A Gift to Our Archeparchial Archives

At present, our archive is undergoing a process of reformatting and reorganization so that it can better serve researchers and the faithful who seek information about the history of our Church in America.

Not long ago, our Archeparchy received a remarkable collection of documents and photographs. The Missionary Sisters of the Mother of God entrusted us with the private archive of Metropolitan Ambrose Senyshyn, which they had carefully preserved in their Philadelphia monastery for nearly half a century. Several years earlier, Mother Maria Kelly, the hegumena of the monastery, invited us to review their archival holdings. During that visit, we discovered that among the materials was the personal archive of Metropolitan Senyshyn.

The collection contains a rich variety of historical treasures: sermons, personal letters, photographs, and audio recordings of liturgical services celebrated by both Metropolitan Ambrose Senyshyn and Metropolitan Constantine Bohachevsky. It also includes sheets of musical notation and drafts of liturgical books, reflecting Metropolitan Senyshyn’s deep interest in church music and worship.

The transfer of the archive required thoughtful preparation and collaboration. Historian Dr. Anatoly Babynskyi and film director Pavlo Kazantsev, who were visiting our Archeparchy at the time, generously assisted in assessing the materials and relocating them from the sisters’ monastery to the Archeparchial archive. The next step will be the careful organization of this collection and its integration with the files we already hold on Metropolitan Senyshyn.

The discovery of this archive was unexpected, yet it has greatly enriched our historical collection. We are pleased to share a few photographs from the transfer process. If you have photos, videos, or documents connected to the life of our Church in the United States, we warmly invite you to share them with us. Preserving these materials is essential for safeguarding the living memory of our Church for future generations.