“You Brought Myrrh—Now Bring Peace”: Metropolitan Borys Gudziak Celebrates Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women in Paris

In his homily, Metropolitan Borys expressed deep gratitude for the opportunity to return to the cathedral and pray with the faithful once again.

“For me, the prayer in this Cathedral of St. Volodymyr the Great will always be a cherished memory,” he said, recalling his years of ministry in Paris with emotion. “Here with you, I experienced the Kingdom and closeness. We were poor as church mice, but we lived in peace, and that peace grew. The eparchy expanded, the number of missions doubled, the number of priests tripled. This is the Kingdom of God. This is why Christ came to us, why He gave His life for us, and why His Father powerfully raised Him from the dead.”

The homily focused on the Myrrh-Bearing Women—figures of faith, courage, and devotion. “Why did they bring myrrh? To anoint the dead body of Christ,” said Metropolitan Borys. “We need to understand how great the tragedy was, how shattered their world had become. They had walked with Jesus, seen how He healed, how He preached with love, tenderness, and power—and suddenly it was over. Brutal, violent, bloody, with the utmost humiliation: spitting, scourging, the Way of the Cross.”

Despite the horror of Christ’s Passion and the seeming end of hope, the women remained faithful. “They were not afraid to go to this ‘loser’. Jesus gave it all, and what was left? Nothing. Everyone had fled, even His friends. Only a few women and John remained. It was a terrifying picture, a terrible experience.”

At the tomb, however, the narrative changed. “Imagine the scene: they come to the tomb to anoint the body with myrrh, and the angel says to them, ‘Whom are you looking for? He is not here. He is risen. Go and tell the apostles.’ Imagine what they felt, their faces, how they held that myrrh... What are they to do with it now? He is risen. He is alive. He has conquered death.”

Metropolitan Borys encouraged the faithful to carry the peace of Christ into today’s troubled world. “How much fear we have—we’re afraid of how people will look at us, what they’ll say. But the Lord says, ‘Peace be with you. Do not be afraid.’ There is injustice, death, war, deceit, tyrants—but you, bring peace. You brought myrrh—now bring peace in your heart.”

He concluded with a call to mission: “We are called to see this moment, to experience it, and to live by it—to be like the Myrrh-Bearing Women, who brought myrrh to the tomb and left with peace to share it with others.”