Bishops, Clergy, and Faithful in the U.S. Bid Prayerful Farewell to Bishop Basil Losten

The following day, Sunday, September 22, the viewing continued from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm at the seminary chapel. At 11:00 am, the Pontifical Divine Liturgy was celebrated, followed by another Parastas at 5:00 pm.

On Monday, September 23, Bishop Losten's body was prepared for its final journey to Holy Spirit Cemetery. The Funeral Liturgy was held at 11:00 am at St. Andrew Ukrainian Catholic Church, followed by a solemn procession to the burial site at Holy Spirit Cemetery, where Bishop Losten was laid to rest in the grounds of St. Andrew Ukrainian Catholic Church.

In his homily at the Funeral Liturgy, metropolitan Borys Gudziak honored Bishop Basil H. Losten’s lifelong dedication to the Ukrainian Catholic Church, reflecting on his struggle for the independence, liberty, and dignity of the Church and its people.

Archbishop Gudziak remarked:

"The question of death and life is the most important question, and it is in the heart of the Church, to which Bishop Basil gave his life. Bishop Basil, through his whole life, called us out, called us to the gift of communion, the gift of fellowship in the Holy Spirit."

Archbishop Gudziak also expressed his deep gratitude to Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley, Archbishop-emeritus and Apostolic Administrator of Boston, The Most Reverend Gerardo J. Colacicco, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York, and the Ukrainian Catholic bishops who gathered to pray and bid farewell to Bishop Losten. Their presence, he noted, was not only a sign of personal friendship but also a powerful witness to the community, calling all to live as Ecclesia and to share their gifts in fellowship.

Basil Harry Losten was born in Chesapeake City, Maryland to Ivan (John) Losten and Julia Petryshyn on May 11, 1930. Basil was the youngest of ten children who were raised on a dairy farm owned and operated by his parents. He attended St. Basil’s Prep School in Stamford Connecticut where one of his nicknames was “milkman”. This term of endearment was a nod to the family farm. He graduated from St. Basil’s Prep in 1949.

The young Basil continued his education at St. Basil’s College Seminary in Stamford, CT. He graduated in 1953 with a B.A. in Philosophy. He spent the next four years studying theology and preparing for the priesthood at St. Josaphat Major Seminary in Washington, D.C., where he earned a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) from The Catholic University of America in 1957.

He was ordained a priest by Bishop Constantine Bohachevsky on June 10, 1957 at the age of 27. He served in several pastoral assignments including initially as an assistant pastor in the Philadelphia Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. He also served as a secretary to Bishop Bohachevsky and later Bishop Ambrose Senyshyn. He was assigned for a period to the parish in Bristol, PA and later the parish in Camden, NJ, while also becoming Bishop Senyshyn’s driver and secretary.

He was instrumental in organizing various projects for the Archeparchy of Philadelphia and especially the building of Ascension Manor – a residence for the elderly. Because of his dedication and zeal for service he was raised to the rank of Papal Chamberlain in 1968, and, three years later, on May 25, 1971, he, along with Rev. John Stock, was was ordained Auxiliary Bishop of the Archeparchy of Philadelphia.

Following the death of Metropolitan Senyshyn, Bishop Basil was appointed as Bishop of Stamford on September 20, 1977 and was installed on December 7, 1977 in St. Basil College Seminary Chapel. He was 47 years old.

His zeal for pastoral work was manifested in his care for education, especially for priestly vocations. He established a diocesan paper, The Sower, and was involved in multiple publications and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Sacred Heart University in Bridgeport, CT.

His work in Ukraine during Soviet times grew incrementally and then exponentially when freedom for the Ukrainian Catholic Church arrived in 1989 and Ukrainian independence was proclaimed in 1991.    He was an indefatigable and talented fundraiser who raised millions of dollars towards rebuilding the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Ukraine following half a century of Communist oppression, in particular towards the construction of the new Holy Resurrection Sobor in Kyiv.

Bishop Basil was an active member of the USCCB (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops) during his entire episcopacy and served for many years on the Committee for Catholic-Jewish Dialogue.

Bishop Basil retired as Bishop of Stamford on January 3, 2006 at the age of 75 years but continued to serve the Church even in his retirement as a generous benefactor of the Ukrainian Museum and Library of Stamford, the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, Ukraine, in the endowment of a Ukrainian Church Studies program at the Catholic University of America in Washington DC, and of countless other ecclesial and civic causes.

Condolences from His Beatitude Sviatoslav

To His Excellency

Paul Chomnycky, OSBM

Bishop of Stamford

Glory to Jesus Christ!

Your Excellency Bishop Paul! 

Most Reverend, Venerable, and Honorable Fathers! 

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! 

With great sorrow, we received the news of the passing of our beloved brother Basil H. Losten—retired Bishop of Stamford, the oldest by age and consecration in our Synod, who was an example and a blessing from God for all of us through his charisma, determination, and enthusiasm. We pray that the merciful Lord accepts him into His eternal home. 

God granted the late bishop a long life, which he lived in constant work and prayer, maintaining a clear mind and strong will until his last breath. He was a true spiritual father to his priests and laity, always ready to support and comfort them. 

The figure of Bishop Basil H. Losten united not only millennia and centuries but also continents, separated by thousands of kilometers. He was born and lived his life in America, but we can confidently say that his heart and thoughts were always in Ukraine. All his efforts were directed towards the development of our Church, especially when it emerged from underground and needed resources for its revival and growth. 

Having received from the Almighty a special talent, the late bishop was able to multiply it. Bishop Basil's care extended beyond his native diocese: crossing the ocean, it manifested in various projects in Ukraine. I would particularly mention his enormous contribution to the construction of the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ, which today unites the children of our Church from all over the world. Forever in this magnificent temple, every Divine Liturgy will offer prayers for its benefactors, among whom the name of Bishop Basil H. Losten is inscribed in golden letters. Furthermore, thanks to the late bishop's efforts, thousands of pilgrims visiting St. Peter's Basilica in Rome can see and pray to the Ukrainian saints and equal-to-the-apostles Volodymyr and Olha, whose mosaics adorned this temple even before Ukraine's independence was declared. All these good deeds of the newly departed archbishop we entrust to God's hands. 

We believe that Bishop Basil is already in the embrace of the loving Savior, for whose glory he lived, and speaks to us his last words, which express great hope for eternal reward from the Lord God for those who are faithful to Him: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (II Tim. 4:7). In this time of farewell, we ask the departed: dear bishop, you loved Ukraine and your Church so much—pray that the Lord keeps us from destruction and sends peace to our grieving lands. 

We entrust the soul of the newly departed Bishop Basil into the hands of boundless divine mercy and with faith say: "Grant, O Christ, the one who has departed to You, the unspeakable glory of Your abode, where there is joy for the blessed and the voice of pure joy." Accept, O Lord, into Your eternal homes Your faithful shepherd! 

Eternal memory to him! 

† SVIATOSLAV