On Friday, May 23, the academic research conference
"Peresopnytsia Gospels - a shrine of the Ukrainian nation" took place, dedicated to the facsimile edition of the Peresopnytsia Gospels, carried out by the mutual efforts of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and National Academy of the National Academy of Science of Ukraine.
The session was opened by the elated singing of the Paschal troparion "Christ is risen - the participants, guests and the audience
- all those present sang together this festive hymn. Then the Primate of the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church Metropolitan Volodymyr blessed all those present and turned to
them with a word of greeting: "It is with a great pleasure that I greet you on
the issue of the facsimile edition of the Peresopnytsia Gospels. I express my
deepest gratitude to all those who worked on this great undertaking for the sake of glory of Ukraine and our
nation."
Right after the speech of His Beatitude the floor was taken by the president of
the National Academy of Science of Ukraine Boris Paton. The Gospels of
Peresopnytsia are one of the important stages of formation of the Ukrainian
standard language", he said in particular. "The
facsimile edition males it available for a wide range of readers. The Vernadsky
National Library preserves in its funds the manuscripts of unique value for the
history of the Ukrainian Orthodoxy, including those relating to the activity of
the famous Kyiv Mohyla Academy.
It opens wide perspectives for the joint
publication projects of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the Academy of Sciences
of Ukraine."
Academician Paton summed up his speech by the
following words: "Raise of science is raise of spirituality".
Thereafter the solemn presentation of a copy of the Peresopnytsia Gospels to
the President of NASU took place. An additional present of the
Primate of the UOC to the native science was a sum of 100 000 Hrn, which
was transferred to the account of the Vernadsky Library for the development and
practical embodiment of technologies of preserving ancient manuscript and old
prints. In his turn Boris Paton
gave His Beatitude a copy of a newly published atlas of Ukraine,
comprising more than 100 maps.
Secretary to the Primate of the UOC Bishop Alexander of Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyi suggested
adding a map of the dioceses of the UOC to these materials. He also mentioned that the copy of the
Peresopnytsia Gospels which was on the altar during the festive service of
Easter presided over by His Beatitude Metropolitan Volodymyr, was handed over
to the President of Ukraine. "It would
be great if he occupied the place in the Supreme Council beside the national
flag, reminding the people's deputies of keeping to the commandments of Christ", summed up Bishop Alexander.
The certificates for obtaining the presentation copies of the Peresopnytsia
Gospels were handed over to the following scientific institutions: Institute of
Ukrainian Language of the NASU, Taras Shevchenko Institute of Ukrainian
Literature of NASU, National Historical and Geographical Park "Pereyaslav" (it
was for the diocesan see of Pereyaslav
that the original of the Peresopnytsia shrine was prepared in the 17th
century), the Hetmanate Museum, National Literature Museum, National Historical
and Cultural Preserve of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, the Museum of the Ukrainian
Printing and the All Ukrainian Museums Association. The orders and certificates of merit were
issued to the benefactors and philanthropists who had taken part in the work
over the facsimile edition of the Peresopnytsia Gospels.
Thereafter the floor was given to the national theorist of literature, advisor
to the President of Ukraine academician Mykola Zhulynskyi and the Head of the
Synodal Department of the UOC "Church and Culture" Hegumeness Seraphima
(Shevchyk). Mr. Zhulynskyi
briefly summed up the latest results of the work and the achievements of the Academy of Science
and noted that the Peresopnytsia Gospels was to become a symbol of national
unity, consolidation and mutual responsibility for the future of Ukraine.
Hegumeness Seraphima spoke of the special spiritual
significance of the book publishing activity: "A book endows people with
inspiration, power, and spirit. In our times when different spiritual vectors spread
before Ukraine,
some of which lead to the West, and other to the East, and the rest - somewhere
else, but we must not loose sight of the main vector - the Gospels. The facsimile edition of the Peresopnytsia Gospels is meant to promote
it. Thanks God, nowadays the officials realize this Christian vocation of our
state. Recently the presentation of the Peresopnytsia Gospels in England took
place and now one of the copies will be placed next to the famous
archaeological treasure - the Sinai Bible of the 5th century, which
was discovered by the Kyiv scientist archimandrite Porphyriy (Uspenskyi)."
Hegumeness Seraphima (Shevchyk) also suggested all those
present visiting the exhibition "Spirituality Treasures" in the Teachers'
House, where rare and antique editions of books from the personal collection of
Metropolitan Volodymyr were displayed.
Doctor of Historical Science, Director of Archaeology Institute of NASU academician Peter Tolochko delivered a well-substantiated report on the subject "historical and cultural background
of creation of the Peresopnytsia Gospels".
He told of the difficulties of research of the manuscripts for a
historian, since it is difficult to determine univocally the specificity of the
historical context of its creation. The
authors of this first translation of the Scripture into Ukrainian were the
monks of Volyn Grygoriy
Peresponytskyi and Mykhailo Sanykskyi.
The worked with financial support of the philanthropists - princess Zaslavska
and the princes Chartoriysky.
The Geographical Peresopnytsia was a well-developed city in times of the Kyivan Rus,
having its own estate of princes, but in 1556-1561, when the translation was
carried out, it was a small provincial place on the way from Kyiv to
Volodymyr-Volynskyi. Petro Tolochko mentioned that Grygoriy
Peresponytskyi and Mykhailo Sanykskyi were contemporaries of Martin Luther and
Francisco Scorini, they were in formed on the events of the Reformation, knew
of the discussions on making Scripture
comprehensible for ordinary people. "The Peresopnytsia Gospels is a record of
our Ukrainian Renaissance", thus the academician concluded his speech.
Of special interest for those present was the report of Rector of the Kyiv Theological
Academy and Seminary Bishop Anthony
(Pakanych) "Historical and theological preconditions of creation of the
Peresopnytsia Gospels". He spoke
of the epochal significance of the
Peresopnytsia Gospels for the Orthodoxy which by that time had become a
religion of the masses, since the gentry and learned people for the most part
confessed Catholicism. "The text under consideration
manifests many feature of the folk phraseology. It is obvious that the
interpreters tried to make Gospels understandable for the common people, for
whom the Orthodoxy was the life and the essence of being, and who did not want
to accept Catholicism", said Vladyka
Anthony.
Then the following reports were delivered: by
Associate Professor of the Kyiv Theological Academy archpriest Vasyliy
Zaev delivered the report
"Translation of Scripture into Ukrainian since Peresopnytsia till
now", by Director of the Manuscript Institute of the Vernadsky National
Library of Ukraine L.A.Dubrovina "The Gospels of Peresopnytsia as a
prominent record of the Ukrainian spiritual culture and the history of its
investigation", by Doctor of Technical Science, professor, Director of the
Ukrainian information Language Centre of the NAS of Ukraine V.A. Shirokov
"The Gospels of Peresopnytsia as an object of computer palaeography",
by Candidate in Art Criticism G.M.Yukhymets ", by Candidate of Historical
Science O.M.Galchenko "The setting of the hand-written books in the ХVI-ХVІІ centuries on the books of Ukrainian origin and the Peresopnytsia
Gospels", The Gospels of Peresopnytsia as masterpiece of Ukrainian
Handwritten Booklore", by Director of The Ukrainian Language Institute of
the NASU P.Gritsenko "The Linguistic and Cultural Aspects of investigation of
the Peresopnytsia Gospels". In Particular, P.Gritsenko
mentioned that the Academy
of Science planned publishing
the facsimile edition of Metropolitan Peter Mohyla's Euchologion in cooperation with the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church.
Wonderful moderation of the conference is also noteworthy; it was carried out
by the academician culturologist Oleksiy Onyshchenko,
who was awarded the order of St. Nestor the Chronicler of the 2nd
level that day.
Ivan Verstyuk
for ORTHODOX.ORG.UA
Photos by the author
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