John Stephen Pazak, C.Ss.R. (born August 13, 1946 in

Gary, Indiana Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city has been historically dominated by major industrial activity and is home to U.S. Steel's Gary Works, the largest steel mill complex in North America. Gary is located along the ...

) is an American-born member of the

Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...

, commonly known as the Redemptorists, who served as an

eparch Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on t ...

of the

Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church The Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church ( rue, Русиньска ґрекокатолицька церьков; la, Ecclesia Graeco-Catholica Ruthenica), also known in the United States simply as the Byzantine Catholic Church, is an Eastern Cath ...

. He served as the

Eparch Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on t ...

of the Ruthenian Catholic Eparchy of the Holy Protection of Mary, which is based in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

from July 2016 until his retirement in 2021.

Life

Family

Pazak was born in

, on August 13, 1946, to Stephen Pazak, an American of Ruthenian descent, and Johanna Hennessy, who was of Irish descent, both members of the

Religious life

Pazak was admitted to the

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

of the Canadian

Province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

of the Redemptorists at

Yorkton Yorkton is a city located in south-eastern Saskatchewan, Canada. It is about 450 kilometres north-west of Winnipeg and 300 kilometres south-east of Saskatoon and is the sixth largest city in the province. As of 2017 the census population of the ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, on September 14, 1965. He studied at the Redemptorist

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

, St. Alphonsus College, in

Suffield, Connecticut Suffield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It was once within the boundaries of Massachusetts. The town is located in the Connecticut River Valley with the town of Enfield, Connecticut, Enfiel ...

, and earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

there in 1969. He made his perpetual profession of

religious vows Religious vows are the public vows made by the members of religious communities pertaining to their conduct, practices, and views. In the Buddhism tradition, in particular within the Mahayana and Vajrayana tradition, many different kinds of re ...

as a member of the Congregation on August 24 of that same year. After completing a baccalaureate in theology at

Saint Paul University Saint Paul University (french: Université Saint-Paul) is a bilingual Catholic Pontifical university federated with the University of Ottawa since 1965. It is located on Main Street in Canada's capital city, Ottawa, Ontario. Fully bilingual, it ...

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

a priest on August 27, 1972. After serving in a

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

parish for a year, Pazak was appointed

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

Saint Vladimir's College Saint Vladimir's is a former Ukrainian Catholic minor seminary in Roblin, Manitoba. History "The history of St. Vladimir's College is closely tied to the history of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Canada. Roman Catholic Redemptorist ...

in Manitoba, and continued in this position until 1990, except during 1978–1979, when he served as superior at the Redemptorist scholasticate in Toronto. From 1990 1996, he was pastor at Ss. Peter and Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church in Saskatoon, then from 1996 to 2000 he was

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

at St. Joseph Church in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

. Pazak also served as

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of his Redemptorist province, as a member of the provincial council, and as a consultor to the

Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Saskatoon The Eparchy of Saskatoon ( uk, Саскатунська єпархія Української греко-католицької церкви) is a Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church ecclesiastical territory or eparchy of the Catholic Church in the C ...

Eparchial appointments

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

appointed Pazak eparch of the

Slovak Catholic Eparchy of Saints Cyril and Methodius of Toronto The Exarchate of Saints Cyril and Methodius of Toronto ( la, Exarchatus Sanctorum Cyrilli et Methodii Torontini ritus Byzantini, Slovak: ''Exarchát svätých Cyrila a Metoda byzantského obradu v Toronte'') is a ecclesiastical territory or exa ...

on December 2, 2000. The Ukrainian Catholic Archbishop of Winnipeg, Michael Bzdel, C.Ss.R.,

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

him a bishop on February 14, 2001; the

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

were Milan Chautur, C.Ss.R., Apostolic Exarch of

Košice Košice ( , ; german: Kaschau ; hu, Kassa ; pl, Коszyce) is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of app ...

and

Basil Schott Basil Myron Schott (September 21, 1939 – June 10, 2010) was the Archbishop of the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh from 2002 until his death. The youngest son of Michael Schott and Mary Schott (née Krusko), Basil Schott was born i ...

, O.F.M., the Ruthenian Eparch of Parma.

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

named Pazak the Eparch of the Ruthenian Catholic Eparchy of the Holy Protection of Mary in Phoenix on May 7, 2016. On the same day he was appointed

Apostolic Administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

of the Eparchy of Saints Cyril and Methodius of Toronto, until the appointment of a successor. He was enthroned as Eparch of Phoenix for the Ruthenians on July 20, 2016. On August 23, 2021, Pope Francis accepted his resignation after reaching the age of 75.

References

External links

Ruthenian Catholic Eparchy of Phoenix Official Site

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pazak, John Stephen 1946 births Living people People from Gary, Indiana Redemptorist bishops Slovak Greek Catholic bishops Ruthenian Catholic bishops American Eastern Catholic bishops Canadian Eastern Catholic bishops American people of Rusyn descent American people of Irish descent 21st-century Eastern Catholic bishops 21st-century American clergy