St. Michael the Archangel Parish, located in Dearborn Michigan, is a small but vibrant Ukrainian Catholic Community dedicated to preserving the traditions upon which it was founded and bearing witness to God’s active presence in creation. It is an Eastern Catholic Church that uses the ritual of the Byzantine Church and follows Ukrainian traditions, customs and liturgical practices. Services are conducted in both English and Ukrainian. Open to all Christians, St. Michael’s Parish is in full communion with the Catholic Church. All Catholics in good-standing are able to partake of the Eucharist and can fulfill their obligations as stipulated by the Catholic Church.

Since St. Michael’s Parish is in union with the Bishop of Rome (Pope), it embraces the general disciplines of the Catholic Church with regard to the eligibility for marriage and the reception of the Eucharist. Therefore it does not recognize divorce and requires a declared annulment before allowing a second marriage. A dispensation (permission from the Bishop) is required for marriage if both parties are not Catholic. While it does not require conversion to the faith for marriage, one person must be a member of the parish for a period of six months prior to the celebration of the sacrament of Matrimony.

The general discipline followed for the reception of the Eucharist is: (1) fast from alcohol for three hours, (2) fast from food for one hour, and (3) the reception of the Sacrament of Penance if not free from serious sin. Infants and children who have already been initiated into the Church in accord with the Byzantine Tradition are permitted to receive the Eucharist. Initiation into the Church includes Baptism, Chrismation (Confirmation), and Holy Eucharist. Roman Catholic children who have received their First Communion are also permitted to receive the Eucharist.

St. Michael’s is one of six parishes in the greater Detroit Metropolitan area that belong to the St. Nicholas Eparchy for Ukrainian Catholics. The Eparch (Bishop) and Cathedral Church of the St. Nicholas Eparchy is located in Chicago Illinois and has parishes in 16 of the states west of Michigan, including Hawaii. A listing of all Eparchial Parishes can be found on the Eparchial website.

The St. Nicholas Eparchy and its parishes are a part of the United States Province of the Ukrainian Catholic Church. The Metropolitan See is the Archeparchy of Philadelphia. There are also Eparchies in Stamford, Connecticut and Parma, Ohio. The United States Province is a part of the Greek-Catholic Church in Ukraine, a world-wide Church with eparchies and parishes in almost all of the countries of the world. Our Patriarch, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, resides in Kiev, Ukraine.