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THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE ARCHEPARCHY OF PITTSBURGH
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great and holy pascha
NEW LEADERSHIP
Sisters of St. Basil the Great in Uniontown, Pa. hold Chapter election Page 3
Churches across the Archeparchy celebrate the Radiant Resurrection Page 4 to 13
Ties that bind
CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE:
Archbishop William Skurla and Very Rev. Andrew Deskevich (left) during Easter procession at St. John the Baptist Cathedral in Munhall, Pa.; Easter egg hunt at St. Michael in Campbell, Ohio; Easter Vigil procession at St. Gregory in Upper St. Clair, Pa.; and Father Kevin Marks blesses baskets at St. Michael in Campbell, Ohio.
Christ’s victory over death proclaims a second chance for all, pope says “risen from the dead, jesus never ceases to amaze us”
VATICAN CITY — The Easter liturgies — with the fire, sharing of light from the paschal candle, the renewal of baptismal promises and the proclamation that Jesus has risen — assure people that it is never too late to start again, Pope Francis said. “It is always possible to begin anew, because there is a new life that God can awaken in us in spite of all our failures,” the pope said April 3 during his celebration of the Easter Vigil. With Italy in lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Pope Francis celebrated a pared-down vigil at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter’s Basilica with an estimated 200 people present and returned the next morning with
a similarly small congregation for Easter Mass and to give his blessing “urbi et orbi” (to the city and the world). The vigil was simpler than usual, but there still was the blessing of the fire, which blazed at the foot of the basilica’s main altar, and the lighting of the Easter candle. Then, the darkened basilica slowly began to glow with the light of candles being shared by the concelebrants and the faithful present. In his homily at the vigil, the pope said the Gospel proclamation of the resurrection and the angel’s invitation to the women at Jesus’ tomb to “go to Galilee” was a call to return to “the place where the Lord first sought them out and called them to follow him.” Although his followers often misunderstood Jesus and even
NO. 5
MAY 2021
thoughts for our day Archpriest David Petras discusses “The Anaphora: We Remember the Departed” Page 15
eternal memory
after spending pascha 2020 apart, parishes of the archeparchy welcome faithful for holy week, easter
by Junno Arochio Esteves and Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service
VOL. 66
abandoned him “in the face of the cross,” he still urges them to “begin anew,” the pope said. “In this Galilee,” the pope said, “we learn to be amazed by the Lord’s infinite love, which opens new trails along the path of our defeats.” The pope said the call to return to Galilee also means to set out on a new path, away from the tomb and from indulging in grief. Like those at the tomb, he said, “many people experience such a ‘faith of memories,’ as if Jesus were someone from the past, an old friend from their youth who is now far distant, an event that took place long ago, when they attended catechism as a child.” “Let us go to Galilee, then, to Story continued on page 14
sister agnes helen knapik, o.s.b. Sister Agnes Helen Knapik, O.S.B., fell asleep in the Lord on April 7, 2021 at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Youngstown, Ohio. She was a Benedictine Nun of the Byzantine Rite from Queen of Heaven Monastery in Warren, Ohio for more than 60 years. Sister Agnes was born to Stephen and Mary Kunak Knapik in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on July 10, 1936. She entered into formation in religious life at Sacred Heart Monastery in Lisle, Ill. on Sept. 8, 1960. The community moved to Warren, and she made her final profession in the Order of St. Benedict at SS. Peter and Paul Byzantine Catholic Church on Aug. 20, 1967. A graduate with a Master’s degree from Fordham University in New York, she was a dedicated educator, teaching at St. Peter and Paul parish school from 1965 to 2005, and in the catechetical ministry at St. Michael parish, Hermitage, Pa. and St. Mary parish, Youngstown, Ohio. Sister Agnes served her Sisters in community as Prioress from 1981 to 1989 and she also held the following positions: formation director, vocation director, secretary and Director of the Oblates of St. Benedict. She fulfilled the position of Victims Assistance Coordinator for the Archeparchial Safe Environment Program, having been appointed Story continued on page 14
Sister Agnes Helen Knapik, O.S.B.