September 14-21, 2024

Fastiv, 14.09-21.09.24

Praised be Jesus Christ!

All these days we live in the shadow of the tragedy that happened to our Brothers in Poland, where there are so many of our Friends, but we also remember the Czech Republic, Austria, and Romania. More than 750 localities were affected in Poland, this tragedy directly affected the region where two million people live. We talked a lot during these days with our acquaintances. I want to share one story with you. Our friends who have been supporting us since the beginning of the war, the Zupa na Monciaku Foundation, were making a collection for those who suffered as a result of the flood and they asked to convey that 70% of the people who brought the necessary gifts were people from Ukraine. They constantly repeated: “You remembered us and we also remember you.” There was an old man who went three times to a supermarket quite far. He was offered help to drive up, but he refused, saying it was his duty. He went there three times, buying those products that were necessary not only for him, but also for others. This is an incredible expression of how we remember all our Brothers in Poland who suffered so much. On September 29th at all our Masses, we will be collecting donations for those affected by the flood.

This week we visited Kherson with a humanitarian mission. This week is special because a local festival is approaching, although for the third year in a row it is in the shadow of shelling and restless days and evenings. That is why our presence and help in the social kitchen, bakery and laundry is so necessary. I will share with you what happened to our volunteer, Mr. Andriy, who delivers bread to villages and areas where there is no electricity and gas and often no water. There is an incredible heroism in his actions, because there are a lot of “drops” on civilians and he also came under this shelling, but luckily nothing happened to him. Unfortunately, these situations are not an exception, but despite this, volunteers courageously help the population, although it is often dangerous.

We also handed over fire extinguishers for the villages of Antonivka and Stanislavovo. In our missions, we always remember the military. This time, according to the request, we gave them a generator and some food. We share what we have and we remember them in prayer every day. We thank our volunteer Mr. Ireneusz Gajlun, who visited the village Belozirka, where people were waiting for him, because despite the difficult circumstances, he delivered lunches and bread for them every day. We would like to thank Ms. Agneszka Tombinska from the Ksenia association for the hygiene products that we handed over for the Kherson region. We thank our Friends Charytatywni Freta Fundacja Charytatywni for the fair that took place last Sunday in Warsaw at the Dominican priory on the Freta Street. Thank you to the community of lay Dominicans from Zwolle, brothers Peter, Jakub and Frans van der Heijdt who remember us. This week, they organized support for our children and humanitarian missions, thank you for your kindness and memory.

We pray for a just peace for Ukraine.

Fr. Mykhailo Romaniv OP