Celebration of the Ukrainian Easter Night at St Edmundsbury Cathedral

St Edmundsbury Cathedral will host a Celebration of the Ukrainian Easter Night with the Ukrainian community in Suffolk this month.

This will be a unique opportunity for people to experience the spirit of the Ukrainian Easter, Velykden, the date of Easter in Ukraine being a week after that of ours.

The celebration will start at 5pm on Saturday, April 15, in the Cathedral following the 3.30pm Choral Evensong.

Ukrainians in Suffolk are invited to come in their embroidered national shirts and with Easter baskets. For those Suffolk locals who would like to join, they are invited to celebrate, be curious and to prepare for something a bit different.

The service will include Ukrainian Easter songs, a candlelit vigil, a short guide to Ukrainian Easter traditions and the prayer for Ukraine. There will also be an exhibition of Ukrainian Easter crafts and a demonstration of the ancient art of egg-painting.

As of January 30, 2023, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has verified 7,110 civilian deaths during Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine. 438 of these deaths were children. 11,547 more people have been reported injured. Ukrainian officials put the civilian death toll closer to 40,000 killed.

The Rev Canon Philip Banks, Canon Precentor at St Edmundsbury Cathedral, said, “We’re honoured once again to work with Suffolk’s Ukrainian community, offering a place to worship and mark Velykden on the date of the Ukrainian Easter celebration.

“At its heart, Easter is about light being stronger than darkness, life being stronger than death, love being stronger than hate. As we continue to support those in Suffolk displaced by this needless war, we continue to pray for its end and for the peoples of Ukraine to rise from the ashes of so much destruction and human suffering.”