Archbishop Comensoli meets Pope, attends Santa Sofia liturgy for Cardinal Bychok

Archbishop Peter A Comensoli has met with Pope Leo XIV during a private audience at the Vatican this week, part of an official visit to Rome during the 2025 Jubilee Year. The meeting took place on Monday 23 June, providing the Archbishop—who was accompanied by Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Melbourne Annie Carrett—with the opportunity to share insights from the life of the Church in Australia and to reaffirm the spiritual unity of the Archdiocese of Melbourne with the universal Church.

‘On Monday this week, I was humbled to have met with the Holy Father in these early days of his Petrine ministry,’ Archbishop Comensoli wrote on Facebook after the meeting. ‘The private audience of around 20 minutes was an opportunity to share news about the Church in Australia, and particularly of our local Church in Melbourne.’

The Holy Father, who has visited Australia a number of times, was especially interested in hearing about recent and upcoming initiatives in the local Church. ‘Pope Leo knows Australia quite well, and was interested to hear further about: the Australian Catholic Youth Festival; the Plenary Council; and the joy of the Ordination of our Deacon, John Vespa, this coming Friday,’ the Archbishop said.

I offered my personal prayers and loyalty, and gave the assurance of the prayers of God’s people of Melbourne that I have carried in my own heart to the tomb of St Peter during this special Jubilee visit.

The meeting also included early discussions about a possible papal visit to Australia in 2028. ‘At the conclusion of our meeting, I offered my personal prayers and loyalty, and gave the assurance of the prayers of God’s people of Melbourne that I have carried in my own heart to the tomb of St Peter during this special Jubilee visit,’ Archbishop Comensoli said.

As part of the Archbishop’s visit, he and Mrs Carrett also attended a momentous celebration in the life of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church: the ceremony marking Cardinal Mykola Bychok’s formal reception of his titular church in Rome, the Cathedral of Santa Sofia.

On Sunday 22 June—coinciding with the feast of All Saints in Ukraine—Cardinal Bychok, Eparch for Ukrainian Catholics in Australia, New Zealand and Oceania, celebrated the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at Santa Sofia, the spiritual heart of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic community in Rome.

Before the liturgy, the Cardinal was officially welcomed by the cathedral rector, Fr Marko Semegen, and greeted by young people in traditional embroidered shirts (vyshyvanky), bearing bread and salt. Papal Protonotary Mgr William Millea read the papal bull from the late Pope Francis granting the title of the church to Cardinal Bychok, and formally presented the notarial act confirming the appointment. The act was then signed by attending clergy, religious and lay faithful.

Along with Archbishop Comensoli, the event drew senior Church leaders and diplomats from around the world, including President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB, Bishop George Kolodziej of Bunbury, Bishop Karol Kulczycki of Port Pirie and Bishop Antoine-Charbel Tarabay of the Maronite Eparchy of Australia, New Zealand and Oceania, as well as Ukrainian Greek Catholic eparchs from Ukraine, Canada, Italy, Germany and Scandinavia, and Grand Master of the Sovereign Order of Malta John Dunlap.

In his homily, Cardinal Bychok reflected on the profound spiritual and historical significance of Santa Sofia, built in the 1960s by Patriarch Josyf Slipyj as a spiritual home for Ukrainians scattered in the diaspora following persecution and forced displacement under the Soviet regime.

Here, in this very sanctuary, tears have mingled with prayers, and exile has been transformed into communion with the universal Church.

‘Standing here before you in the Church of Santa Sofia—the spiritual heart of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic community in Rome—I am filled with emotion,’ he said. ‘To take possession of this historic titular church is not merely to accept a title but to embrace a profound connection with the generations of faithful who have gathered here, especially those who carried the cross of exile, persecution and displacement.’

Reflecting on the broader mission of the Church in the modern world, Cardinal Bychok pointed out that ‘Santa Sofia is more than a building. It is a living witness to the resilience and hope of the Ukrainian people. Here, in this very sanctuary, tears have mingled with prayers, and exile has been transformed into communion with the universal Church.’

Taking possession of Santa Sofia, he said, came with a renewed mission: ‘to be a bridge—between East and West, past and future, and heaven and earth. I do so not alone but with all of you. Together, we are called to proclaim the Risen Christ with our lives.’

To our brothers and sisters suffering in Ukraine and in other places of war and displacement—in the Middle East, Africa and beyond—we say: you are not forgotten.

Quoting Pope Leo’s recent words at the beginning of his pontificate, he said, ‘The Church must be a sanctuary of hope, a voice of peace, and a light that no darkness can overcome.’ He continued, ‘These words challenge us to be bold in faith and tender in love, to walk with those who suffer, and to radiate Christ’s presence in every corner of the world.’

Cardinal Bychok also offered words of solidarity with people suffering through war and displacement—especially in Ukraine. ‘To our brothers and sisters suffering in Ukraine and in other places of war and displacement—in the Middle East, Africa and beyond—we say: you are not forgotten. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. From their sacrifice will blossom new life, new vocations, new holiness.’

The cardinal concluded with a prayer that the Cathedral of Santa Sofia would continue to be ‘a beacon of faith, unity and hope—for the Ukrainian Church, for the whole Catholic Church, and for the world.’

Cardinal Mykola Bychok is the seventh cardinal in the history of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the third to hold the title of Santa Sofia on Via Boccea in Rome.