Saint-Julien SK Saint Mary the Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church 1904

Saint-Julien, SK, Saint Mary the Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church, 1904

Saint-Julien may be spelt Saint Julien, Saint Julian.

Prehistory

The early settlement of the region of Central Saskatchewan, Canada, began with the establishment of fur-trade forts in the region near Duck Lake and what is now Prince Albert. The settlement of Saint-Julien is located about 30 km northeast of the village of Alvena. In 1784, Peter Pangman an English-speaking independent fur-trader from Montréal, Lower Canada (Québec), established “Fort des Isles” on the South Saskatchewan River. Since this was a period of intense competition, another fort was soon established nearby by William Holmes of the Northwest Company. Then, in 1785, William Holmes established “Fort de l’Isle” of the Northwest Company, opposite the Hudson Bay Company’s newly-established Manchester House (near Pike’s Peak, Saskatchewan).

The fur-trade was very competitive in the region, and the companies involved operated from Montréal. Thus, the first settlers in the region were French-Canadians and Francophone. Before long, there were many Métis, as well as the original the Plains Cree, Woodland Cree, Swampy Cree, Dakota, and Dene peoples of this region.

The earliest Christian presence in the region of Fish Creek was the Roman Catholic Church. It was located at Batoche, and worshippers travelled there until another church was erected in 1901 in the Métis settlement along the South Saskatchewan River, 3 miles north of the site of what was the Battle of Fish Creek (at Tourond's Coulée) in 1885.

The first Christian services in the area seems to have occurred in Fort Carlton in 1838. French-Canadian Roman Catholic missionaries served the people of the area beginning in 1870. This was, indeed, the pattern throughout the North-West Territories wherever the fur-traders were active.

The Village of Alvena is situated in the Rural Municipality of Fish Creek No. 402 and they are located about 66 km (41 mi) northeast from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. It is also about 75 km (45 mi) north of Meacham, Saskatchewan, and the parish of All Saints is there.

Saint-Julien is situated about 32 km (20 mi) northeast of Alvena (and about 18 km/11 mi northwest of Wakaw).

Saint Julien and its environs were settled originally by a large number of immigrants from France, and Belgium in 1900, and the post office and community was named for the Belgian town of St-Julien. Soon afterwards, a large number of homesteaders from Ukraine arrived in the area, and they established a lasting presence in the region, even though there was and is a strong Francophone presence in that district.

In principle, the majority of the Slavic newcomers originated in the region of Galicia (Halychina), which at that time was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. However, others arrived from the province of Bucovina, Romania, which was also under that imperial authority in those days.

As usual, one of the first projects for the new homesteaders was the establishment of a place of worship, since the Orthodox Christian Faith was at the heart of their whole life and way of life.

At that time, it was the “Russian Orthodox Mission in North America” which provided the majority of pastoral care ; and its Diocese of New York and the Aleutian Islands enabled the civilian corporate status of the various communities.

Establishment of the parish ; First Temple

In 1903, 5 acres of land were donated by Mihailo Lysak from his quarter-section for the purpose of establishing Temple of Saint Mary the Protectress (Protection of the Theotokos), and for the original cemetery.

The location is at Saint-Julien (SW 20-42-28-W2. This is on the "correction line" road, about 1 mile south of the current Highway #312. This Temple is located just west of what is now called the 3rd Meridian Road.

The first pastor of the parish was Archpriest Hryhory (Gregory) Pihach, himself an immigrant from Bucovina (at that time a Romanian province, later divided between Ukraine and Romania). He, and his wife Sophia lived the remainder of their lives in the parish, and they were interred in the new cemetery after their repose in Christ.

The original Temple was used from 1903 until 1912.

The first baptism was Wasyl Bukurak (born 14 January, 1904) to Elko and Anna Bukurak, who had settled at their homestead in 1897.

The first wedding was on 4 February, 1904. The marriage was between Michalo Burdego and Paraska Zaleschuk.

Second Temple

By then, the community was ready and able to construct a new, and larger Temple. Dmytro Michayluk donated 5 acres of his land on the South-East quarter-section for the purpose. This was ½ mile east of the First Temple and cemetery.

In 1913, the new Temple was sanctified, and this Temple has remained in use ever since.

Unrelated neighbouring Temple

There is also another church building about 2.5 km (1.5 mi), on the north side of Highway #312 (SW 28-42-28-W3), called the “Independent Greek Church of Canada” which functioned from 1907 to 1915. This entity was a Presbyterian imitation of Orthodoxy ; but in reality, it was Protestant. It was developed from the highly irregular attempts of the so-called Metropolitan Seraphim (Istvolsky), and his early followers. This site is also called “Sniatin” (named after a town in Halychina.

During many of these years, a movement was underway towards the development of a Ukrainian Orthodox Church that would use the Ukrainian language. This movement was in part related to a broader, wider-reaching movement of believers who had rediscovered the Orthodox Faith away from the Ukrainian Catholic Church which for several hundred years had subsisted under the Pope of Rome.

Establishment of the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of Canada, 1918

The first sobor (Church assembly) which formed the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of Canada took place on 28 December, 1918, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. This sobor was concerned to provide Orthodox Christian worship to the believers in the Ukrainian language instead of in Church Slavonic. The Ukrainian Brotherhood found a temporary bishop in the person of Metropolitan Germanos (Shehadi), who was a missionary metropolitan of the Antiochian Orthodox Church in the USA. He continued to oversee the early development of the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of Canada from the USA until 1924.

First 3 Ukrainian Greek Orthodox parishes

It was also at that time that the Ukrainian Orthodox Parish of the Holy Dormition in Meacham, Saskatchewan, became one of the first 3 parishes of the newly-established UGOCC. Holy Trinity Cathedral in Saskatoon had been the very first of the parishes. Saint Mary the Protectress, about 66 km northeast of Saskatoon, was the other such parish.

On 9 March, 1925, the parish was re-organised and established within the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of Canada.

The first pastor of this parish, Archpriest Gregory (Hrihory) Pihach, remained in this parish until his repose in Christ in 1938. His body was interred in the new cemetery. His wife, Sophia Pihach, reposed in 1940, and her body was interred in the same cemetery.

Third Temple

On 19 July, 1947, it was decided to construct a new Temple for the parish. On 1 October, 1950, the new Temple was sanctified by Archpriest Dr. S V Sawchuk.

The third Temple

A parish hall was constructed at the east end of the Temple.

With the general decrease in population in this region, the local post office at St-Julien was closed in 1969.

Change of status of the UGOCC in 1990

In 1990, the “Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of Canada” was officially renamed “The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada” (UOCC) by an Act of Parliament.

In 1990, the 18th Sobor of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada in Winnipeg, Manitoba, decided to enter into Eucharistic Union with the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople (Istanbul). This decision also changed the relationship with the other Orthodox dioceses and parishes in Canada in a positive way.

Rural depopulation

As became the case everywhere on the Canadian prairies, during the 1930s, there began a steady reduction in the population. The Great Drought of that decade was a major factor. However, the availability of machines reduced the physical labour required for farming. As a consequence, the process of consolidating and merging of farms began. Subsistence family farming began to fade away. This process continued steadily after World War II with the development of commercial farming and the establishing of farms as businesses as they became larger and larger units.

Holy Protectress Temple, Saint-Julien

Centennial of the UOCC, 2018

In 2018, the 100th anniversary of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada and also of Holy Trinity Cathedral were marked at an extraordinary sobor (assembly) at the cathedral in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

The purpose of the sobor was to celebrate 100 years of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada. The celebrations were attended by Ukrainian Orthodox faithful from across Canada and beyond.

The Sobor began on Thursday, 9 August, 2018, with a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy in the Chapel of Saint Petro Mohyla Institute, presided by Bishop Andriy (Peshko) of the Eastern Eparchy, with the responses sung by the Clergy led by Father Michael Lomaszkiewicz. This was followed by an All-Canada Clergy Conference.

Centennial Clergy Conference

All gathered for Vespers at the Mohyla Institute Chapel and this was followed by a wine and cheese reception as the delegates and guests registered for the Extraordinary National Council.

The celebrations continued for a year.

2020-2021 Coronavirus-19 virus restrictions on parishes

In early 2020, the Covid-19 virus made its appearance in Canada, and it quickly became a world-wide pandemic. Because of the rules governing gatherings that were laid down by the provincial and city governments, the parish stopped any further services after 8 March, 2020. Including the rules regarding social distancing, the decreasing numbers permitted for any gathering, and the considerations regarding the health of all concerned, this and other parishes were required to close for a time.

As elsewhere, there was some controversy about the legal requirements.

Election of Metropolitan Ilarion II (Rudnyk), 2022

Election of a nominee by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada

On 15-19 June, 2022, the 24th Sobor of the Ukrainian Orthodox of Canada was convened "on-line". This conference-meeting was convened thus instead of convening physically (as customarily) in Winnipeg, Manitoba. There were 6 cathedrals in Canada where this meeting took place simultaneously through a computer-network : in Winnipeg, Manitoba (Holy Trinity Metropolitan Cathedral) ; Vancouver, British Columbia (Holy Trinity Cathedral) ; in Edmonton, Alberta (Saint John's Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral) ; in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Holy Trinity Cathedral) ; in Toronto, Ontario (Saints Vladimir and Olga Cathedral) ; in Montréal, Québec (Saint Sophie Cathedral).

There was a total of 205 delegates, which was near the average attendance for such sobors.

In the course of the work of the Sobor, there was the necessary election in order to nominate to the Holy Synod of the Church of Constantinople a candidate for election as Archbishop of Winnipeg and Metropolitan of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada, who would succeed the Retired Metropolitan Yurij (Kalistchuk).

There were 3 candidates who were considered : Archbishop Job (Getcha), Bishop Ilarion (Rudnyk), and Bishop Andriy (Peshko). The final choice of the members of the sobor was Archbishop Job (Getcha). He had received more than the minimum required 51% of the votes, and there was no subsequent voting required.

The election by the Sobor (Assembly) of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada then had to be confirmed by the Holy Synod of Bishops of Constantinople (as is described in the Consistory By-laws).

Upon having received the nomination (with accompanying documents) from the Sobor of the UOCC, the Holy Synod of the Church of Constantinople elected Vladyka Ilarion (Rudnyk) to become Archbishop of Winnipeg and Metropolitan of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Canada.

The Holy Synod of the Church of Constantinople elected Archbishop Job (Getcha) to become Metropolitan of Pisidia, in west-central Türkiye (Turkey), north of Lycia, and east of Ephesus.

Confirmation of election in Constantinople/Istanbul, 2022

On 29 August, 2022, Vladyka Ilarion (Rudnyk) was at the Phanar in Constantinople for the purpose of the first confirmation of the election in June, 2022. He co-served the Divine Liturgy with Patriarch Bartholomew (Archontonis) in the Cathedral of Saint George at the Phanar.

Enthronement as Metropolitan of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada, 2022

On Saturday, 19 November, 2022, at 9:30 a.m., in Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the Enthronement Hierarchical Divine Liturgy was served. Metropolitan Ilarion (Rudnyk) presided at the Divine Liturgy. He was assisted by Bishop Andriy (Peshko), many priests, several deacons, subdeacons and Altar-servers. Present also were Metropolitan Archbishop Sotirios (Athanassoulas), Exarch of Canada for the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and Retired Metropolitan Yurij (Kalistchuk), Former Metropolitan of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada.

Metropolitan Ilarion (Rudnyk) at the Phanar, Istanbul, 2023

On Sunday, 2 July, 2023, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (Archontonis) was present and praying during the Divine Liturgy at Saint George's Cathedral in the Patriarchate compound. He gave the blessing that Metropolitan Ilarion (Rudnyk) preside ("horostasia") over the Divine Liturgy. Metropolitan Job (Getcha) of Pisidia, Bishop Athenagoras (Ziliaskopoulos) of Nazianzos, and the Honourable Roman Nedilskyi, General Consul of Ukraine in Constantinople were also present and praying with the congregation of the Faithful.

Change of calendar for the UOCC, 2023

On 1 December, 2023, in accordance with the resolutions of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada, Metropolitan Ilarion II (Rudnyk) announced that, effective that day, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada moved to use the New (Revised Julian) Calendar. He allowed that for a brief period of time, a parish might remain on the Old (Julian) Calendar.

It seems that subsequently, John's Cathedral in Edmonton, Alberta, was the first to adopt the New (Revised Julian) Calendar.

However, a previously-existing group of persons began to encourage resistance to the immediacy of this change. It was their understanding that the process would be determined ultimately and finally at the next general sobor of the UOCC. Therefore, on 16 December, 2023, Metropolitan Ilarion issued a formal letter concerning the situation, together with a letter of support sent to him by his predecessor (Retired Metropolitan Yurij (Kalistchuk)). He called the resisters to repentance.

Further depopulation

As the decades passed, the population of resident Ukrainian Orthodox persons in the region of Meacham continued to decline. Either the elderly fell asleep in the Lord, or younger people moved away for the purpose of study and/or work.

Priests who served the parish 1900-1968

Archpriest Gregory Pihach ; Priests (unknown) Kizun ; C V Sawchuk ; V Kudrik ; P Melnichuk ; P Sametz ; I Maiba ; E Hritsina ; F Kernitsky ; K Zhelishkevich ; V Aponiuk ; Iu. Turzhansky ; M Stetsenko ; T Slavchenko.

First Saint Mary Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Cemetery (Old), 1902

The original cemetery of Saint Mary the Protectress was established in 1902, in which year the first interment occurred. As with the Temple, the land was donated by Michalo Lysak.

Land description : SW 20-42-28 W2 in the Rural Municipality (RM) of Fish Creek.

This is the older cemetery for the Ukrainian Orthodox parish of Saint Mary the Protectoress. The newer cemetery is located about one half mile further east and north of the church buildings.

The first person interred in the original cemetery was Dokia Budzak in 1902, who was at that time 85 years old.

Original cemetery

Aerial view

Saint Mary Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Cemetery (New), 1913

The second cemetery for the Ukrainian Orthodox parish of Saint Mary the Protectress is located north of the church buildings.

The first interments in this cemetery were in 1913.

The iron gate to the cemetery was dedicated to the memory of Larry Oleksyn.

Entrance gate to the cemetery

From the existing writings available about this parish, there seems to be a confusion about the date of the foundation of this cemetery. At least one document indicates its establishment in 1922.

Many of the early deaths in the other cemeteries in the region (not in this one) occurred in 1918 or 1919, the years that the Spanish flu epidemic hit this area. It is suggested that "This virus was most detrimental to the 20 to 40 years age group, where the survival rate was 50%" and one in four families were infected. The monument in the center of this cemetery bears only the inscription 1919. One writer presumed it was erected in relation to the many deaths as a result of the Spanish flu epidemic. However, the available list of names in the cemetery do not reflect this date, although there is an interment given for 1922, perhaps suggested in association with the move to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada.

The older cemetery is located about one-half mile farther west of the church buildings.

Saint Mary the Protectress Temple

Particular parish information

This parish is part of the Wakaw-Melfort-Nipawin Region of the Central Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada. The bishop is Metropolitan Ilarion II (Rudnyk).

This parish follows the New (Revised Julian) Calendar.

The Altar-Feast Day of this parish is the Feast of the Protection of the Mother of God, 1 October.

In 2025, the pastor of the parish is the Archpriest Patrick Powalinsky.

Address :

Saint Mary the Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church

Land description site : SW 20-42-28-W2 (52° 43' 0" N, 105° 52' 4" W)

Rural Municipality of Fish Creek No. 402

Saskatchewan

Aerial view of Saint Mary the Protectress Church

Directions :

Saint-Julien is located southeast of Batoche, in the Rural Municipality of Fish Creek No. 402. It is near the locality of Sokal, which is near the village of Saint-Isidore de Bellevue in the Rural Municipality of Saint-Louis No. 431.

Saint Mary the Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church is located at Saint Julien (SW 20-42-28-W2, on the “correction line” road, about 2 km (1 m) south of the current Highway #312. This Temple is located just west of what is now called the “3rd Meridian Road”.

Contact information :

Telephone : (306) 382-1510

Telephone : (306) 382-1580

E-mail : ppowalinsky@sasktel.net

References

Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada reference for Saint Mary the Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church

Orthodox World reference for Saint Mary the Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church

Yereniuk, Professor Roman, “Short Historical Outline of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada” (UOCC)

Additional information :

Bush, Peter, “The Independent Greek Church in Canada, 1903–1912 : A Middle Ground on the Canadian Prairies between Ukrainian Immigrants and Presbyterianism” (Hungarian Journal of English and American Studies, Vol.28, No 2 (2 December, 2022))”.

“Collection of Material Relating to the 50th Anniversary of the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of Canada, 1918-1968” (Winnipeg : Consistory of the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of Canada, 1968).

Hawrish, Andrew, “Commemorating Pioneers of the First Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of St. Julien, Sask.” (1967) (Available at the Saskatchewan Archives).

Sametz, William, “My father the priest : the life and times of the Very Reverend Dr. Peter Sametz : founding missionary priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada” (Toronto : Hypertex Plus, 2008). ISBN : 978-0-9696700-5-6.

Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada web-site

Central Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada

Wikipedia article about the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada

Orthodoxwiki article about the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral, 1918

Church of Constantinople web-site

Orthodoxwiki article about the Church of Constantinople

Patriarch Bartholomew (Archontonis)

Metropolitan Germanos (Shehadeh)

Metropolitan John (Theodorovych)

Bishop Mstyslav (Skrypnyk)