Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, known as the “spiritual father” of Ukraine, has died aged 84.
Cardinal Husar had inherited a Church “on its knees, suffering post-traumatic shock”, according to Ukrainian Catholic Bishop Borys Gudziak of Paris.
In a post-Soviet era where leadership often meant “a compulsive passion” for money and power, “he lived in exemplary simplicity”, Bishop Gudziak said.
“In Ukrainian folklore, a blind elder is considered a sage,” the bishop said. “He was the wise man of the country, a real father whose embrace, word, warm smile and sense of humour – often self-deprecating – gave people a sense of joy and peace.” He was fluent in five languages, Bishop Gudziak said, “and he could joke in all of them”.
