Ukrainian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church
Encyclopedia
The Ukrainian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church (UOGCC) is an Eastern Christian
movement established in 2009 and based at Pidhirtsi
in Ukraine. Its seven founding bishops were formerly priests of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
and members of the Order of Saint Basil the Great
.
in Czechoslovakia
circa 1971. After military service, he served as a parochial vicar in Slušovice and Budišov, promoting spiritual revival. Active in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal
since 1981, he fought against the tolerance of occultism and promoted prayer groups. In 1986 he was assigned to a "prison for nuns", and kept as a virtual prisoner. From 1987 to 1990 he served at Dvorce
, continuing with samizdat
writings against liberal theology and occultism. In 1991, together with students R. Spirik and J. Spirik, he resolved to join the Greek-Catholic Order of Saint Basil the Great
(OSBM) and entered the novitiate
in Warsaw
. In 1992, he transferred to the monastery in Trebišov
. Spirik and two other former students were ordained priests during 1996-1997. Shortly after, Dohnal applied for permission to found a "contemplative" branch of the OSBM community.
In 1997, Fr. Dionysius Lachovicz OSBM (born in Brazil
in 1946), the General Superior of the Basilian order, granted the group permission to be designated as an "experimental community" within the Order under his direct supervision. He appointed the group's leader Elias Dohnal, OSBM, to direct the formation of the novices in the group, men who had been rejected by the Order's novitiate in Poland. In May 1998, after complaints and a canonical visitation, he withdrew permission for the community's special status. The group appealed to the Congregation for the Oriental Churches
for permission to establish an autonomous monastery within the territory of the Archeparchy of Prešov
(Slovakia
) against the will of its bishop, Ivan Hirka. Lachovicz confirmed the suppression in December 1998, and the community members were dispersed to other assignments.
In late 1999, at the request of the Greek-Catholic Apostolic Exarch in the Czech Republic
Ivan Ljavinec for a Basilian community, and with the agreement of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Prague, Cardinal Vlk, Lachovicz founded a Basilian community in Prague
, assigning to it Fr. Cyril Špiřík, his brother Fr. Metoděj R. Špiřík and their former classmate Fr. Markian Hitiuk from Ukraine, to serve at the cathedral parish in Prague
. In 2003, the Basilians and their supporters protested against the appointment of a new Greek-Catholic exarch in the Czech Republic, Ladislav Hučko, a non-Ukrainian, by blockading the Greek-Catholic cathedral. As a result, the event was relocated to be held in a Roman Catholic church. In 2004, Lachovicz was not re-elected. His successor closed the Order's community in the Czech Republic, transferring the members to the monastery in Pidhirtsi
, Ukraine.
that he and three other Basilian Fathers had been consecrated as bishops in order to "save" the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) from heresy and apostasy. Dohnal did not identify the bishop or bishops who had performed the consecration. In justification for the act, he wrote that the bishops of the UGCC supported influences of syncretism and occultism, approval of homosexuality, and erroneous ecumenism. As an example of the latter, he cited the Balamand declaration
of 1993, which had rejected "uniatism" as a method of seeking Christian unity between Catholics and Orthodox. In his letter, Dohnal denounced statements from Cardinal Husar's book "Conversations with Cardinal Lubomyr Husar: On post-confessional Christianity" as schismatic and apostate.
According to a 2008 article in kreuz.net, the conflict was "foreseeable" and arose from tensions between the Studite and Basilian orders of monks in the UGCC: that the Studites, including the Major Archbishop of Kiev–Galicia, Lubomyr Cardinal Husar, favored closer relations with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, while the Basilians favored the preservation of influences from the Latin Church (Liturgical latinisation
).
On Easter Sunday, March 23, 2008, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
released a statement from Cardinal Husar warning that any consecration that had taken place was not recognized by the Church.
In June 2008 the tribunal
of the Eparchy of Sokal-Zhovkva
held an ecclesiastical trial for the four priests. They were convicted of illegal assumption of authority and illegal administration of ministry (violation of can. 1462 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches
(CCEO)), inciting rebellion against the local hierarchy, including Bishop Mykhail Koltun, C.SS.R., Major Archbishop Lubomyr Cardinal Husar (violation of can. 1447 §1 CCEO), and causing injustice and serious harm to the good reputation of the above-mentioned persons and to other hierarchs of the UGCC through slander (violation of can. 1452 CCEO). The penalty imposed was major excommunication
. After an appeal, the sentence was upheld by the tribunal of the major archeparchy and announced on September 17, 2008.
On October 7, 2008, the Apostolic Signatura
, the highest appeals court of the Catholic Church, refused to accept the appeal of the "Pidhirtsi fathers", and left the sentence of major excommunication imposed by the UGCC major-archiepiscopal tribunal intact.
On August 15, 2008, Pidhirtsi supporters attempted unsuccessfully to occupy a church administration building in Stryi
, Ukraine. Fr. Taras Poshyvak, chancellor of the Stryi eparchy
, said that the "regional leadership of the police" was interfering and preventing normal police protection of the building.
The name of the Church includes the description Правовірна ("true-believing"). Although the Church's English-language website translates this word as "Orthodox", it is not the same term as that used by the existing Orthodox Churches present in Ukraine, whose names use the term православна ("true-worshiping").
In November 2010, a group of about 70 UOGCC supporters, including leaders Metoděj Richard Špiřík and Markian Vasyl Hitiuk, clashed with parishioners at the UGCC Church of the Transfiguration in Chortkiv in an apparent attempt to occupy the church.
, and declared that over 2200 bishops worldwide had excommunicated themselves by failing to respond to demands of the UOGCC. The declaration asserted that the bishops affected would thenceforth be unable to validly ordain priests. It also called for Pope Benedict XVI
to purge the hierarchy, institute reforms, and resign.
On April 7, 2011 the bishops of the UOGCC declared an excommunication against Pope Benedict XVI on May 1, 2011.
(born 1946 in Hluk
) was elected as first Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate. He was elected by the Bishops’ Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church in an extraordinary assembly of 5 April 2011, on the day of establishment of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate.
Elijah was ordained priest in 1972 in the Czech Republic and joined the OSBM Order and changed rite in 1991. He has a doctorate in theology from Charles University
, Prague
and lectured dogmatics
in Prešov
, Slovakia
.
He was consecrated archbishop in 2009 and held the title of Vicar. He was appointed Byzantine Catholic Patriarch through election and the imposition of hands by the Bishops’ Synod headed by Archbishop Michael Osidach on 5 April 2011.
Other bishops:
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity comprises the Christian traditions and churches that developed in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, Northeastern Africa, India and parts of the Far East over several centuries of religious antiquity. The term is generally used in Western Christianity to...
movement established in 2009 and based at Pidhirtsi
Pidhirtsi
Pidhirtsi is a village of about 1000 inhabitants in the Lviv Oblast of Ukraine, located about 80 km east of Lviv, 17 km south of Brody, 60 km north west of Ternopil, at around...
in Ukraine. Its seven founding bishops were formerly priests of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church , Ukrainska Hreko-Katolytska Tserkva), is the largest Eastern Rite Catholic sui juris particular church in full communion with the Holy See, and is directly subject to the Pope...
and members of the Order of Saint Basil the Great
Order of Saint Basil the Great
The Order of St. Basil the Great also known as the Basilian Order of Saint Josaphat is an monastic religious order of the Greek Catholic Churches that is present in many countries and that has its Mother House in Rome. The order received approbation on August 20, 1631...
.
Movement within the Basilian order
Anthony Elias Dohnal, born 1946, was ordained as a priest for the Roman Catholic Diocese of LitoměřiceRoman Catholic Diocese of Litomerice
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Litoměřice is a diocese located in the city of Litoměřice in the Ecclesiastical province of Prague in the Czech Republic.-History:* July 3, 1655: Established as Diocese of Litoměřice from Metropolitan Archdiocese of Praha...
in Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
circa 1971. After military service, he served as a parochial vicar in Slušovice and Budišov, promoting spiritual revival. Active in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal
Catholic Charismatic Renewal
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is a movement within the Catholic Church. Worship is characterized by vibrant Masses, as well as prayer meetings featuring prophecy, healing and "praying in tongues." This movement is based on the belief that certain charismata , bestowed by the Holy Spirit, such as...
since 1981, he fought against the tolerance of occultism and promoted prayer groups. In 1986 he was assigned to a "prison for nuns", and kept as a virtual prisoner. From 1987 to 1990 he served at Dvorce
Dvorce
Dvorce is a settlement to the southeast of Čatež ob Savi in the Brežice municipality in eastern Slovenia. The area was traditionally part of Lower Carniola. It is now included with the rest of the municipality in the Spodnjeposavska statistical region....
, continuing with samizdat
Samizdat
Samizdat was a key form of dissident activity across the Soviet bloc in which individuals reproduced censored publications by hand and passed the documents from reader to reader...
writings against liberal theology and occultism. In 1991, together with students R. Spirik and J. Spirik, he resolved to join the Greek-Catholic Order of Saint Basil the Great
Order of Saint Basil the Great
The Order of St. Basil the Great also known as the Basilian Order of Saint Josaphat is an monastic religious order of the Greek Catholic Churches that is present in many countries and that has its Mother House in Rome. The order received approbation on August 20, 1631...
(OSBM) and entered the novitiate
Novitiate
Novitiate, alt. noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a novice monastic or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether they are called to the religious life....
in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. In 1992, he transferred to the monastery in Trebišov
Trebišov
Trebišov is a small industrial town in the easternmost part of Slovakia, with a population of around 23,000. The town is an administrative, economic and cultural center with machine and building materials industries.-History:...
. Spirik and two other former students were ordained priests during 1996-1997. Shortly after, Dohnal applied for permission to found a "contemplative" branch of the OSBM community.
In 1997, Fr. Dionysius Lachovicz OSBM (born in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
in 1946), the General Superior of the Basilian order, granted the group permission to be designated as an "experimental community" within the Order under his direct supervision. He appointed the group's leader Elias Dohnal, OSBM, to direct the formation of the novices in the group, men who had been rejected by the Order's novitiate in Poland. In May 1998, after complaints and a canonical visitation, he withdrew permission for the community's special status. The group appealed to the Congregation for the Oriental Churches
Congregation for the Oriental Churches
The Congregation for the Oriental Churches is the dicastery of the Roman Curia responsible for contact with the Eastern Catholic Churches for the sake of assisting their development, protecting their rights and also maintaining whole and entire in the one Catholic Church, alongside the liturgical,...
for permission to establish an autonomous monastery within the territory of the Archeparchy of Prešov
Archeparchy of Prešov
The Archeparchy of Prešov is an archeparchy of the Slovak Greek Catholic Church which covers the territory of the Prešov Region. It has the suffragans of: Eparchy of Košice and Eparchy of Bratislava. As of 2004 it had 136,593 Greek Catholic faithful. and its seat is in Prešov.-History:The eparchy...
(Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
) against the will of its bishop, Ivan Hirka. Lachovicz confirmed the suppression in December 1998, and the community members were dispersed to other assignments.
In late 1999, at the request of the Greek-Catholic Apostolic Exarch in the Czech Republic
Apostolic Exarchate in the Czech Republic
Apostolic Exarchate in the Czech Republic is a Roman Catholic institution overseeing the Catholics of Byzantine Rite living in the Czech Republic....
Ivan Ljavinec for a Basilian community, and with the agreement of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Prague, Cardinal Vlk, Lachovicz founded a Basilian community in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, assigning to it Fr. Cyril Špiřík, his brother Fr. Metoděj R. Špiřík and their former classmate Fr. Markian Hitiuk from Ukraine, to serve at the cathedral parish in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. In 2003, the Basilians and their supporters protested against the appointment of a new Greek-Catholic exarch in the Czech Republic, Ladislav Hučko, a non-Ukrainian, by blockading the Greek-Catholic cathedral. As a result, the event was relocated to be held in a Roman Catholic church. In 2004, Lachovicz was not re-elected. His successor closed the Order's community in the Czech Republic, transferring the members to the monastery in Pidhirtsi
Pidhirtsi
Pidhirtsi is a village of about 1000 inhabitants in the Lviv Oblast of Ukraine, located about 80 km east of Lviv, 17 km south of Brody, 60 km north west of Ternopil, at around...
, Ukraine.
Conflict with the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
On March 3, 2008, Dohnal announced to Pope Benedict XVIPope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
that he and three other Basilian Fathers had been consecrated as bishops in order to "save" the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) from heresy and apostasy. Dohnal did not identify the bishop or bishops who had performed the consecration. In justification for the act, he wrote that the bishops of the UGCC supported influences of syncretism and occultism, approval of homosexuality, and erroneous ecumenism. As an example of the latter, he cited the Balamand declaration
Balamand declaration
The Balamand Declaration is a declaration made by the Joint International Commission for the Theological Dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church during its VIIth plenary session, which took place at Balamand School of Theology, Balamand, Lebanon 17-24 June 1993...
of 1993, which had rejected "uniatism" as a method of seeking Christian unity between Catholics and Orthodox. In his letter, Dohnal denounced statements from Cardinal Husar's book "Conversations with Cardinal Lubomyr Husar: On post-confessional Christianity" as schismatic and apostate.
According to a 2008 article in kreuz.net, the conflict was "foreseeable" and arose from tensions between the Studite and Basilian orders of monks in the UGCC: that the Studites, including the Major Archbishop of Kiev–Galicia, Lubomyr Cardinal Husar, favored closer relations with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, while the Basilians favored the preservation of influences from the Latin Church (Liturgical latinisation
Liturgical Latinisation
Liturgical Latinisation, also known as Latinisation, is the process by which liturgical and other aspects of the Churches of Eastern Christianity were altered to resemble more closely the practices of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church...
).
On Easter Sunday, March 23, 2008, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church , Ukrainska Hreko-Katolytska Tserkva), is the largest Eastern Rite Catholic sui juris particular church in full communion with the Holy See, and is directly subject to the Pope...
released a statement from Cardinal Husar warning that any consecration that had taken place was not recognized by the Church.
In June 2008 the tribunal
Ecclesiastical court
An ecclesiastical court is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages in many areas of Europe these courts had much wider powers than before the development of nation states...
of the Eparchy of Sokal-Zhovkva
Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Sokal
The Eparchy of Sokal – Zhovkva is an eparchy of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, in the ecclesiastical province of Kyiv-Halych.The current - and first - eparch is Mychajlo Koltun, C.S.S.R., who was appointed to this position by the Servant of God His Holiness Pope John Paul II.-External links:* *...
held an ecclesiastical trial for the four priests. They were convicted of illegal assumption of authority and illegal administration of ministry (violation of can. 1462 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches
Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches
The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches is the title of the 1990 codification of the common portions of the Canon Law for the 22 of the 23 sui iuris Churches in the Catholic Church. The Roman or Latin rite Church is guided by its own particular Canons...
(CCEO)), inciting rebellion against the local hierarchy, including Bishop Mykhail Koltun, C.SS.R., Major Archbishop Lubomyr Cardinal Husar (violation of can. 1447 §1 CCEO), and causing injustice and serious harm to the good reputation of the above-mentioned persons and to other hierarchs of the UGCC through slander (violation of can. 1452 CCEO). The penalty imposed was major excommunication
Excommunication
Excommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
. After an appeal, the sentence was upheld by the tribunal of the major archeparchy and announced on September 17, 2008.
On October 7, 2008, the Apostolic Signatura
Apostolic Signatura
The Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura is the highest judicial authority in the Catholic Church...
, the highest appeals court of the Catholic Church, refused to accept the appeal of the "Pidhirtsi fathers", and left the sentence of major excommunication imposed by the UGCC major-archiepiscopal tribunal intact.
On August 15, 2008, Pidhirtsi supporters attempted unsuccessfully to occupy a church administration building in Stryi
Stryi
Stryi is a city located on the left bank of the river Stryi in the Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine . Serving as the administrative center of the Stryi Raion , the city itself is also designated as a separate raion within the oblast. Thus, the city has two administrations - the city and the raion...
, Ukraine. Fr. Taras Poshyvak, chancellor of the Stryi eparchy
Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Stryi
The Eparchy of Stryi is an eparchy of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, in the ecclesiastical province of Kyiv-Halych.The first Eparch was Bishop Julian Gbur, S.V.D., who was appointed to this position by the Blessed Pope John Paul II on 21 July 2000...
, said that the "regional leadership of the police" was interfering and preventing normal police protection of the building.
Founding of new Church
On August 11, 2009, the bishops of the Pidhirtsi movement declared the founding of the irregular Ukrainian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church as a "new Church structure for the orthodox faithful of the UGCC." In their declaration they professed the Catholic faith, including the primacy of the Roman Pontiff and disassociated themselves from "contemporary heresies which destroy both the Eastern and the Western Church."The name of the Church includes the description Правовірна ("true-believing"). Although the Church's English-language website translates this word as "Orthodox", it is not the same term as that used by the existing Orthodox Churches present in Ukraine, whose names use the term православна ("true-worshiping").
In November 2010, a group of about 70 UOGCC supporters, including leaders Metoděj Richard Špiřík and Markian Vasyl Hitiuk, clashed with parishioners at the UGCC Church of the Transfiguration in Chortkiv in an apparent attempt to occupy the church.
Conflict with the Holy See
In 2010, the UOGCC declared an excommunication upon 265 professors of the Pontifical Gregorian UniversityPontifical Gregorian University
The Pontifical Gregorian University is a pontifical university located in Rome, Italy.Heir of the Roman College founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola over 460 years ago, the Gregorian University was the first university founded by the Jesuits...
, and declared that over 2200 bishops worldwide had excommunicated themselves by failing to respond to demands of the UOGCC. The declaration asserted that the bishops affected would thenceforth be unable to validly ordain priests. It also called for Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
to purge the hierarchy, institute reforms, and resign.
On April 7, 2011 the bishops of the UOGCC declared an excommunication against Pope Benedict XVI on May 1, 2011.
Declaration of Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate
On the same day, they also declared the establishment of a Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate, offering to provide an episcopal authority to like-minded believers elsewhere in the world. Archbishop Elias Dohnal was selected as the first Patriarch of the new body.Founders
Patriarch Elijah Anthony Dohnal OSBMrOrder of Saint Basil the Great
The Order of St. Basil the Great also known as the Basilian Order of Saint Josaphat is an monastic religious order of the Greek Catholic Churches that is present in many countries and that has its Mother House in Rome. The order received approbation on August 20, 1631...
(born 1946 in Hluk
Hluk (Uherské Hradište District)
Hluk is a town in Uherské Hradiště District in Zlín Region of the Czech Republic with population about 4400.The town was first mentioned in year 1294. The name of Hluk is derived from latin word "hlucium" .-External links:*...
) was elected as first Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate. He was elected by the Bishops’ Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church in an extraordinary assembly of 5 April 2011, on the day of establishment of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate.
Elijah was ordained priest in 1972 in the Czech Republic and joined the OSBM Order and changed rite in 1991. He has a doctorate in theology from Charles University
Charles University in Prague
Charles University in Prague is the oldest and largest university in the Czech Republic. Founded in 1348, it was the first university in Central Europe and is also considered the earliest German university...
, Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
and lectured dogmatics
Systematic theology
In the context of Christianity, systematic theology is a discipline of Christian theology that attempts to formulate an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the Christian faith and beliefs...
in Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
.
He was consecrated archbishop in 2009 and held the title of Vicar. He was appointed Byzantine Catholic Patriarch through election and the imposition of hands by the Bishops’ Synod headed by Archbishop Michael Osidach on 5 April 2011.
Other bishops:
- Head of the Church: Mychajlo Osidach, Ukrainian: Osidach, a former Russian Orthodox priest, has claimed to have been consecrated as a Catholic bishop clandestinely in September 1989, during the era of Communist rule of Ukraine, by Archbishop Volodymyr Sterniuk (1907-1997) and Bishop Filemon Kurchaba (1913-1995). As of April 2011, he is not listed in the Annuario PontificioAnnuario PontificioThe Annuario Pontificio is the annual directory of the Holy See. It lists all the popes to date and all officials of the Holy See's departments...
as a recognized Catholic bishop. - Secretary: Markian V. Hitiuk, OSBM: Ukrainian, born 1970
- Members of the Synod:
- Metoděj R. Špiřík, OSBM: Czech, born 1968
- Timotej Sojka, OSBM
- Bazil Kolodi, OSBM
- Samuel Robert Oberhauser, priest of the eparchy of Ivano-Frankivsk (Ukraine), Slovak, born 1969