Two Priests; Two Friends

It was September, 1966 when two recent high school graduates left different parts of the Country, California and Ohio, with the intention to find if a certain life choice would be right for them. They met in the state of Pennsylvania, in the city of Pittsburgh, at the only Byzantine Catholic Seminary in the entire USA. Upon arrival, they would find that they would not have a private room as they had at the home (they were both only children), nor would they share a room with one other, but would spend their first year as seminarians in the third floor freshmen dorm with their four classmates. A few days later they would don their required college uniform: black suit, white shirt, black tie, black socks and shoes. After Liturgy and breakfast they would take their black book bags and their black hats and head out to the old rickety yellow former school bus for the drive to the city of Pittsburgh and up the hills there to the bluff at Duquesne University. From there they would file out to enter University Hall for their first class at Duquesne University, Western Civ. 101. Arriving a little late that day, they were the last to enter the classroom at University Hall. The two hundred plus students present heard a sound in the back of the room to find six men entering, all dressed alike in black!

Around Halloween that year the two were given nicknames by an astute Sophomore who hailed from New “Joisy”! The seminarian from San Diego, John Kachuba was tagged “Chico” because he often made comments about living near Tijuana, Mexico. The other and author of this article, Richard Lambert, was given the name “Ginzo” since in New Jersey, Italians were called by that title. Those nicknames remain to this day. John remained in Pittsburgh to graduate from Duquesne U. while I transferred to St. Paul’s Seminary in Newton, NJ to graduate from Don Bosco College. I returned to Pittsburgh, and the two of us were reunited in the Theology Department.

During his last year as an ordained Deacon, John had the opportunity to work with members of the Byzantine Clergy, Religious Sisters of Saint Basil the Great, laymen with a knowledge and desire to share with the youth of our Metropolitan Church. They were the ones with the foresight to write and publish a program for the youth of our Byzantine Church schools, “The God With Us Series.” The series was also available to Eastern Catholic Churches that were not connected with schools, and all who desperately were in need of learning about Eastern Christian Theology. They then addressed the need of older youth in parish Formation Programs, not to mention information that could be shared in Adult Enrichment Programs. The deacon John Kachuba who was a part of these beginnings, soon became the Director of Eastern Christian Doctrine where our Metropolitan Church joined together with other Eastern Christian Churches here in America. Years after his ordination, Fr. Kachuba was granted the title of Most Rev. Archpriest and Syncellus of the Eparchy of Parma (Ohio) by the Most Rev. Bishop Judson Procyk , Eparch of Parma and also served under Most Rev. Basil Schott.

A few years after Ordination, I became involved in another work of the Archeparchy. I was appointed as an associate editor of the Byzantine Catholic World, the monthly newspaper of the Pittsburgh Archeparchy, by Archbishop Stephen Kocisko. Serving for 17 years in that capacity, I then became editor of the BCW for three additional years. After “retiring” from the BCW, I was appointed Pastor of St. Mary BC Church in Youngstown, OH and Very Rev. Protopresbyter (Dean) of the Youngstown Presbyteral District in 2001 by the newly Ordained Metropolitan Archbishop Basil Schott of Pittsburgh. From this time on, both Fr. Kachuba and I were assigned to parishes locally, he in Cleveland and I in Youngstown.

Even before this time we both became closely connected with the GCU! I became lodge chaplain and district chaplain during my years as a pastor in Pittsburgh. I was also honored to serve for eight years as Chairman of the Supreme Tribunal and twelve years as National Spiritual Advisor until my retirement. It was also my honor to swear-in the former Chairman of the Tribunal, and the Most Rev. Archpriest John Kachuba to follow as the National Spiritual Advisor of the GCU. His death in February of this year brought his far too short term to an end.

Father John may your memory be eternal! Vicnaja jemu pamjat’!
The Chairman of the GCU Board of Directors has contacted me recently that the Board has appointed me to a temporary term as National Spiritual Advisor. I recently had the opportunity to celebrate the service of two Board Members that I served with, Barbara Kushner and Dorothy Foran, for their retirements. I then had the honor to swear-in their replacements new appointed GCU Board Members, Maria Silvestri and George W. Batyko at the May GCU Board Meeting. I will soon have the additional honor of swearing in the priest who will be appointed to serve as the new National Spiritual Advisor of the GCU to succeed two priests, two friends!

Sincerely yours,
Very Rev. Richard I. Lambert | GCU Interim National Spiritual Advisor