Ohio, the daughter of the late Elias and Anna (nee Volchko) Fedyszak. She entered the Sisters of St. Basil Sept. 15, 1954, from Sts. Peter and Paul Byzantine Catholic Parish in Warren. She made her final profession Aug. 21, 1960. READ MORE.

Two blind men live close to where I do in Parma. Sometimes, I observe how they walk and get around with their white canes. When I see them, I often thank God for the gift of my sight, for the gift to see around me all of God’s creation. Many times, we don’t appreciate what we have. We take things for granted, like our sight, until we come to the point where we risk losing them. In today’s Gospel (Mt 9:27-35), Jesus heals two blind men who cried out, “Son of David, have pity on us!” It is wonderful that Jesus Christ is really the healer of our sight — our physical sight but also our spiritual sight. Many of us have sight, but we are blind. We are blind because we do not see all around us that God is present in our brothers and sisters every day. We are blind in this way, and yet we are proud of it. READ MORE.

UNIONTOWN, Pa. — The 85th Annual Pilgrimage in honor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help will be held at Mount St. Macrina, Aug. 31-Sept. 1. This year’s theme is “Mary, Cause of Our Joy.” The pilgrimage holds the distinction of being the oldest and the largest Byzantine Catholic pilgrimage in the country. READ MORE.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — “One city equals one bishop” was the topic discussed at the 23rd Orientale Lumen Conference in the nation’s capital June 17-20. The phrase refers to canon 8 of the Council of Ephesus (AD 431) which prohibited a bishop or metropolitan to infringe on the territory of another bishop by ordaining or otherwise exercising authority in the other’s territory. It also made reference to the apostolic canons (numbers 35/36) which forbade a bishop from ordaining in cities or places not subject to him. Canon 8 of the Council of Nicea (AD 325) also stated that there should only be one bishop in one church. READ MORE.

Sacred Heart Byzantine Catholic Parish in Livonia, Michigan, now houses a specially designed reliquary for the Shroud of Turin theca, which contains a 5-by-1-millimeter thread from the burial linen of Christ. The reliquary was placed in the church’s All Saints Shrine. The troparion for Good Friday, which mentions Joseph of Arimathea, is etched onto the reliquary. Tours are available by appointment. Call the pastor, Father Joseph Marquis: (313) 282-4327.

MERRILLVILLE, Ind. — Americans work hard for everything they have, said Father Michal Bucko, the new administrator of St. Michael Parish in Merrillville, Indiana. The 36-year-old Slovak priest said the American work ethic was the most significant impression he formed in his first year in the United States. “I’ve seen the life of people in America and the American reality. People in America have a hard life. Life is harder here than in Slovakia,” he said. “Here, people need to work more to have goods and services that in Europe are normal to have, like maternity benefits.” READ MORE.

FLUSHING, Mich. — St. Michael parishioners Elizabeth and Ernest Harbin were honored last month for being the longest-married couple in the state of Michigan. The Harbins have been married 73 years. Father James Batcha, parish administrator, blessed the couple before the entire congregation during the Divine Liturgy June 30. It was just after the Ambon prayer during the Divine Liturgy. The Harbins were presented with a certificate from Worldwide Marriage Encounter, the Catholic marriage enrichment apostolate that recognized their marriage as the longest in the state. READ MORE.

CHICAGO — The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops voted on several proposals “to hold bishops accountable for instances of sexual abuse of children or vulnerable persons, sexual misconduct, or the intentional mishandling of such cases” at their June 11-14 general assembly in Baltimore. According to a memorandum issued by the USCCB June 13, the bishops “specifically committed to involving and utilizing lay professional experts” in their new policy. The bishops agreed that “independent lay oversight is crucial” in holding bishops more accountable in cases of abuse. They also established a “new, independent mechanism for the reporting of such cases.” READ MORE.

If you are truly following Jesus, you are likely battling with the things of this world, including with your selfishness or with your lifestyle. On the other hand, and at the same time, you are also drawn to imitate Jesus, his sweetness, and to follow him. On this day before us, with all the many wonderful sights to see, try to see everything from the spiritual point of view. How can we see from the spiritual point of view? We can do this by reading and being encouraged daily by the Word of God, by the Gospel. READ MORE.

BURTON, Ohio — The Shrine of Our Lady of Mariapoch, 17486 Mumford Road, will host the annual eparchial pilgrimage Aug. 17-18. Bishop Milan Lach, SJ, of Parma will share in the pilgrimage with the faithful of the eparchy. He will give the evening teen and family talk around the campfire Aug. 17. He will also celebrate the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on Sunday at 4 p.m. Once again this year, a Rosary to end abortion will be prayed at the outdoor Fatima Shrine Aug. 18 at 2:45 p.m. READ MORE.

PARMA, Ohio — Parma’s 2018-19 Stewardship Appeal raised a total of $203,516, as of July 1, for eparchial programming and operations, more than any appeal in the past 10 years. Though the campaign raised only 83 percent of its $250,000 goal, the total raised for eparchial programming and operations was about $37,000 more compared with the campaign last year. The total increase is due to a number of factors, including greater giving in parishes and the elimination of the parish rebate program, which returned to parishes all of the funds they raised beyond their campaign goals. READ MORE.

PARMA, Ohio — The annual Boys and Girls Camps of the Eparchy of Parma were combined this year and held at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, June 19-22, so that the campers could participate actively in the 50th-anniversary celebrations of the eparchy. The camp drew 33 young people, some from as far away as Iowa. The nuns of Christ the Bridegroom Monastery led the camps, with the support of many volunteers. The camps are usually held at the Shrine of Our Lady of Mariapoch and at Christ the Bridegroom Monastery in Burton, Ohio. However, the change in venue allowed teens to be front and center for this important milestone in the eparchy’s history. READ MORE.

PARMA, Ohio — It was a double golden jubilee weekend for the Byzantine Ruthenian Church in the United States, June 21-23. Both the Metropolia of Pittsburgh and the Eparchy of Parma turned 50 this year, and a series of events were organized to mark the milestone. In Parma, the community gathered for a two-day program at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, June 21-22. More than 300 people participated at the various events throughout the weekend. The next day, a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the cathedral in Pittsburgh, followed by a reception. READ MORE.

I would like to say a few words about St. John the Baptist, a humble person and great saint, who lived his life close to Jesus Christ. Many people thought he was the Messiah, but he told them, “I am not the Messiah… I am ‘the voice of one crying out in the desert, “Make straight the way of the Lord’” (Jn 1:20,23). As Scripture says, John “was not the light, but came to testify to the light” (Jn 1:8). For this reason, our tradition gives him the title of “Forerunner” to underscore his preparatory role. READ MORE.