A Kingdom Reborn

By Walter Kish

This past week, I had the pleasure to attend the premiere of a new documentary film titled “A Kingdom Reborn – Treasures From Ukrainian Galicia”, screened at Toronto’s UNF Community Centre by the Ukrainian Women’s Organization, Toronto Branch.

This remarkable work was created, produced and directed by a young filmmaker, Dani Stodilka, scion of a family well known in Ukrainian Canadian artistic circles.

To say that the film documents the history of Halychyna (Galicia) through the framework of art and architecture, somehow, doesn’t do it proper justice.  That it does provide us with a good overview of the turbulent past of this part of Ukraine is undoubtedly true, but it does much more – it transcends the mere historical content to provide us with a spiritual connection to the culture and ethos that is such an influential part of the lives of so many of us of Ukrainian descent in this country.

Within the span of around one hour, we are taken on a journey that covers some eight hundred years, beginning with the creation of the Halych Kingdom in the 12^th century through to modern times.  Much of the journey is a virtual one, portraying the times and events through a rich tapestry of historical narrative, legends, myths, paintings, icons, architectural and archeological remains, all accompanied by a rich and evocative sound track composed of ancient sacred choral music as well as works by the noted contemporary Ukrainian Composer Myroslav Skoryk.

Much of the film understandably revolves around the City of Lviv, also known at various times as Leopolis, Lemberg and Lwow, founded by King Danylo of Halych, son of Roman Mstyslavych, the first ruler of the Halych-Volhynian Kingdom.  When Danylo died, his son Lev, after whom the city was named, moved the capital of the kingdom from Halych to Lviv, which subsequently became a cosmopolitan and thriving Central European metropolis. 

Over the centuries, Lviv has seen many conquerors and occupiers, and each has left their mark on this jewel of a city.  Its architecture is amongst the most diverse and picturesque of any European city, and the film displays it lovingly, more from an artistic rather than tourist perspective. 

Churches played a particularly prominent role in the life and culture of Halychyna, regardless of whether one was a noble or a peasant, and we see this reflected in the contrast between the awe-inspiring, elaborate interiors St. George’s Cathedral in Lviv, versus the more "folksy", yet incredibly richly decorated walls and ceilings of a five hundred year old wooden village church in Drohobych.  Making sure that we recognize other faiths and cultures that were part of the Halych and Lviv legacy, the film also gives us a look at several Polish Catholic churches, an eight hundred year old Armenian church and several Jewish synagogues, now sadly either demolished or in disrepair.

Icons were central to Ukrainian Christianity, and the documentary devotes a lot of effort towards providing us with an understanding of their role, not only as objects of religious veneration, but also as a reflection of the social, political and cultural forces at play during the various periods of the area’s history.  They are also a metaphor for the ever-present historical Eastern Byzantine versus Latin European dialectical conflicts that have shaped the political, religious, cultural and artistic life of this region of Ukraine. 

I enjoyed the film immensely on many different levels and would highly recommend it to all.  The producers have plans to show it widely over the next year, and it is available on DVD in both Ukrainian and English versions.  Information about the documentary as well as order forms can be found on the Internet at www.akingdomreborn.com.