Your Holiness,

the Church reform must involve a reform of the clergy. Present-day priests have undergone heretical formation. The tragedy is that they do not regard it as heretical. These priests are atomized and bombarded with information behind which is the spirit of the world. Such priests have neither the light nor the strength to resist the spirit of the world and to witness to the Gospel in the power of God’s Spirit. A true reform requires conditions for conversion and spiritual life.

We pass on concrete experience of a 6-member group of men dedicated to God. Renewal of the Christian life entails celebration of Sunday as the Day of Resurrection and Day of Pentecost. In the celebration of Sunday are encompassed four biblical elements acc. Acts 2:42: 1) fellowship, 2) common prayers, 3) the apostles’ teaching, 4) the liturgy.

One can make an exception in the case of priests and orthodox bishops who can celebrate the Day of Resurrection on Monday. The community meets on Sunday evening. After a brotherly talk, there is time of rest at 22:00.

Monday: (a fast until supper)

6:00 to 7:00 – interior prayer in common (we live three events concerning Christ’s resurrection)

7:00 – time of sharing after the prayer (20-45 minutes)

8:00 to 9:00 – interior prayer (we relive the Pentecost in three truths)

9:00 – time of sharing after the prayer

10:00 – Liturgy

11:00 to 12:00 – interior prayer (we live three essential truths – perfect contrition, perfect love – the loss of one’s soul for the sake of Christ, and Christ’s testament from the cross)

12:00 – time of sharing after the prayer

12:30 to 13:00 – a so-called battle prayer (a concrete petition offered up with faith for 15 minutes and 15 minutes of singing as a form of thanksgiving)

13:00 to 15:00 – rest time

15:00 to 16:00 – interior prayer (we live three truths – the death of Christ, the resurrection of Christ and the descent of the Holy Spirit; before the last truth we read together the liturgical texts for the Sunday sermon, and then reflect upon them individually in prayer for 15 minutes)

16:00 to 17:00 – time of sharing after the reflection on God’s Word

17:00 to 17:30 – supper

17:30 to 19:30 – discussion on personal and pastoral problems

20:00 to 21:00 – the so-called holy hour (we recite the breviary together, pray some decades of the Rosary, or sing and pray freely or pray for one another)

21:00 – a priestly blessing given to 4 cardinal points (the believers pray the holy hour daily in their homes and receive this blessing)

22:00 – night rest

Tuesday:

6:00-7:00 interior prayer

7:00-7:20 time of sharing

7:30-8:15 Liturgy

8:25-8:45 breakfast

9:00-10:00 interior prayer

10:00-10:45 time of sharing

11:00-12:00 interior prayer

12:00-12:20 time of sharing

12:30-13:00 battle prayer

13:00-13:30 lunch and a close

Note: Models of interior prayer are available on www.uogcc.org.ua under the title of “Death and Resurrection of Christ” and in the book “Four Words from Ukraine”, Part I – Contemplative Prayer (www.community.org.ua).

Renewal of the Christian life is also connected with prayer stops 7 times a day. This is practised not only by all members of the priestly community but also by their faithful – when getting up, at 9:00, 12:00, 15:00, 18:00, 21:00 and before bedtime. All of them pray the so-called prayer of perfect contrition and perfect love to Jesus.

Your Holiness, we have presented to You a programme of a reform of the clergy. It consists of celebration of Sunday and prayer stops during the day. We believe that it will serve the good of many.

Praying for You,

             seven bishops of the Synod of the Ukrainian orthodox Greek-Catholic Church.