ABOUT US
OUR CHURCH
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is a parish of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Chicago, which is part of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC). UGCC is in full and visible communion with the See of Rome. With more than 5.5 million faithful, it is the largest of all twenty-three Eastern Catholic Churches in the global Catholic community, second in number only to the Latin (Roman Catholic) Rite Church. The UGCC is headed by the Major Archbishop of Kyiv and Halych, His Beatitude Patriarch Sviatoslav (Shevchuk).
OUR VALUES
At Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, we believe in the power of prayer, worship, and service to transform our lives and the world around us. Our goal is to be a beacon of hope and love in our community, and to share the message of Christ's love and salvation with all those we encounter.
Clergy
​The Very Reverend
Pavlo Popov
Fr. Pavlo came to the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary parish in the Summer of 2025. He is married to pani-matka Luba and together they have five children: Nicholas, Nadia, Sophia, Anastasia, and Mark. His personal interests include sports, classical literature, spirituality, and medical ethics.
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Before joining our parish, from 2007 to 2011 Father was a full-time chaplain at St. Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center (which is also where he did his clinical pastoral education residency) and he assisted at St. Nicholas Cathedral in Chicago. During his years of hospital ministry, he worked in pediatrics, maternity, medical surgery and oncology units. His strengths of listening and compassion were undoubtedly refined through his chaplaincy work.
In 2011 Father was assigned to St. Sophia Parish in the Colony, TX. He served there for almost 15 years. In that time Father was able to strengthen the church community and develop great relationships with local Roman Catholic and Eastern Catholic parishes.
He helped to start a mission of St. Andrew the First Called in Austin, TX, faithfully visiting the community there once a month for over a number of years.
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Born and raised in Kolomyia, Ukraine, he graduated from a minor law school there in 1997. He then received his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from St. Basil’s College, Ukrainian Catholic Seminary in Stamford, CT in 2002. After two years at St. Joseph’s seminary in Yonkers, NY majoring in Theology, he moved to the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC from whom he received his STB (Sacred Theology Baccalaureate degree) in 2007. He was ordained to the subdiaconate in 2007, the diaconate in 2008 and the priesthood in 2009 by eternal memory +Bp. Richard Stephen (Seminack).
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During his years in school, Fr. Pavlo was involved in various ministries including teaching catechism to third and fourth graders, working as a volunteer at the Catholic hospice for cancer patients, and being a spiritual counselor at the shelter for abused adults. In his role as pastor, Father Pavlo now dedicates most of his time to the areas of parish growth and relations with Ukrainian and other Catholic communities of the great Chicago area (both Eastern and Western).
Fr. Pavlo also serves as a syncellus for clergy at St. Nicholas Eparchy. In addition, he is in charge of the Eparchial missions.