This is an ongoing conversation with Bishop Bryan Bayda around issues related to faith, prayer and the Church. Open to anyone wanting to get to know Bishop Bryan and deepen your faith.
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Church as an Essential Service
Season 1 · Episode 7
Sunday, June 28, 2020 • Duration 14:30
Welcome to the Conversation with Bishop Bryan Bayda of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. During the Covid pandemic secular authorities have decreed that Church attendance is not an Essential Service. Bishop Bryan Bayda challenges this notion by claiming that Church provides individuals with the spiritual supports they need during times of stress. Following Bishop Bryan's comments we hear from Fr. Warren Dungen and Fr. Michael Hayes, both priests in the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, who address the issue of administering the sacraments in a time of pandemic. The Conversation takes place every Thursday night as a Zoom call; to join the Zoom call, or ask Bishop Bryan a question, send me, Subdeacon Shawn Goldman, an email at: sgmetanoia@gmail.com
The Jesus Prayer as taught in The Way of a Pilgrim
Season 1 · Episode 6
Thursday, June 25, 2020 • Duration 13:04
The Jesus Prayer is an ancient Christian prayer that has its origins in the monasteries of Syria, Israel and Egypt. The Jesus Prayer is a spiritual remedy to help heal our fragmented and stressed out souls and lead us to a true encounter with God. On this episode we will explore the Jesus prayer as taught in the 19th century spiritual classic: The Way of a Pilgrim. The text claims that we can move from prayer of the lips (verbal recitation) to 'prayer of the heart'. This method incorporates an awareness of one's own heart beat along with the breath and the words of the Jesus prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me." We begin with an awareness of the actual beating heart within the chest. The Fathers and Mothers of the Eastern Church see the heart as the spiritual meeting place of God and humanity. The purpose of saying the Jesus Prayer this way is to reintegrate our scattered and fallen consciousness back into the temple of the body. Our modern lives are highly stressful and fragmented, and the Jesus Prayer can help us to overcome our stress and anxiety, and lead us to true knowledge of God. Here are the instructions of the Staretz from The Way of a Pilgrim: "Picture to yourself your heart, turn your eyes to it just as though you were looking at it through your breast, and picture it as clearly as you can. And with your ears listen closely to its beating, beat by beat. When you have got into the way of doing this, begin to fit the words of the prayer to the beats of the heart one after the other, looking at it all the time. Thus with the first beat say or think “Lord”, with the second, “Jesus”, with the third, “Christ,” with the fourth, “have mercy,” and with the fifth “on me”. And do it over and over again. This will come easily to you, for you already know the first part of praying with the heart.
Afterward, when you have grown used to what I have just told you about, you must begin bringing the whole prayer of Jesus into and out of your heart in time with your breathing, as the Fathers taught. Thus, as you draw your breath in, say, or imagine yourself saying, “Lord Jesus Christ,” and as you breathe again, “have mercy on me.” Do this as often and as much as you can, and in a short space of time you will feel a slight and not unpleasant pain in your heart, followed by a warmth. Thus by God’s help you will get the joy of self-acting inward prayer of the heart. The holy Fathers lay down most strongly that inward prayer should be kept free from visions, lest one should fall into temptation." I hope you will join me on this exploration of our own deep heart to find the peace that we all deserve, the peace of God. God bless, and Glory to Jesus Christ!
Finding the Prayer of Peace with Deacon Shawn Panio
Season 1 · Episode 5
Saturday, June 13, 2020 • Duration 10:59
In this podcast we continue to explore the question of how to deepen our prayer lives. Deacon Shawn Panio talks about the peace of God we can find through prayer. Join our Thursday Zoom call, 7p.m. EST, with Bishop Bryan Bayda and clergy of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church; send me, Subdeacon Shawn Goldman, an email at: sgmetanoia@gmail.com
Prayer of Silence with Fr. Andrij Figol
Season 1 · Episode 4
Friday, June 12, 2020 • Duration 16:34
We continue the Conversation on deepening our prayer lives. Tonight we hear from Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest Father Andrij Figol. Father Andrij lives in Toronto, Canada and serves the parishes of Guelph and Cambridge. He and subdeacon Shawn are leading a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the summer of 2021 (email sgmetanoia@gmail.com). To join our Thursday Zoom calls email Subdeacon Shawn, or see the Facebook livestream @St.demetrius (7pm EST). Tonight, Fr. Andrij is going to introduce the concept of silent prayer which has a history in Eastern Christian monasticism and the Catholic Contemplative tradition. For Fr. Andrij, deepening our prayer lives is to encounter the God who is without end. God bless.
Prayer as Experiencing the Presence of God
Season 1 · Episode 3
Friday, June 12, 2020 • Duration 11:33
Bishop Bryan Bayda of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church responds to the question of how we can deepen our prayer lives. This podcast is part of "The Conversation" and is taken from an ongoing Zoom call that takes place every Thursday evening at 7pm EST. To view the Zoom call on a FaceBook livestream, go to the @st.demeteius Facebook page, or email me, Subdeacon Shawn Goldman at: sgmetanoia@gmail.com
Confronting racism in the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
Season 1 · Episode 2
Friday, June 5, 2020 • Duration 29:44
The issue of racism affects us all. After the murder of George Floyd by a white police officer, many conversations were started in our communities around the issue of racism. Tonight's conversation begins with a question from a parishioner whose family experienced racism in one of our parishes. Bishop Bryan opens his answer by instructing all of us to confront racism in our parishes when we encounter it, no matter how subtle the gesture or comment might be. He also emphasizes the fact that, as a member of a persecuted community, he can approach the issue of racism as a 'wounded healer'. Finally, Bishop suggests that, in part, we look at racism through the psychological lens of a phobia. Fr. Warren offers us insight on what it was like living in the deep South of the U.S. and cautions Canadians to not see racism simply as an American problem. Fr. Michael Hayes in Kenora gives witness to the ongoing racism he sees directed at Aboriginal people in northern Ontario, and states that the clergy must lead by example. Fr. Tom in Windsor frames the issue of racism within the larger context of the identity of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church: are we a global church open to all? Or are we an ethnic church, and how do we straddle identities. Finally, Father Richard Soo, a fourth generation Chinese Canadian priest, reminds us that racism is a sin ('ethno-philetism'). He closes by sharing with us his recollection of Patriarch Sviatoslav's call to see the UGCC as a global church that is a safe home to all- and that everyone's pain and suffering can fins refuge here. These conversations take place on Zoom every Thursday night at 7p.m. EST. These are conversations you can be a part of along with clergy and laity. Anyone can join. To do so please send me an email to: Sgmetanoia@gmail.com. I am sub-deacon Shawn Goldman, thank you for joining in the Conversation. God bless!
Invitation to the conversation with Bishop Bryan.
Season 1 · Episode 1
Friday, May 29, 2020 • Duration 02:04
This is an invitation to participate in an ongoing conversation with Bishop Bryan Bayda. The conversation has touched on matters of faith, life ethics, prayer, how to deepen our connection to God, and the meaning of life. Father Warren Dungen co-hosts the conversation with Bishop Bryan, and we have other guests on as well. The CONVERSATION with Bishop Bryan takes place as a Zoom call every Thursday night at 7pm EST. We are also livestreaming on @stdemetrius. If you want to join the Zoom call please send an email to sgmetanoia@gmail.com If you want to deepen your faith and build the Church, then you need to join the CONVERSATION.
