Divine Liturgy on Vatican Radio on the occasion of the holiday of the Protection of the most Holy Mother of God
On October 14, 2009, on the occasion of the holiday of the Holy Virgin in the chapel of the Annunciation of Vatican Radio there was offered the Holy Liturgy and the sermon was delivered by His Eminence Bishop Iriney Bilyk, OSBM. Father Vitaly Hrabatyn and father Vitaliy Pyrig assisted in the mass. The Apostle was sung by Roman Riznyak. Liturgical singing was done by the Sisters of the Order of Immaculate Virgin Mary.
We offer to your attention a recording of this Holy Mass, offered in the chapel of the Annunciation of Vatican Radio: 
Sermon:
Sermon delivered by Bishop Iriney Bilyk, OSBM on Vatican Radio
October 14, 2009 year of God
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Dear audience!
From the Apostolic Capital, the Eternal City of Rome, from the house of the Holy Father I’m glad to welcome you on the waves of Vatican radio with our Ukrainian Christian greeting:
Ñëàâà ²ñóñó Õðèñòó! (Glory to Jesus Christ!)
I’m glad to greet you with today's grand holiday of the Protection of the Most Holy Mother of God, which is so solemnly celebrated by our people in their native land in
The Protection of the Most Holy Mother of God is the feast with a deep spiritual, religious content, but we can also say, that it is one of the favorite national holidays of the God-loving and long-suffering Ukrainian people.
Each Theotokos feast magnifies our Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed, Most Glorious Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary in its own particular way.
During the feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Mother of God we emphasize and glorify the things, which are the most necessary for us, Her earthly children - Her Protection over all of us, Her motherhood and patronage, because we need them most in our earthly journey, among the burdens of sin and life, in this valley of tears during the trip to our Heaven Dock.
She was chosen for the highest Motherhood, intercession and protection by Jesus Christ, when He completed his redeeming mission on the cross.
Mary is truly our Mother, because as Mother she was given to us by Jesus Christ when He was on the cross. The words He said to John: "Behold your Mother" (John 19, 27), relating to every Christian.
Dear brothers and sisters, with the words: "Son, daughter, behold your mother!" Christ refers to us, teeling us that we have Mother in heaven, who is our intercessor before God, our consolation and help in trouble, in grief and every need.
Dying in the terrible sufferings, Jesus does not forget us, and with His Covenant He chooses Mary for spiritual Mother not only for John, but for all those who gather under Her omophorion, for John on Calvary represented all the faithful. Maria helped in the mission of salvation, to ensure “the supernatural life to souls. For this reason she is a mother to us in the order of grace.”
(Lumen Gentium, 61). Through Her mediation we become participants of the treasures of Jesus Christ’s Blood. So, she really is the Mother of Grace of God. Without a doubt, the Son of man and God will listen to His heavenly and earthly Mother.
We can see the protection and intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary over the people of God during all ages. And motivation for today's holiday is an event which according to many historical sources took place at the beginning of X century, when the Mother of God with her holy veil saved Constantinople from enemies. It was another great and obvious sign of Her Heavenly Intercession.
"Sanctified is heaven and earth, and the temple is lighted, and all the faithful rejoice. With the angelic choirs, with the Precursor and Theologian, the prophets and apostles here invisibly comes Mother of God and prays to Christ for Christians, that He spared the city and the people who glorify the holiday of Her Protection"(from the evening mass on the Holiday of Protection).
She proved her love and care through the thousands of prayers that were heard. She shows her care over the sinful people through the numerous revelations to many individuals and even to nations. And she still continues to ask us about conversion, fasting and prayer.
During the longsuffering history of our nation our princes, our kings, our army and Cossack hetmans appealed to the Blessed Virgin Mary – they willingly chose Her for their Patroness and Protector.
The history of our people has recorded many instances of miraculous aid of the Mother of God, especially in the times of enemy attacks on our land. Her holy icon was in every Ukrainian home.
“Son, daughter, this is your mother!" – the one, who wept with apmle quiet tears by the cross, who was defending our people from various enemies in different times. She is the Mother who so intently listened to every word of Her Son, and teaches us unselfish, passionate love, humility and sincere prayer. She is the Mother who herself prayed so earnestly through the whole her earthly life, who brings the prayers, tears and sobbing of the sinful people to the throne of Her son and pleads for hearing of them and immediate help.
She is the Mother who strengthens our faith in the hardest hours of life trials. She is the Mother who lived over the death of Her Son, and suffered Herself the farewell with the Apostles before the death, She is our greatest comfort in a moment of death of our loved ones, and in the minute of our death.
She is mother, the first and immediate Patroness of the poor, handicapped, widows, orphans, homeless, oppressed, grieving and of all who need and look for kind, gentle and mighty Motherly Protection.
Dear in Christ! Let us thank God for having given us such a great Patroness, which in the history of salvation of the human race has become a living ark of God and the ladder that connected the sky and earth. Maria is the celestial ladder, through which God came down to us from heaven and through this living ladder we can easier reach for heaven, because it is easier to us to approach God through Mary.
On this year majestically and joyfully we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the resurrection of our Church, when the Angel of the Lord rolled back the heavy stone of the communist yoke, which throttled our
Even being buried in the tomb of the wicked, bloody regime and pressed by the heavy stone of the communist dictatorship, when people were in chains, country in ruin and the enemy did not allow even to pray, our Church run under the powerful cover of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In their homes or in forests, in cold or hot weather thousands of our faithful, together with our priests, monks and nuns led by our archiereys fell on their knees before Her icons and in the end of all our underground liturgies sang with humility, infantile trust and love to our Heavenly Mother the most favorite hymn of our hearts to the Blessed Virgin Mary: "Under thy mercy recourse, Hail Mary. Our prayers in our afflictions will not neglect, and protect us from disasters, the only pure and blessed” knowing that under such powerful patronage of the Blessed Virgin “the truth and freedom will rise and disperse the darkness of captivity, the world of the truth will shine and all the children of slaves will pray in freedom"(Shevchenko), as could not the Blessed Virgin but protect us and the Church of Her son, even though "the devil as a roaring lion wanted to devour someone”.
However, Mother of God will never force anyone to come under her holy Veil. But having a great love of Mother to us, She asks and implores everyone to convert to God and live according to His commandments. Then Our Lady will protect us from all evil, save our families and all Ukraine.
During our history we were not always good kids to our Heavenly Mother and often broke Christ's commandments. From the times of Princes and hetmans there appeared even deadly struggle for power, and together with this hatred, enmity, betrayal, bribery, denigration, and not only. We were spiritually and politically divided into various camps, they tried to separate us from the unitary Catholic Church and its head, who was the successor of St Peter, from the Ecumenical Archierey - the Pope. We became dependant on other nations and become victims of harmful ideologies. We lost our statehood for many centuries. From this suffered our people, from this suffered Ukraine. We were spiritually and materially impoverished.
Unfortunately a similar story is repeated in our time when the struggle for power and ownership of national wealth are the main motives of our political and national figures, in spite of any human, moral and religious principles. In this situation, the spiritual and material needs of our people, their welfare, national interests are ignored by the authorities at all levels. There also appeared corruption, bribery and terrible bureaucracy in solving of any issues. And if all this was still not enough Ukraine is on the one of the first places in Europe for abortions, the speed of the spread of various diseases, crime, theft, alcoholism, drug addiction and unemployment. The rich become richer and the poor poorer. Many save themselves by the flee to other countries, where sometimes our people are more protected than in Ukraine. Who can bring order in our country? What power and which deputies we choose and how do they care "for Ukraine! For her freedom! for honor, for glory, for the people !!!». "That's, people where our glory, the glory of Ukraine is. Ukraine sank to the bottom – worse than the slaughtermen, its own children crucify it” - with pain in heart our national prophet and poet Taras Shevchenko mourns for Ukraine.
Holy Father Benedict XVI teaches that the Church is designed to expose mistakes that led to the current situation, and these are first of all, human greed and idolatry, which replaced the image of the true God for some mammon. Pope draws attention to the problem of original sin, because of which the human nature is wounded by egoism, which is the root of greed, while it is intended to subordinate the world. Therefore, only with the mind, without the light of faith, which penetrates through the darkness of original sin, it is difficult to find a way out. The responsibility of the Church is to point out these specific moral problems. Pope draws attention to the fact that solving of the major economic problems begins at a lower level - from the conversion of hearts. "If there is no righteous, then justice does not exist" - underlines the Holy Father, emphasizing the need to bring in equity, which, above all, is not an abstract concept, but the result of Christ's mission. A man becomes righteous only through the obedient everyday work over the conversion of heart.
Dear in Christ! God's mercy and care of the Blessed Virgin Mary about our sinful nation gives us so many opportunities for spiritual awakening, reinforcement of faith, repentance, remorse and sincere prayer. Let us take these opportunities to see the world differently: through the eyes of love, understanding, tolerance and respect.
We strongly believe that hot piety of our people to the Most Holy Virgin as their Patroness and Mediator, is the best guarantee that she will never leave our people and will intercede for us before her Son and beg from Him that great mercy for our hearts and to our native land, so there will again rule the kingdom of Her Son’s Love. Amen.
On this solemn occasion I give you, dear in Christ, my Archiereyal Blessing:
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father and the Holy Spirit come upon you and stay with you always, now and for ever!
Glory to Jesus Christ!
