About Saints Peter and Paul [Ukrainian] · Simpson, Pennsylvania
Sts. Peter and Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church is a small Byzantine-rite (Ukrainian Greek Catholic) mission parish in Simpson, Pennsylvania, a historic coal-region borough in Lackawanna County that was settled by waves of Central and Eastern European immigrants in the early 1900s. The parish is one of Simpson's three Eastern Catholic/Russian Orthodox communities founded in 1905 and is served today by Very Rev. Nestor Iwasiw, who also pastors Sts. Cyril and Methodius in nearby Olyphant. It belongs to the Ukrainian Metropolitan Archeparchy of Philadelphia, under Metropolitan Archbishop Borys Gudziak, and celebrates the Byzantine Divine Liturgy in the English-language tradition of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
- Established
- 1905
- Patron
- Saints Peter and Paul (Prince of the Apostles)
- Rector
- Very Rev. Nestor Iwasiw
- Diocese
- Ukrainian Metropolitan Archeparchy of Philadelphia
Why belong here
Sts. Peter and Paul offers the Byzantine-rite Ukrainian Greek Catholic Divine Liturgy — a richly liturgical, centuries-old Eastern Catholic tradition fully in communion with the Pope of Rome — in an intimate Simpson neighborhood rooted in immigrant coal-country heritage. Worshippers are welcomed into a small but living community with a long history (founded 1905), a parish cemetery, and pastoral care from a priest who also serves the nearby Olyphant parish. It is an ideal place for Byzantine Catholics in the Lackawanna Valley, Ukrainian-heritage families, and anyone drawn to the Eastern Catholic tradition to worship, belong, and maintain the faith of their forebears.
Mass times at Saints Peter and Paul [Ukrainian]
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Half hour before Divine Liturgy
About Sts. Peter and Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church, Simpson
Sts. Peter and Paul is a small Byzantine-rite (Ukrainian Greek Catholic) mission parish located at 43 Rittenhouse Street in Simpson, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania. It is one of three Eastern Christian congregations established in Simpson in 1905, alongside St. Basil's Russian Orthodox Church and the older St. Michael's Roman Catholic parish. The church belongs to the Ukrainian Metropolitan Archeparchy of Philadelphia and is in full communion with the Pope of Rome, serving Byzantine-rite Catholics of Ukrainian and Rusyn heritage as well as anyone drawn to the Eastern Catholic liturgical tradition.
- Parish type: Mission (Ukrainian Greek Catholic, Byzantine Rite)
- Founded: May 7, 1905
- Jurisdiction: Ukrainian Metropolitan Archeparchy of Philadelphia
- Geographic location: within the territory of the Roman Diocese of Scranton
History of the Parish
The parish was founded on May 7, 1905, during a wave of Central and Eastern European immigration into the Lackawanna Valley's anthracite coal and lumber industries. According to local historical accounts compiled by Clio, construction of St. Peter and Paul Ukrainian Church, situated on Rittenhouse Street near Holy Trinity Church, began alongside St. Basil's Russian Orthodox Church, reflecting the parallel Ruthenian and Russian Orthodox communities that formed in Simpson's neighborhoods.
- May 7, 1905: Parish officially established
- Companion parish: St. Basil's Russian Orthodox Church, dedicated January 1905
- May 2005: Parish celebrates 100th anniversary
- Parish is part of the heritage of immigrant churches that gave Simpson its distinctive European Catholic character
Pastoral Leadership
The parish is currently served by Very Rev. Nestor Iwasiw, who also serves as pastor of Sts. Cyril and Methodius Ukrainian Catholic Church in Olyphant. Fr. Iwasiw serves as pastor for both Simpson and Olyphant, reflecting the small size of the Simpson mission and the regional clustering of Ukrainian Catholic pastoral care in northeastern Pennsylvania. He was previously listed as Protopresbyter of the North Anthracite Protopresbyterate of the Archeparchy of Philadelphia.
- Pastor: Very Rev. Nestor Iwasiw
- Also serves Sts. Cyril and Methodius Ukrainian Catholic Church, Olyphant
- E-mail: [email protected]
Liturgical Schedule & Sacraments
The parish celebrates the Byzantine Divine Liturgy on Sundays at 8:00 AM, with the Divine Liturgy served in English (and traditional Church Slavonic). Confessions are heard half an hour before the Divine Liturgy, and parishioners are encouraged to arrive early to receive the sacrament. As is customary in Ukrainian Greek Catholic parishes, the faithful may also approach the priest for confession, anointing, or pastoral counsel by contacting the parish office.
- Sunday Divine Liturgy: 8:00 AM (English)
- Confession: Half hour before Divine Liturgy
- Rite: Byzantine (Ukrainian Greek Catholic)
- Liturgical language: English with elements of Church Slavonic
Parish Cemetery
The parish operates Saints Peter and Paul Greek Catholic Cemetery at 57 Prospect Street, Simpson, which serves as the resting ground for members of the Ukrainian Catholic community. The cemetery is located on the hill near Holy Trinity's cemetery, in the Prospect Street corridor of the borough, and has been an integral part of the parish's ministry to its families for more than a century.
- Cemetery name: Saints Peter and Paul Greek Catholic Cemetery
- Address: 57 Prospect St, Simpson, PA 18407
- Borough: Simpson, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania
Contact & Visiting
Parishioners and visitors can reach the parish office at 43 Rittenhouse Street, Simpson, PA 18407, by phone at 570-291-4451, or by email at [email protected]. The parish's official listing on the Archeparchy of Philadelphia website provides up-to-date announcements, including a link to the Archeparchy's Healing of Wounds of War in Ukraine Fund and other archeparchial initiatives.
- Address: 43 Rittenhouse St, Simpson, PA 18407
- Phone: 570-291-4451
- Email: [email protected]
- Pastor email: [email protected]
- Archeparchy website: ukrcatholic.org
Identity Within the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
As a parish of the Ukrainian Metropolitan Archeparchy of Philadelphia, Sts. Peter and Paul is part of the worldwide Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church — the largest Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with Rome. The parish's major archbishop is His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kyiv-Halych, and the local metropolitan is His Grace, the Most Reverend Borys Gudziak of Philadelphia. Byzantine-rite parishes in America follow the liturgical, spiritual, and canonical traditions of Kyivan Christianity, including the use of the Julian calendar for fixed feasts and the distinctive Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom.
- Major Archbishop: His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk (Kyiv-Halych)
- Metropolitan: Most Reverend Borys Gudziak (Philadelphia)
- Rite: Byzantine (Eastern Catholic)