Metropolitan John (born Ivan Stinka; January 14, 1935 – September 19, 2022)Patriarchal Litia for the blessed memory of former Archbishop of Winnipeg, John
/ref> was the head of the

Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada (UOCC; french: Église orthodoxe ukrainienne du Canada) is an Eastern Orthodox church in Canada, primarily consisting of Orthodox Ukrainian Canadians. Its former name (before 1990) was the Ukrainian Greek ...

with title ''John, Archbishop of Winnipeg, and of the Central Diocese, Metropolitan of Canada''. He was enthroned as Metropolitan of Canada on July 23, 2006.

Priesthood

In the fall of 1969, John Stinka enrolled in theological studies at St. Andrew's College in Winnipeg, which he successfully completed in 1972 with a Licentiate in Theology. He continued his studies at the University of Manitoba following his Licentiate in Theology. On August 18, 1973, he was ordained into the Holy Diaconate at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Saskatoon by Archbishop

Boris (Yakovkevych) Boris may refer to: People * Boris (given name), a male given name *:''See'': List of people with given name Boris * Boris (surname) * Boris I of Bulgaria (died 907), the first Christian ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire, canonized after his d ...

, and on August 25, 1974, in Holy Tranfiguration Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Yorkton, Deacon John was ordained to the priesthood, again ordained by Archbishop Boris. Fr. John's first assignment was to

Moose Jaw Moose Jaw is the fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina. Residents of Moose Jaw are known as Moose Javian ...

, Sk., and during that time convocated from the University of Saskatchewan with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

Degree. In August 1978, Fr. John was transferred to

Kamsack Kamsack, Saskatchewan, Canada is a town in the Assiniboine River Valley, where the Whitesand River joins the Assiniboine River. It is northeast of Yorkton. Highway 8 and Highway 5 intersect in the town. Coté First Nation is located north an ...

, Sk. Throughout his pastorship, Fr. John was active in the Ukrainian Community, and the Orthodox Community. He was awarded his

nabedrennik A nabedrennik ( Church Slavonic: набедренникъ, "on the thigh") is a vestment worn by some Russian Orthodox priests. It is a square or rectangular cloth. Like the epigonation, it is worn at the right hip, suspended from a strap attache ...

in 1977, and his

skufia A (also , or ; el, σκούφια or ) is an item of clerical clothing, a cap, worn by Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic monastics (in which case it is black) or awarded to clergy as a mark of honor (in which case it is usually red or pur ...

in 1980.

Episcopacy

At the Extraordinary Sobor of the UOCC in 1983, Fr. John was elected Bishop, and was ordained to the Episcopacy on November 27, 1983, at Holy Trinity Metropolitan Cathedral, and installed as bishop of Saskatoon by

Metropolitan Andrew (Metiuk) Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a ...

, Archbishop Boris, and Bishop Wasyly (Fedak). At the 17th Sobor, in 1985 in Winnipeg, Bishop John was appointed Bishop of Edmonton and the Western Diocese, following the reposes of Archbishop Boris, and Metropolitan Andrew. In 1990 he was elevated to Archbishop. Following the repose of Metropolitan Wasyly in 2005, Archbishop John became the acting

Primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians ( monkeys and apes, the latter including ...

, and at the 21st Sobor in Winnipeg in 2006 was elected Primate, and Metropolitan (and was approved by Constantinople on November 20, 2005). He was enthroned on Sunday, July 23, 2006, at the Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral. Co-presiding at the

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of ...

were Archbishop Yurij (Kalistchuk) of Toronto, Archbishop Antony (Sherba) of New York & Washington (UOC-USA), and Bishop Georgie of the Serbian Diocese of Canada. Metropolitan Sotirios of the Greek Metropolis of Toronto presided over the enthronement, and later presented Metropolitan John with a

Panagia Panagia ( el, Παναγία, fem. of , + , the ''All-Holy'', or the ''Most Holy''; pronounced ) (also transliterated Panaghia or Panajia), in Medieval and Modern Greek, is one of the titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern ...

from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a blue Mantiya, an episcopal staff, and a Metropolitan's white

Klobuk Klobuk of Patriarch Philaret of Moscow (1619-33), Kremlin museum A klobuk is an item of monastic clothing worn by monks and, in the Russian tradition, also by nuns, in the Byzantine Rite, composed of a kamilavka (stiffened round black headco ...

References

External links

Metropolitan John of Winnipeg

Sources

*"Tribute and Farewell to His Eminence Metropolitan John" (Western Diocese; UOCC) {{DEFAULTSORT:Stinka), John 1935 births 2022 deaths Primates of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada Canadian Eastern Orthodox bishops Eastern Orthodox bishops in Canada Canadian people of Ukrainian descent