(Sir Europe - Bratislava) - The Ukrainian Jewish Committee (UJC) welcomes the renaming of a street in Lviv after the Blessed Omelian Kovch, martyr of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC). According to the president of the UJC, Oleksandr Feldman, he is a true example of “humanity and self-sacrifice in the name of faith”. During German occupation Omelian Kovch rescued Jews and sent a letter to Adolf Hitler, in which he condemned the genocide of Jews. This resulted in his arrest and imprisonment in the Majdanek concentration camp in 1942, where he secretly continued his pastoral activity. He was killed and burned in a gas chamber in 1944. In May this year, a street in Lviv was given the name of Omelian Kovch and a monument commemorating his bravery was unveiled in Peremyshlyany. In this regard, Oleksandr Feldman expressed his belief that a long-time consistent position of the UGCC aimed at “restoring historical justice and strengthening mutual respect among people of different religions and nationalities” deserves particular gratitude. According to the website http://lb.ua/[>>], the Ukrainian Jewish Committee also supports the recognition of metropolitan of the UGCC Andrey Sheptytsky as a Righteous among the Nations.

21/06/2012 -