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      Pilgrims to Gather in Centralia for Day of Prayer and Healing

      Centralia, PA — On Sunday, August 17, 2025, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Catholic Church in Centralia, PA, will host the Call to Prayer Pilgrimage as part of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia’s Jubilee Year of Hope.

      The day-long spiritual event will feature a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy celebrated by Metropolitan Borys Gudziak, Archbishop of Philadelphia, along with the recitation of the Holy Rosary, the Akafist to the Dormition (Assumption) of the Mother of God, prayers for healing, and anointing with holy oil.

      “The summer season culminates in the feast of the joyful, light-filled, and promising Assumption — called the Dormition in the Eastern tradition — of the Mother of God. She endured great challenges with trust and remained faithful to the Son of God. Mary was rewarded with a special invitation to the house of God the Father, where there is no pain and no suffering. She died, but was assumed bodily into heaven,” said Metropolitan Borys.

      “Our celebration of the Assumption of the Mother of God — and of her church in Centralia — is a beautiful opportunity to pause, to set aside the turmoil in our society and country here in the U.S., the evils of the aggressors in Ukraine, the injustices in the world, and to focus on God’s promise. It is a call to remain faithful to the Lord’s commandments and to work for His Kingdom day by day, no matter the trials we face in our personal lives, in our families, in our local communities, in our country, or in the world.”

      Reflecting on the wider Jubilee observance, Metropolitan Borys noted that the year began on December 29 with the opening of the special Holy Doors at the Cathedral in Philadelphia. In February, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Father and Head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, visited Philadelphia. The Lenten season included a joint Way of the Cross in the South Anthracite Deanery, to which Centralia belongs. The deanery also hosted the 91st Ukrainian Seminary Day, a local festival supporting Saint Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Seminary in Washington, DC.

      “I invite everyone to take this opportunity to drink from the fountain of hope in this jubilee year and in the summer the Lord has granted us,” he added.

      Fr. Michael Hutsko, pastor of Assumption Parish, emphasized that the pilgrimage is an act of gratitude during the Jubilee Year. “Come to pray and experience your very own personal spiritual journey as you join others who share the faith. You are welcome to come, open your hearts, and listen for the voice of Jesus and our Most Blessed Mother,” he said.

      Although the town of Centralia ceased to exist following an underground mine fire that began in 1962, Assumption Church — built in 1912, with the parish established in 1911 — continues to serve as a place of worship and pilgrimage for the faithful.

      During his visit in November 2015, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk marveled at the church’s enduring presence in Centralia. Following that visit, and with the encouragement of then-Archbishop Stefan Soroka, the site was officially designated as a holy place of pilgrimage.