p.13 DIRECT
EXAMINATION OF PLAINTIFF WITNESS, REV. BAZYL ZAWIERUCHA, BY MR. REHILL:
Virgin Mary, Ukrainian Orthodox Church in North Hampton, PennsylvaniA.
Q. In these various roles, are you familiar with the structure of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the United States of America?
A.
Indeed I am, and I have familiarized myself with those structures.
p.14 MR. SMORODSKY: Your Honor,
just a question. Is Mr. Rehill offering Reverend Zawierucha as an expert?
MR.
REHILL: No. Simply as a fact witness.
p.15MR. REHILL:
A. Yes, it does.
MR.
REHILL: For the record, (exhibit) P-21 is an attempted chart, chart which
attempts to reflect the structure of the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church as I understand it.
Q.
Father, I need you to, have you go through and explain the extent of what that
chart actually represents, if you could.
A. Okay. In
accordance with the Constitution, the Church, as you see the heading of this
page, is the supreme organ of government.
This is why it's placed where it's located
at the present moment. The Church Sobor is described as such in the
Constitution. It is
convoked by the Metropolitan of the Church
on a tri-annual basis, every three years. The President of the Sobor is the
Metropolitan himself. He presides and he
also approves the agenda which is presented to him by a priest Sobor commission
before the Sobor is convened. So being the
supreme organ of government of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the U.S.A., the
composition of the Sobor -- if you would
like me to just briefly go through that?
Q.
Please.
A. -- is composed
of the President of the Sobor is the Metropolitan, all of the bishops of the Ukrainian
Orthodox Church of the
U.S.A., the clergy, clerics of parish of
the Church, which is in good standing,
heads of church institutions which have a
Constitution of their own, and members of the Metropolitan Council. The Church Sobor convenes every three years, as I had
mentioned, to solve various problems and
issues which are outstanding before the Church. One of its duties is to elect
and adjoin
the Sobors to elect various institutions
of the Church such as the Metropolitan Council, the Control Commission, and the
Church
Court, as well as the President of the
Consistory of the Ukrainian Church. The
Metropolitan Council is the organ within the
Church which supervises and conducts the affairs of the Church between the times when the Church Sobor is convened. That
Metropolitan Council is also composed of
the Metropolitan himself as the President of the Council, the bishops, seven
clergy,
seven lay individuals, and heads of various
institutions of the Church itself. The Metropolitan Council, just referring
here to the
Constitution of the Church, its brief is
fairly extensive, but to keep it brief, short, it has oversight of the Church's
administration,
and also the property and finances of the
Church. It approves the annual budget. It meets at least on an annual basis,
more
frequently sometimes, twice a year. It also
elects and recalls the members of the Consistory, and it makes decisions
regarding
relations with other Christian
churches. ………………………………… The Metropolitan of the Church, who is the
Prime
Hierarch, he is elected by the Church Sobor
out of, as you see there, the Council of Bishops. Being the Prime Hierarch, he
is
elected by the Church Sobor for life, unless he were to retire. If in the eventuality of death or retirement, then the Sobor has that
authority to elect a new
Metropolitan from the Council of Bishops.
###########################
p.23 CROSS-EXAMINATION OF
PLAINTIFF WITNESS, REV. BAZYL ZAWIERUCHA, BY MR. SMORODSKY:
Q.
Father Zawierucha?
A. Please.
Q.
I notice that you were referring to some notes in front of you.
A. Yes.
Q.
Could you tell me what those notes are?
A. These are the notes on my schemer. They are notes which I took directly
from various sections of the Constitution, and I have
the Constitution before
me.
A. Yes.
Q.
Basically, you were taking a look at what has been marked as P-20?
MR.
SMORODSKY: Is that the correct number, Mr. Rehill, P-20?
MR.
REHILL: P-20, the Constitution.
Q.
You were looking at that document, and you were testifying as to what that
document says, correct?
A. Which document? The Constitution itself?
Q.
Yes.
A. Yes.
Q.
Now, did you do anything else other than read the Constitution before you
testified here today?
A. Within the past few days?
Q.
Yes.
A. No.
Q.
In the past?
A. I wasn't called to testify until a few days ago.
Q.
Did you speak with the Archbishop about this, Archbishop Antony?
A. I was privileged to receive his phone call to tell me that I would be the one to give this presentation here today, yes.
Q.
Who else participated from Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the United States of
America in the preparation of your testimony?
A. My preparation, I -- in my preparation, no one. I did speak with
quite a few of my clergy, brothers, about the fact that I would be
here today.
Q. Now, did you speak with
any of the individual plaintiffs before testifying here today?
A. To say hello, good morning, and to see why one or two were here, yes.
Q.
Other than that, nothing, correct, Father?
A. Not that I can recall. I introduced myself to a number of people, yes, this morning.
Q.
Now, the document of P-20 that you're testifying to, that's the Constitution of
what date?
A. I'm sorry. Of what?
Q.
What's the date of that Constitution?
A. Oh, the date of this Constitution is 1998.
Q.
Did you in preparation for this testimony look at any other prior versions of
the Constitution?
A. I briefly did look into the Constitution dated, I think, 1963.
Q.
Any difference?
A. Again, in preparing this, considering the time, the only difference that actually comes to mind that I specifically do remember is that when dealing with the Prime Hierarch, the old Constitution described him as the Head of the Church, and here it just says the Prime Hierarch of the Orthodox Church is the Metropolitan.
Q.
Did you compare it to any changes in the Constitution that existed in 1956?
A. No, I did not. I didn't have the time to.
Q.
Did you compare it to the Constitution of 1950?
A. No, I did not.
Q.
Did you compare it to the Constitution of
1936?
A. No, I didn't.
Q.
Did you compare it to the canons of the Church of 1921?
A. Of 1921? No.
Q.
Are you familiar with the canons of 1921?
A. Not in any detail.
Q.
Not in any detail whatsoever, correct?
A. No.
Q.
Let me ask you this question, Father. What is your educational background?
A. Beginning college you mean?
Q. Yeah. Start with college.
A. I attended the University of Urbaniana University in Rome. Did three years philosophy.
Q. Which university? I am sorry.
A. Urbaniana. Three years of philosophy. Four years theology -- no. Three years theology of the Gregorian University in Rome, and
postgraduate work at the Oriental Institute, also in Rome, Italy. And I have been, of course, professor and teacher at various
seminaries –
A. -- in church history.
Q.
In church history, correct?
A. Yes.
Q.
Church history of what churches?
A. All churches.
Q.
All churches?
A. General churches.
Q.
General churches?
A. Of the eastern churches primarily.
Q.
Now, the three Italian universities that you attended --
A. No, they are not Italian.
Q.
In Italy.
A. No.
Q.
In Rome?
A. They are actually in the Vatican.
Q.
Vatican. Different country and different place, correct?
A. Obviously.
Q.
Let me ask you this: Those three universities, they were Roman Catholic,
correct?
A. All three, yes. Yes.
Q.
Were you studying in the seminary of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, Uniat
Church?
A. Yes. They normally don't refer to themselves as Uniat. It's a term of disparagement for them. It's Ukrainian College Seminary.
Q.
Were you ordained as a Catholic priest?
A. Yes, I was.
Q.
And how long were you a Catholic priest?
A. From 1981 to 1989.
A. I served at the Seminary of the Ukrainian Catholic Diocese of Stamford in Connecticut.
Q.
That is under Bishop Bazyl Lawson?
A. Bishop Bazyl Lawson.
Q.
And after that?
A. I was parish
priest at St. Michael's Ukrainian Catholic Church in Yonkers, New York. Then I
returned to the Oriental Institute to
finish my postgraduate work. And then I
was appointed again as a teacher at the Seminary again in Stamford,
Connecticut, and
Rector of the Cathedral in Stamford, Connecticut.
Q.
After that position, where did you go?
A. After that were did I go?
Q. Yes.
Q.
Let me rephrase it. You were at the Cathedral in Stamford, Connecticut. That
was a Ukrainian Catholic institution, correct?
A. Yes.
A. No. That was my last assignment.
(TO BE
CONTINUED)