Pope Francis today received Ukrainian Prime Minister Arsenii Yatseniuk, who was subsequently received by Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin. The content of their discussions will be published in upcoming days. From the Vatican, Yatseniuk and his entourage travelled to the Basilica of St. Sophia on the Via Boccea, built by Ukrainian Confessor of the Faith, Cardinal Yosyf Slipyi (d. 1984), who had been condemned to 18 years in the gulag by Joseph Stalin. Slipyi was named a cardinal in pectore (in secret) by John XXIII a few years before his release in 1963. At St. Sophias. Prime Minister Yatseniuk and entourage will participate in a prayer for Ukraine and meet the local Ukrainian community. As head of the Ukrainian Government, Yatseniuk has come to represent Ukraine at the Canonizations of Popes John XXIII and John-Paul II Other members of the official Ukrainian delegation include Foreign Minister Andrii Deschytsya and the Mayor of Lviv Andrii Sadovyi, a city which JP2 visited during his 2001 trip to Ukraine.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Apr 2014 13:45:00 +0000
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