Mgr Roman Danylak and Maria Valtorta

Coat of arms of Mgr Roman Danylak

Born on December 29, 1930, in Toronto (Canada) and died on October 7, 2012, in the same city, he was apostolic administrator of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church for eastern Canada.

Licensed in theology, he holds a doctorate in canon law obtained at the Pontifical Lateran University. As an expert, he later participated in the revision of the canon law regarding the Eastern Churches. He was based in Toronto, where at age 62, he became Apostolic Administrator of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church for all of eastern Canada.

In August/September 1992, then a simple priest from Winnipeg (Manitoba, Canada), he published a long article in which he refuted the criticisms made at the time against the work of Maria Valtorta and supported his favorable view of the work.

On June 24, 2001, as Apostolic Administrator, he issued, with the full weight of his office, a "testimonial" for an edition of the work in English, assuring of the perfect conformity of the work with "the canonical Gospels, Tradition, and the Magisterium of the Catholic Church."

On February 13, 2002, he officially encouraged consulting a website dedicated to Maria Valtorta and her work, reaffirming its conformity to the Catholic faith. This "cyber-imprimatur" is a novelty. On this occasion, he mentioned that Cardinal Ratzinger "in private letters acknowledged that this work is free of doctrinal or moral errors," but did not specify these private sources, recently identified.

"In Defense of The Poem" (1992)

In 1991, when he wrote this first manifesto published in 1992, Roman Danylak was still only a priest but already had solid experience with Roman authorities: he had been for 17 years, from 1973 to 1990, a consultor to the Pontifical Commission for the Revision of the Eastern Churches' canon law. He was indeed a member of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, licensed in sacred theology from the Pontifical Urbaniana University, and doctor in utroque jure from the Pontifical Lateran University. The result of this pontifical commission was published on October 10, 1990, by John Paul II.

In August/September 1992, this long defense text of Maria Valtorta's work was published in "A Call to Peace," a Texan magazine dealing with the Marian apparitions of Medjugorje. Indeed, Father Philip Pavich, confessor and pilgrimage guide at Medjugorje had published, following the invitation of the "Gospa" to read Maria Valtorta's work, a critique of this work that caused disturbance. Roman Danylak thus seized the opportunity to publish and justify his position on Maria Valtorta's work.

His public testimony is therefore indicative of what could or could not be said about Maria Valtorta in circles close to the Vatican. In this document, it should be noted that he does not mention the 1985 letter from Cardinal Ratzinger to Cardinal Siri and ignores its existence. In Rome, they would have surely told him about it since he displays quite detailed knowledge of the "Maria Valtorta dossier." This confirms that at that time, as also attested by Emilio Pisani in an independent testimony, Maria Valtorta was no longer a "persona non grata" at the Holy Office Palace and that her work was now considered a "good book."

Significantly, Roman Danylak was appointed bishop and apostolic administrator a few months later, in December. He would not have been appointed if he had been a promoter of a book still considered harmful and condemned.

Preface of "Gospel as revealed to me" by Maria Valtorta" (2001)

In 2001, he prefaced the second English edition previously known as The Poem of the Man-God and now under the title Gospel as revealed to me, thus aligning with international usage. In this preface, he recalls all of his public writings supporting the work which he recommends.

Refutation of EWTN's criticisms (2002)

In February 2002, Bill Bilton, a journalist from an American television channel located in Alabama, answered a listener's question about Maria Valtorta. The answer suggested that Maria Valtorta’s work was officially and definitively condemned as it was presented as dangerous. He ended with this often-repeated advice by those who have read neither the 'work of Maria Valtorta nor the Magisterium texts that govern private revelations: "Catholics who want to know [about the life of Jesus and His Mother] should devote their time to reading the Gospels or a good biography of Christ."

This attitude angered Mgr Danylak who replied to the channel, arguing what he considered to be "a stain and an affront on the good reputation and authority that EWTN rightly enjoys among Catholic listeners, not to mention the absence of an investigation into the status of the matter."

The Imprimatur of Brother Chrysostome’s website (2002)

Trappist Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemane, Kentucky, USA

Brother Chrysostome Castel (1938-2021), born in New Orleans, was a Trappist monk of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance (OCSO) based at Our Lady of Gethsemani Abbey. This abbey, which houses more than 70 monks, is located in the United States near Bardstown, Kentucky. It is considered the motherhouse of all Trappist houses in the United States. The writer Thomas Merton (1915-1968) lived there.

"Fr. Chrysostome, who devoted himself to the writings of the modern mystic Maria Valtorta, maintained a website dedicated to her. He learned Italian specifically to read her in the original and to translate her works into English. He also knew French and Latin."

On January 13, 2002, Mgr Roman Danylak published on his site the Nihil obstat and the imprimatur he granted him. These authorizations thus concern, for the first time it seems, the content of a website and not a printed work.

The tone is firm regarding the "stone-throwers," and he emphasizes recalling the past errors of hasty censorship. It is in this document that he attests a letter stating, "Cardinal Ratzinger recognized in private letters that this work is free of doctrinal or moral errors. The Italian Bishops' Conference recognized the same in its correspondence with the current editor-in-chief, Dr. Emilio Pisani." This attestation corroborates the events of 1991/1992 related to the change of Cardinal Ratzinger's position after reading the work.

Brother Chrysostome's website is archived on the Wayback Machine following his death.

"Maria Valtorta, Her Life and Work"

In this latest document, published on his website and undated, Mgr Roman Danylak summarizes his pleas in favor of the work and more generally of Maria Valtorta’s sanctity. He outlines the main arguments and notably those endorsing the "ecclesiastical approval" following the encouragement of Pius XII.

Notes and references

• Website of Mgr Roman Danylak.