«I Learn from Young People Every Day». The Bishop Bryan on Faith, Responsible Citizenship, and the ProLis Experience

For a week, Bishop Bryan Bayda, Chairman of the Patriarchal Commission for Youth of the UGCC, took part in the ProLis Christian youth camp. Together with the participants, the Bishop prayed daily, reflected on the Word of God, celebrated Hierarchical Divine Liturgies at the church in the village of Mshanets, preached, and actively participated in the camp’s program. The camp provided young people with a unique opportunity to spend time and engage in meaningful conversations with the Bishop, while also giving the Bishop the opportunity to evangelize through shared prayer, teaching, fellowship, and a wide range of camp activities.

What was the most valuable part of your experience at the camp?

— The most valuable thing in this experience was being with the Body of Christ manifested in the Young Adults at the camp. God continues to show me the importance of being present to others, especially the youth. To learn of their challenges and how they struggle as well as the blessings they have recognized in their lives is always a gift of hope to me. I learn from them every day. God is present to me in many ways, but when He presents Himself in young people, it is always very special.

How can a Christian demonstrate his conscious citizenship in everyday life?

— God created each of us with gifts that make us the same as human beings but also make us unique individual persons. Fr. Pendiuk referred to the late Patriarch Husar when sharing about Freedom and Responsibility.

To be a good citizen is to acknowledge and treasure the freedom God gives us with free will and conscience, a soul and a body. Yet the other side of the coin is that responsibilities come with this freedom. It is always a freedom to do good and to serve a brother or sister in Christ and ultimately to serve God. When we receive insight from the Holy Spirit and work out the significance of a great idea that serves the community, then it must be acted upon. To love one another is also to be a good citizen every day.

How can the Church support young people in forming a responsible attitude towards society and the state?

— When I meet with young school children ages 6–15 I remind them that the church is a place to celebrate the many good things God has done and continues to do in our lives as we journey to salvation. The church acts sometimes as a place of interpretation and understanding, the same way children might visit an interpretive center in a national park.

People come to church to find answers to deep questions of meaningfulness in life. Why is there suffering in the world? What is good and what is evil? What is God’s plan of salvation when we see the earth and environment around us? How can people show respect for each other, forgive one another and support one another spiritually and materially? One thing the church offers us is answers to these difficult questions.

The people in society and those of the state need to recognise and defend fundamental human dignity. Our dignity is a gift given to us by God. ProLis is a camp where we want to form future leaders to understand the context of our society and state which is always at the service of God. Without God, simple humanitarianism is leaving the dignity of a person incomplete.

Serving one another is great, but without understanding the profound context of salvation, the continued ministry of Christ and the reason for personal sacrifice. People don’t merely have a right to life. Rather, they have a duty to preserve the dignity of life as children of God.

What are your impressions of your stay at the ProLis camp?

— To temporarily take yourself away from familiar surroundings helps a person mentally and physically. The location of the camp in the Galician Mountains is ideal and offers more than simply reflecting at a retreat centre or in a chapel. The combination of praying in a church, have daily walks in nature, allowing the beauty of scenery and sounds and smells, meditating on a mountain top and seeing visually God’s grandeur is a powerful combination.

ProLis is the place for this to happen. It is where a person can grow to understand their identity spiritually, nationally and culturally. The lectures that accompany the location and the intellectual interaction with professionals about profound matters in life, especially during a war, are extremely stimulating. The good food, spectacular location, the deep spiritual accompaniment and the restful accommodations are a wonderful recipe for healing and learning. I absolutely loved my stay.