It is a pleasure to welcome you to the official website of St. Basil Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Seminary. We are delighted you have taken the time to seek more information about our institution, its purpose, goals, and program. You will find information here about the founding of our institution, its history, programs, administration, faculty, and students.
This community has made significant sacrifices to ensure that its religion and culture will endure and contribute to American culture. It is a tribute to its spirit and spirituality that it has exerted, and continues to exert, a cultural and spiritual influence in the United States through its graduates, both priests and lay people.
Sincerely,
Very Reverend Bohdan Tymchyshyn, Rector
Веселі канікули з Богом
From June 27 to July 9, a Christian Summer Camp was held at St. Basil Seminary in Stamford, CT. More than 30 children under the guidance of Fr. Bohdan Tymchyshyn, his wife Yuliya, and seminarians Petro Mychko and Mykola Ozarko, were participants in this camp and spent the two weeks unforgettably. The purpose of this camp was to spend free time actively, interestingly, and usefully in order to become closer to God and to understand the basics of the Divine Liturgy. The camp titled "Those who were invited to the Royal Banquet," were filled with days of joy, friendship, support, and love. Every day consisted of cheerful movements and fun dances, active big games and quests, creative master classes, and exciting thematic meetings. Because of all the fun, the days in the camp passed with lightning speed.
Prayer in the camp played a unique and vital role. The children, together with the camp leaders, sang the entire Divine Liturgy, helped each other find the right pages in the prayer books, and received the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist every day. The day that was spent with Bishop Paul Chomnycky, where the campers sang the Pontifical Divine Liturgy and talked with the eparch of Stamford, was unforgettable to the children. Visits to the Ukrainian Museum made quite an impression on the young hearts. A trip through the chapel was also a part of the camp with explanations of its interior. The campers made various crafts with their own hands which served as a revelation of the talent and skill of each child. The participants not only painted, carved, glued, and assembled, but also kneaded dough with their hands and baked prosphora which they made for the proskomedia service to pray for their relatives and friends and for peace in Ukraine. All these descriptions together form small pieces of the big puzzle which form the incredible memories of the 2022 Christian Summer Camp held in Stamford, CT.
On Sunday March 27th, the seminary traveled to Watervilet, NY for the celebration of the Divine Liturgy of St Basil. We are grateful to Fr Mikhail Myshchuk and the parishioners of St Nicholas Church for the invitation and communal prayer.
On Saturday March 26th, the seminary joined the parish community of Sts Peter and Paul in Ludlow, MA for the celebration of the Divine Liturgy. We extend our gratitude to Father Andriy Krip and the parishioners for their warm welcome and the opportunity to pray together.
The Administration and seminarians express gratitude to Fr. Taras Chaparin and the parishioners of Protection of the Mother of God Parish in Mt Kisco, NY for the opportunity to pray the Divine Liturgy together on this 3rd Sunday of Great Lent - The Sunday of the Veneration of the Holy Cross.
The On March 18th, Bishop Paul celebrated the Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts at St John the Baptist parish in Riverhead, NY - the first parish visited by the seminarians and the seminary administration this Lenten season. This Lent, we pray not just for the salvation of our souls but for the salvation of the innocent lives in Ukraine. We thank Father Bohdan Hedz for his hospitality and the opportunity to pray together.
On Wednesday March 16th, the seminarians with Father Rector Bohdan Tymchyshyn and Spiritual Director Raphael Strontsitskyy prayed with the Knights of Columbus and the parishoners of St. Matthew Roman Catholic Church in Norwalk, CT for peace in Ukraine.
On March 5th, 2022, the seminarians participated in the Exemplification of Charity, Unity and Fraternity and became 3rd degree knights in the brotherhood. We are thankful for the fraternal and spiritual support of the Knights of Columbus. Vivat Jesus!
Following the request of Pope Francis, prayers for peace in Ukraine were offered on Wednesday, January 26th. First, a holy hour was held at St Mary's Catholic Church in New Haven, CT in which Archbishop Leonard Blair and Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly (Knights of Columbus) participated. Later that day, a Moleben to the Mother of God was celebrated with the local community at St Vladimir's Cathedral in Stamford.
The Spring 2022 semester at St. Basil Seminary began with a day of recollection. St. Basil's was honored to have alumnus Rev. Volodymyr Malchyn (Class of 2002) serve as the spiritual guide for the day. Father Volodymyr, who is currently serving the Patriarchal Curia in Kyiv, Ukraine, led the recollection with a reflection on the words of Christ found in Luke 12:32 ("Be not afraid..").
