Background
Metropolitan Wasyly (Vasylii) was born Vasyl’ Fedak on November 1, 1909 in Kadubivtsi in Austrian-ruled northern Bukovyna (now Chernivtsi oblast in Ukraine).
Metropolitan Wasyly (Vasylii) was born Vasyl’ Fedak on November 1, 1909 in Kadubivtsi in Austrian-ruled northern Bukovyna (now Chernivtsi oblast in Ukraine).
He then studied at a seminary of the UOCC from 1941 to 1944.
In young adulthood, he became a teacher: a career that lasted 14 years. He was ordained into the diaconate on September 27, 1944 and shortly thereafter into the priesthood on October 1. As a priest, he served parishes in Manitoba and Ontario.
In 1951, he arrived in Hamilton, Ontario to serve the parish of Saint Vladimir.
He served this parish for 29 years, seeing the parish grow from 47 to 500 families. Two years later, an Extraordinary Sobor (general council) of the UOCC elected him as its candidate for bishop.
On July 16, 1978, he was consecrated as the Bishop of Saskatoon at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Winnipeg by Metropolitan Andrew (Metiuk)of Winnipeg, Archbishop Borys (Yakovkevych), and Bishop Mykolai (Debryn)of Toronto. Following the death of then Archbishop Mykolai in 1981, Bishop Wasyly became the acting Bishop of the Eastern Eparchy.
He was elevated to Archbishop of Toronto in 1983.
Under the leadership of Metropolitan Wasyly, the UOCC came into full communion with the Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1990. Metropolitan Wasyly reposed on January 10, 2005. His funeral took place on January 21–22 at Holy Trinity Metropolitan Cathedral in Winnipeg.
He is buried at Glen Eden Cemetery.