St Johns Ukrainian Pittsburgh

St Johns Ukrainian Pittsburgh Events & fundraising page for St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church, South Side, Pittsburgh. Help St.

John’s historic restoration project: https://stjohnspittsburgh.com/support/

06/13/2026

Occasionally people remark on the preponderance of Byzantine churches named for St. John the Baptist. In the case of St. John’s, having the Forerunner as its patron is uniquely fitting, given that the parish, formally chartered in 1891, led the way for creation of other churches throughout Western Pennsylvania.

First to follow was likely St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church on the South Side, which grew directly out of St. John’s. Not long after that parish was formed, the public took to calling our church “First St. John’s” and that one “Second St. John’s.” These titles, though informal, were so prevalent that contemporary news sources refer to the churches as such.

As our patronal feast day approaches we recall St. John’s unique role of mother church in the region, historically supporting the development of its daughter churches materially and spiritually. Parish history recounts Ukrainian Catholic parishes stemming from St. John’s to include: Ambridge, Carnegie, Ford City, McKeesport, McKeesport Rocks, Monessen, New Kensington, North Side and Wilmerding. These in turn, gave rise to: Aliquippa, Altoona, Barnesboro, Butler-Lyndora, Jeanette, Johnstown, Latrobe and Ramey. (Soirce: St. John’s Diamond Jubilee Book).

All are welcome to celebrate with the mother church on June 20 at a Feast Day potluck. Divine Liturgy begins at 3 PM that day followed by the dinner at 4:30 PM.

06/10/2026

“The Lord did not come to make a display. He came to heal and to teach suffering men. For one who wanted to make a display the thing would have been just to appear and dazzle the beholders. But for Him Who came to heal and to teach the way was not merely to dwell here, but to put Himself at the disposal of those who needed Him, and to be manifested according as they could bear it, not vitiating the value of the Divine appearing by exceeding their capacity to receive it.”
~ St. Athanasius (from On the Incarnation)

06/09/2026

When they set out to build it, St. John’s first parishioners likely never thought their church at the corner of South 7th and East Carson streets would be hailed some 100 years later by Pittsburgh’s most prominent architectural historian as a striking landmark of the city they came to call home.

One hundred and thirty years on, however, it has been recognized not only by Franklin Toker but by many as a symbol of the city’s South Side, a glittering jewel in the Pittsburgh skyline, and a testament to the pioneering immigrants who settled here.

The church is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places - and so is East Carson Street itself, renowned as one of the nation’s best-preserved Victorian main streets. St. John’s stands like a dome-topped sentry at the western gateway of this historic neighborhood. But there’s much more to St. John’s than its striking cluster of eight onion domes.

Inside, you’ll find the heart, soul and history of a people who traveled well over 500 miles from their home and built a new life on their family ties, cultural treasures and faith in God.

As preparation ramps up for celebration of our annual St. John’s feast day potluck on June 20, it inevitably brings to mind those who have gone before, what they envisioned, what they sacrificed and what they left as a legacy.

Guests at the dinner - and any of St. John’s events - will have the opportunity to put their hands on this history, as it’s displayed throughout the church social hall. We hope you can join us to celebrate, honor and remember the long history of St. John’s and its neighborhood.

06/07/2026

There is no “ordinary time” in our tradition.
The West has a long stretch between its great feasts - Ordinary Time. We have no such category. What looks like that same stretch, we count differently: Sunday after Sunday after Pentecost.
From the day the Spirit descended and the Church was born, every week is dated by its distance from that point.
The count is not untouched. In mid-November the Nativity Fast intercepts it - preparation for Christmas laid over the ordinary Sundays, coloring them with anticipation of the Incarnation. The Sundays keep their number; the Fast simply overlays them in anticipation of the Incarnation.
In time, the count gives way. The Triodion opens, the pre-Lenten Sundays begin, and the whole reckoning turns toward a different anchor: no longer counted from Pentecost, but toward Pascha until it turns again. Two fixed points of light - the Resurrection and the descent of the Spirit, the former, with Jesus Christ gloriously bestowing life; the latter, with the Holy Spirit calling His Church into being.

06/02/2026

The Church calls us to prayer and to the corporal and spiritual works of mercy as we prepare for the Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul and the Synaxis of the Apostles.
The Church has long prescribed seasons of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving in preparation for great feasts. While rooted in this ancient tradition, the practical observance of these disciplines is governed by the particular law of each eparchy and adapted pastorally to the circumstances of the faithful.
Traditional provisions exist for the sick, the aged, those recovering from illness, pregnant and nursing mothers, those engaged in hard labor, and others whose circumstances make strict observance difficult.

06/01/2026

At sundown on the Sunday after Pentecost, the Church begins the Apostles’ Fast — a season that ends on June 29, the feast of the Holy Apostles Ss. Peter and Paul.
It is the most variable of our fasts. Because it begins in relation to Pascha, which moves, but ends on a fixed date, its length changes from year to year — some years long, some years only a few days.
Its roots are in the Gospel. When the Pharisees asked why His disciples did not fast, Our Lord Jesus Christ answered that the wedding guests cannot mourn while the bridegroom is with them - “but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, then shall they fast.” After the Ascension, the apostles did just that: having received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, they fasted and prayed betore going forth to preach to the ends of the earth.
And it isn’t only Peter and Paul we remember and celebrate at this time. The day after their feast, on June 30, the Church celebrates the Synaxis of the Twelve Apostles, remembering the whole company who carried the faith to all the world.

05/31/2026

All Saints’ Day in the Byzantine tradition is celebrated the first Sunday after Pentecost. It follows the last All Souls’ Saturday of the year by about a week.
All Saints refers to the righteous unto God, both known and unknown, recognized and not. Among them are: forefathers and mothers, fathers and mothers, patriarchs, prophets, preachers, evangelists, martyrs, confessors, hierarchs, monastics and laity. Hailing from all corners of the earth, yet perfected by the same Holy Spirit.
It’s likely that in the East this feast originated with a day dedicated to martyrs, then expanded in the 9th century during the reign of Emperor Leo VI the Wise when he decreed that the Sunday after Pentecost honor all of the saints.
In the West, a feast of saints was initiated on May 13, 609 when Pope Boniface IV consecrated the Pantheon to Mary the Mother of God and All Martyrs. By the 730s, it had been moved to November 1. A century later the celebration was extended to include all members of the Church of Rome.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” Hebrews 12:1.

Audio: St. John the Baptist UGCC
Images: Public domain

05/29/2026

“Hosts of Angels”: Lyrics - Pochaiv Bohohlasnyk, 1790. Melody - Early 20th c. adaptation of original, adapted again for English. Translation: Anonymous. VSI TIA KHORY, Tserkovni piano, 1926.
Source: The Divine Liturgy An Anthology for Worship; Met. Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies; Ottawa, 2004.

All are welcome to attend St. John’s Feast Day celebration Saturday June 20, 2026. Divine Liturgy is at 3 PM followed by...
05/27/2026

All are welcome to attend St. John’s Feast Day celebration Saturday June 20, 2026. Divine Liturgy is at 3 PM followed by a potluck dinner at 4 PM.
Hope to see you there!

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109 S 7th Street
Pittsburgh, PA
15203

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