(CCCB – Ottawa)… The Most Reverend Michael Bzdel, C.Ss.R., Ukrainian Catholic Archbishop Emeritus of
Winnipeg and Metropolitan of Ukrainian Catholics in
Canada, died on April 3, 2012, at his residence in
Winnipeg, at the age of 81.
Archbishop Bzdel was born on July 21, 1930, in
Wishart, Saskatchewan. A member of the Eastern Church branch of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists), he was ordained a priest of the Ukrainian Catholic Church on July 7, 1954; appointed Ukrainian Catholic Metropolitan Archeparch of Winnipeg by Pope John Paul II on December 29, 1992; and ordained to the episcopate on March 9, 1993, in Sts. Vladimir and Olga Cathedral,
Winnipeg. His resignation as Ukrainian Catholic Archeparch of Winnipeg and Metropolitan of Ukrainian Catholics in
Canada was accepted by the Holy Father in January 2006 after attaining the age of 75 years.
As Metropolitan, Archbishop Bzdel was one of the four
ex officio members of the Permanent Council of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB). He also served on a number of CCCB Commissions and Committees, in particular the former
Ad hoc Committee for Aid to the Church in Eastern and
Central Europe and the Balkans. In 1997, the Holy Father named him a delegate to the Special Synod for the Assembly of Bishops for
America.
Funeral services will be held in
Winnipeg beginning on Wednesday, 11 April 2012, at 7:00 p.m. at
Sts. Vladimir & Olga Cathedral, with Hierarchal Parastas. Services will continue on Thursday, 12 April 2012, at 10:00 a.m. at
St. Joseph’s Ukrainian Catholic Church,
Winnipeg, with the Divine Liturgy and concluding rites, followed by burial at
Holy Family Cemetery.
SOURCE CATHOLIC BISHOPS CONFERENCE OF CANADA
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