This past year, you’ve shared fifty diverse topics and stories. How did you choose which ones to present to our readers?
The approach was varied. First, I created a calendar of significant events – holidays, anniversaries, etc. The calendar was always a helpful tool. Another source of information was my discoveries: when I found interesting items in the archive or museum, I wanted to share them because they were quite unique.
For instance, we have in our museum the priestly vestments of Bishop John Bura – his first vestments, embroidered by his mother. We also have Bishop Soter Ortynsky’s shirt, embroidered by his sister, as well as the iconostasis of the first Philadelphia cathedral. All these artifacts inspired me to share their stories. Thus, the content was formed situationally, depending either on my findings or on the calendar.
Sometimes I simply approached people, asked them questions, and they would suggest ideas. Then I developed those topics, searched for sources, or found ways to present them to people through texts.
Your doctoral dissertation focused on the Philadelphia Archeparchy. While working on it, you became well acquainted with the structure of our church. What new insights did you gain while working on this project?
Oh, so much! It was like a free history course on the archeparchy, which gave me great joy and satisfaction. My doctoral dissertation was limited to researching a twenty-year period, but here I explored all 140 years! And I discovered so many interesting things.
A major source of information was the archeparchial archive and library, which contains many books, including parish histories. I was fascinated by finding even the smallest nuances that others might not notice—for example, in the biographies of our metropolitans.
When writing about the arrival of Bishop Ortynsky or Bishop Bohachevsky, I wanted to recreate the routes of their journeys. For instance, they arrived in New York: what did they do on their first two days in America? I searched for street names they traveled on, the locations of churches, whether they still exist, and old photographs. It was an exciting detective project. Often, I had to “dig” in order to find old names, calendars, addresses.
It’s fantastic because history is so rich that every new discovery made me think: “Wow, how much more is there to uncover if I’m only scratching the surface and already finding so much!”
You are a serious researcher with a PhD, but this project’s style was popular. Its success can be measured in “likes.” Why do you think it’s important for researchers to popularize history and engage with a wider audience?
It’s important because academic works, although thorough, are often limited in format, presentation methods, and goals. Sometimes academic work doesn’t connect with everyday life, even if it studies that life. But here, the format is simpler, and the goal is very sincere – to help people learn a bit more.
Popularization allows us to use all our knowledge and skills – to search, compare, analyze – but to present them in a more accessible form. It’s not just about presenting terms or events but telling the stories of the people involved, showing how events affected them.
Thus, academic research – whether historical or theological – gains new life and becomes closer to people. Because where do the faithful learn about their history? They won’t read lengthy academic texts. But if something in a short story piques their interest, they might want to delve deeper.
Why is it important for people to know their history? In today’s world, with all its challenges, is there room for the past?
History can teach us a great deal. Sometimes it seems that our challenges are unique. But in reality, similar things have happened before. If we look into the past and see how previous generations tackled similar issues, we can learn a lot.
For example, in reviewing old newspapers, I came across a letter to the editor which said, "You write about the youth but forget about those who bring their parents to church and wait in their cars." This was in 1940. I thought: “This is exactly what I recently saw in one parish!” Over eighty years have passed, and the issue remains.
History helps us understand that we are not alone in our challenges. We stand on the shoulders of those who came before us, and future generations will stand on ours. It’s important to keep this chain unbroken.
What’s next for the project?
The project will continue, but less frequently. Posts will no longer appear every Wednesday as I want to focus on archival work. We have many valuable materials, but they are not always organized, and this requires my attention.
So the posts will be situational – depending on whether I find something interesting or noteworthy, or uncover significant moments in documents or stories. I plan to share these discoveries in posts, which may vary in length.
Although the exact format is hard to predict, I aim to continue this project because such research is important for me, and it’s important for the archeparchy, for all the faithful, priests, and bishops. This work helps uncover and deepen our spiritual and historical riches, which often go unnoticed in the fast pace of modern life.
Even small posts can make a significant contribution to preserving our heritage and deepening our understanding.
