The Icon of Saint Demetrius That United East and West, Frontline and Rear
Articles | | 748 | Author: By Nataliia Merkulova
Collage by Olena Zelenina.
This is an incredible story of how the icon of Saint Demetrius from the small Carpathian village of Zalaniv in the Ivano-Frankivsk region—painted by the renowned Ukrainian iconographer from Lviv, Professor Roman Vasylyk—visited numerous frontline military brigades along the line of contact in Eastern and Southern Ukraine. It also graced UGCC churches in many Ukrainian cities, including Kharkiv, before finally returning to its home parish in the Rohatyn district.
How the icon connected Western and Eastern Ukraine; the connection to Osyp Mykytka, the last legendary commander of the UGA (Ukrainian Galician Army); the legacy of the prominent UGCC Bishop Pavlo Vasylyk, a symbol of spiritual resilience who spent nearly 20 years in Soviet concentration camps; and the role of Bishop Ihor Isichenko, a key figure in the revival of the Ukrainian church and head of the St. Demetrius Church in Kharkiv.
All of this is explored in "Gromada’s" conversation with Oleksandr Kryvokon—Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor, and Chairman of the All-Ukrainian NGO "Warriors of Good." He is the initiator of the Saint Demetrius icon project and its pilgrimage through the churches of Ukraine and the front lines, carrying a mission to unite East and West, the front and the rear, and rural churches with great cathedrals.
Read more in the Ukrainian edition....
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