Ukrainian Catholics - De-Latinization of Ceremonies and Practices

De-Latinization of Ceremonies and Practices

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church previously embarked on a campaign of de-Latinization reforms. These include the removal of the stations of the cross, the rosary and the monstrance from their liturgy and parishes. In response a group, the Society of Saint Josaphat (abbreviated as SSJK) has formed, with a seminary in Lviv. It currently has thirty students enrolled and is affiliated with the Society of St. Pius X.

Critics claim that the SSJK's liturgical practice favours severely abbreviated services and imported Roman Catholic devotions over the traditional and authentic practices of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. Proponents counter that these symbols and rituals, influenced long ago by their Polish Roman Catholic neighbors, have been practiced by Ukrainian Greek Catholics for centuries. To deny them today is to deprive the people of a part of sacred heritage which they have learned to regard as their own.