On the April 9, the representatives of the international catholic charitable organization Kirche in Not that since December 2011 has the status of the Papal Foundation, have come to Lviv with the working visit.
The initiatives of this organization regarding Ukraine are aimed at the support of the pastoral activity, religious education, catholic media, as well as the restoration and reconstruction of the catholic sacred buildings.
Since the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion into Ukraine, the organization Kirche in Not collects the information about the needs of catholic religious centers in Ukraine that undertook care of internally displaced persons who came from the zones of active warfare. The goal is to engage the funds from the benefactor from the whole world and help Ukraine in this way during such tragic time.
Mrs. Magda Kaczmarek, the representative of the organization`s head office, and Mr. Marco Mencaglia visited all refugees centers in Lviv and surrounding territories that are patronized by the Catholic Church, communicated with the people who live in these centers, as well as with the management of these temporarily shelters.
Also, Mrs. Kaczmarek visited the Benedictine monastery, St. John Paul II parish in Sokilnyky and a construction site, where the Albertine Sisters’ Home for women in crisis and the Albertine Brothers’ Shelter for men are being constructed.
Also, accompanied by the archbishop Mieczysław Mokrzycki, the representative of Kirche in Not with colleagues visited one of the biggest centers of refugees admission and distribution in the Archdiocese of Lviv – the Pilgrim House of Blessed Jakub Strepa in Briukhovychi. Not only does this center provide the shelter and food to internally displaced persons, but also it provides psychological and medical assistance, organizes entertainment for children and adolescents at the time of their stay and helps them to temporarily leave the country for the time of war.
The representatives of the Papal Foundation had a chance to communicate with the temporarily residents of the center, see the condition of their life, hear their stories and even listen to a small concert initiated by children. Some concert participants come from a family with many children who escaped from Mariupol by miracle.
The representatives of the organization Kirche in Not have told, why they came to Ukraine and what they expect to achieve.
- We thank God that we can be here with you. We want to provide all the possible help to you. We have come to communicate with you, to see everything what’s going on and communicate this information to the people in different countries. So that Catholics in the whole world can financially and spiritually support the Catholics in Ukraine that take care of people affected by war. Our main task is to tell them about what we see here. The current events in Ukraine have united many people not only in Europe, but in the whole world. It’s a sort of phenomenon that united people on the Earth in sake of helping one country – both believers and unbelievers, rich and poor – everyone’s heart is with Ukraine. Millions of people want to help.
Also, they plan to visit similar sites in other regions of Ukraine, if the circumstances are beneficial for that.
Author : Vita Jakubovska