HIDDEN WOUND

 

The Shoulder Wound of Jesus calls to mind the wound that Jesus is said to have received carrying the cross  on which He was crucified. It is attributed to Bernard of Clairvaux and to St. Gertrude.

St. Bernard asked Jesus which was his greatest unrecorded suffering and the wound that inflicted the most pain on him in Calvary. Jesus answered: "I had on My Shoulder, while I bore My Cross on the Way of Sorrows, a grievous Wound which was more painful than the others and which is not recorded by men."

According to Stefano Campanella, author of  “The Pope and the Friar” Karol Wojtyła ( future Pope  St. John Paul II), while still a priest, visited St. Padre Pio and asked the question of which was his most painful wound – much like the manner Bernard did to Christ. The young priest expected that it was Pio's chest wound, but Padre Pio replied: "It is my shoulder wound, which no one knows about and has never been cured or treated."

Prior to his death, Padre Pio confided to Brother Modestino Fucci at his friary in San Giovanni Rotondo that his greatest pains happened when he took off his shirt. At the time, Brother  Modestino believed it to be his chest wounds much like  St. John Paul II. When he was later assigned the task of inventorying all the items inside the cell of the late Padre Pio, he noticed his undershirts had blood stains on the right shoulder. 

That night, Brother Fucci prayed asking Padre Pio for a sign if he truly bore the shoulder wound of Christ. At 1 A.M., he awoke with an excruciating pain in his right shoulder and the room was filled the aroma of flowers, the sign St.Padre Pio’s spiritual presence, and he heard a voice call out: “This is what I had to suffer!”

Scientific evidence related to the Turin Shroud: Four university professors have published an article in “Injury” magazine revealing that the crucified man that was wrapped in the Turin Shroud suffered a dislocation of the humerus, the paralysis of one arm and a violent trauma to the neck and chest.

 The person whose figure is imprinted on the Shroud is believed to have collapsed under the weight of the cross, or the “patibulum” as it is referred to in the study, the horizontal part of the cross.

The Man of the Shroud the academics explain, fell “forwards” and suffered a “violent knock” “while falling to the ground.” “Neck and shoulder muscle paralysis” were “caused by a heavy object hitting the back between the neck and shoulder and causing displacement of the head from the side opposite to the shoulder depression.

 On the basis of this report, we may draw the connection with the biblical passage on Simon of Cyrene, as the bearer of the cross would not be able to continue to carry the cross, at any rate not without help.

Prayer of St. Bernard:

O Loving Jesus, meek Lamb of God, I a miserable sinner, salute and worship the most Sacred Wound of Your Shoulder on which You  bore Your heavy Cross, which so tore Your flesh and laid bare Your Bones as to inflict on You an anguish greater than any other wound of Your Most Blessed Body. I adore You, O Jesus most sorrowful; I praise and glorify You and give You  thanks for this most sacred and painful Wound, beseeching You by that exceeding pain, and by the crushing burden of Your heavy Cross to be merciful to me, a sinner, to forgive me all my mortal and venial sins, and to lead me on towards Heaven along the Way of the Cross. Amen.

WHERE IS GOD? WHY SUFFER?

 “Where is God during war? Where is God when we are being killed? God is with us. He is being crucified again by those who are shooting at us. He is being condemned to death again by those religious leaders who are justifying this war. He is being laid in a tomb by those who are burying the inhabitants of Mariupol, Izium and other cities of Ukraine in mass graves,” His Beatitude Sviatoslav, the Father and Head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church.

St. John Paul II wrote that Jesus “has taken upon Himself the physical and moral sufferings of the people of all times, so that in love they may find the salvific meaning of their sorrow and valid answers to all of their questions” (Salvifici Doloris, No. 31).

(Icon: Sviatoslav Vladyka)

Jesus has told us that to follow Him we must take up our cross and that it will not be easy. “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me” (Lk 9:23).

 In this life should we expect anything less than a share in Jesus’ s own passion and cross if we claim to love Him? This  means we suffer, and it is more often than not a suffering we would not choose for ourselves.  St. Gemma Galgani said,  “If you really want to love Jesus, first learn to suffer, because suffering teaches you to love.”

Pope St. John Paul II wrote  a beautiful encyclical on suffering, Salvifici Doloris.in which he states each of us in our suffering, “can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ” (Salvifici Doloris, No. 19).

 In this Lent, which has for so many, a unique window into the suffering of humanity- having come out of 2 years of a pandemic and now watching the destruction of a country, too close for comfort, which could bring us to another world war, we have the opportunity for more prayer and sacrifice which includes acceptance of the cross we are asked to bear.  It means recognizing that the cross we bear is for other members of the Body of Christ. When accepted and given freely, our suffering is never wasted. 

“In the face of evil, suffering and sin, the only response possible for a disciple of Jesus is the gift of self, even of one’s own life, in imitation of Christ; it is the attitude of service,” Pope Francis said during World Youth Day in Poland in 2016. Little did he know then how especially true these words would be for today!

CONSECRATION TO MOTHER OF GOD

 

If we want the world to change, then first our hearts must change.  For this to happen, let us allow Our Lady to take us by the hand.  Let us gaze upon her Immaculate Heart in which God dwelt, “our tainted nature’s solitary boast”.  Mary is “full of grace” (v. 28), and thus free from sin.  In her, there is no trace of evil and hence, with her, God was able to begin a new story of salvation and peace.  There, in her, history took a turn.  God changed history by knocking at the door of Mary’s heart.

 

Today, renewed by forgiveness, may we too knock at the door of her immaculate heart.  In union with the Bishops and faithful of the world, I desire in a solemn way to bring all that we are presently experiencing to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  I wish to renew to her the consecration of the Church and the whole of humanity, and to consecrate to her in a particular way the Ukrainian people and the Russian people who, with filial affection, venerate her as a Mother. 

This is no magic formula but a spiritual act.  It is an act of complete trust on the part of children who, amid the tribulation of this cruel and senseless war that threatens our world, turn to their Mother.  It is like what young children do when they are scared; they turn to their mother for protection.  

 We turn to our Mother, reposing all our fears and pain in her heart and abandoning ourselves to her.  It means placing in that pure and undefiled heart, where God is mirrored, the inestimable goods of fraternity and peace, all that we have and are, so that she, the Mother whom the Lord has given us, may protect us and watch over us.

 (From Consecration of Ukraine and Russia- Homily of Pope Francis - March 25, 2022)

                                                        

DEDICATION TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF OUR MOTHER

 

                                               Mykola Zhuravel - Ukraine

March 25, 2022  the feast of the Annunciation, Pope Francis will consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary  in Rome at Saint Peter's Basilica.  A consecration ceremony is also scheduled in Fatima, Portugal by the Papal almoner, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski.

Russia has been dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary four times already. The first time being October 31, 1942 in the midst of World War II,  Pope Pius XII consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary through a radio message on the eve of All Saints Day.

On the feast of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, “Apostles to the Slavs,” Pope Pius XII issued an apostolic letter directed to the Russian people, entrusting Russia and her people to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

November 21, 1964,  at the conclusion of the third Session of the Second Vatican Council, Pope (St.)  Paul VI, along with all the bishops present, renewed the consecration of the whole world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

March 25, 1984, Pope  (St.) John Paul II consecrated the whole world in front of the statue of Our Lady of Fatima, inviting all other bishops to join him in prayer, to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

One wonders how many more times we need to implore our heavenly Mother for help? 

Our Lady of Fatima appeared on May 13, 1917, only a few months after a revolution began in Russia that would spread through the whole world, and Russia was specifically mentioned in her message to the children.

“To prevent [another World War], I shall come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart and the Communion of reparation on the first Saturdays.

If people attend to my requests, Russia will be converted and the world will have peace. If not, she [Russia] will scatter her errors throughout the world, provoking wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to suffer, and various nations will be destroyed.

In the end my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me; it will be converted, and a certain period of peace will be granted to the world. In Portugal the dogmas of the Faith will always be kept.”

“This act of consecration is meant to be a gesture of the universal Church, which in this dramatic moment lifts up to God, through his Mother and ours, the cry of pain of all those who suffer and implore an end to the violence, and to entrust the future of our human family to the Queen of Peace.” Pope Francis  March 21, 2022

Ukrainian artist Mykola Zhuravel turns to nature to create thriving monuments to our link to the earth itself. He searches for compatibility between Earth and mankind, while pointedly making reference to the obstacles that human beings have placed in the way of a harmonious existence.. By using levkas, a traditional primer employed by icon painters, Zhuravel unites the legacies of Byzantine and Rus icon painting with his contemporary painterly technique. The result, richly vibrant and inventive contemporary works that emerge as modern-day icons.

PASSION

 

Your voice speaks to my soul:

Be not afraid of my golden garments, have no fear of the rays of my candles,

For they are all but veils of my love, they are all but as tender hands covering my secret.

I will draw them away, weeping soul, that you may see I am no stranger to you.

How should a mother not resemble her child?

All your sorrows are in me.

I am born out of suffering, I have bloomed out of five holy wounds.

I grew on the tree of humiliation, I found strength in the bitter wine of tears.

I am a white rose in a chalice full of blood.

I live on suffering, I am the strength out of suffering, I am glory out of suffering:

Come to my soul and find your home.

 

“Passion” by Gertrud von Le Fort (1876–1971) Hymns to the Church 

Painting:  Vincent Manansala

PIERCED HANDS

 

 

As the war in the Ukraine continues, we focus our meditation on the suffering Christ, who died that we may have life and peace not discord.

The famous Isenheim Christ certainly gives us the possibility of contemplation in front of the unbearable- we see a light which cannot live without its share of shadow. The artist had a gift of giving us a sense of our own pain as we partake visually in the suffering of Christ.

It is thought that Grunewald's intensely realistic imagery and iconography were no doubt inspired by the revelations of St Bridget of Sweden, published in a best-selling devotional book during the 14th and 15th centuries.

Grunewald is now seen as one of the best history painters, if not one of the best artists of all time. He was working about the same time that Raphael was decorating the Vatican in Rome. 

Jesus' arms appear elongated and stretched as they give in to the weight of His Body. In the tryptich we notice His hands and the straining fingers. Grunewald depicts the expired Jesus with hands frozen in writhing pain, as if they sum up His sufferings. They have been described as a “physical scream”.

In His open hands, He has given absolutely everything  despite the exhausted body. He is transfigured by suffering . We see Him as already in a place beyond our earth.

 The nailing of Jesus’ hands was a fulfillment to a Messianic Psalm. “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet” (Psalm 22:16).

“And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends” (Zechariah 13:6).

 

The Grünewald Crucifixion is considered to be one of the most horrific and painful crucifixions ever painted.  Rarely has a scene of such graphic horror been used regularly as the central image of a worship space. Today, as we contemplate suffering beyond our imagination in the Ukraine, this work can jars us into meditation on  why our Savior suffered as He did for us.  And we pray in hope for that which lies ahead in glory for all.

After the resurrection, Jesus invited Thomas “the doubter” to see and touch His nail-pierced hands for himself. “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands… Do not be unbelieving, but believing” (John 20:27).

 

THE PAIN OF WOMEN

 

Today as many of the Irish have a celebration for St. Patrick, the people of the Ukraine continue their  suffering.

Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk called for prayers for women living in parts of Ukraine controlled by Russian forces. 

“In our villages in the Kyiv region, women are becoming the first victims of the occupation, victims of violence, victims of humiliation, victims of rape.

Women who care for the elderly and feed their children. When we care for our people who are hiding in bomb shelters, we see first of all women. The woman is today the symbol of the strength and courage of Ukraine.

Perhaps it seems odd: courage and woman. It used to be that courage was always associated with a man, but here we see the female strength that gives Ukraine hope.

Today, Europe has seen mothers who hold their children by the hand, rescuing them from war, but their parents turn back to defend their land with arms.

Who can fully comprehend the pain of a woman, a mother, who mourns the death of her son killed in war? Or a woman who has lost her husband, brother, or sister?

But most of all we are amazed by women who stand in prayer before God.”

Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh, Ireland, and Church of Ireland Archbishop John McDowell said in a joint statement on the eve of the Feast of St. Patrick:

“We appeal through our prayers this Saint Patrick’s Day for an end to this pointless massacre and pulverizing of the property, bodies and spirit of the Ukrainian people.

It is poignant to think that as the world comes out of a global pandemic which reminded us so strongly of our connectedness and interdependence, that our continent has so easily lapsed into the pointless divisions and devastation of warfare. War is a defeat for humanity. It represents the failure of politics, diplomacy and dialogue…

Tradition tells us that Saint Patrick himself, in the face of great danger and peril to his own life, prayed his ‘Breastplate Prayer,’ taking comfort in his faith that God does not forsake us, and that Christ is present with all who suffer: Christ is always with us, behind us and before us.

We join our small Lenten sacrifices with their immense suffering. We also acknowledge the many Russian people, here and in their homeland, who bear no responsibility for this heart-breaking situation and who share our desire for peace and an end to this terrible violence.

”Images: 

Top: Tsolak Shahinyan- Ukraine

Right: Ivanka Demchuk Ukraine- Ukraine

FORGIVE US, LORD

 Pope Francis read a prayer asking God to have mercy and bring peace to the war in Ukraine during his Wednesday general audience on March 16.  It was written by Archbishop Domenico Battaglia of Naples.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us sinners.

Lord Jesus, born under the bombs of Kyiv, have mercy on us.

Lord Jesus, who died in his mother’s arms in a bunker in Kharkiv, have mercy on us.

Lord Jesus, sent at 20 years old to the front, have mercy on us.

Lord Jesus, who still sees armed hands in the shadow of your Cross, have mercy on us!

Forgive us, Lord,

if, not content with the nails with which we pierced your hands, we continue to drink from the blood of the dead torn apart by weapons.

Forgive us, Lord, if these hands that you created for care have been transformed into instruments of death.

Forgive us, Lord, if we continue to kill our brother, if we continue like Cain to remove the stones from our field to kill Abel. Forgive us if we continue to justify cruelty with our toil, if with our pain we legitimize the cruelty of our actions.

Forgive us the war, Lord.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, we implore you: Stop the hand of Cain!

Enlighten our consciences,

let not our will be done,

do not abandon us to our own actions.

Stop us, Lord, stop us.

  (Icon: Ukrainian)

WOUNDS NOT HIDDEN

"We are not asked to ignore or hide our wounds. A church with wounds can understand the wounds of today's world and make them her own, suffering with them, accompanying them and seeking to heal them. A wounded church does not make herself the center of things, does not believe that she is perfect, but puts at the center the one who can heal those wounds, whose name is Jesus Christ." (Pope Francis)

"In Jesus, our wounds are risen," Pope Francis continued. "They inspire solidarity; they help us to tear down the walls that enclose us in elitism and they impel us to build bridges and to encounter all those yearning for that merciful love which Christ alone can give."

The Grunewald masterpiece is the ultimate picture of suffering.  Jesus' feet are misshapen, bowed from the weight of the body they have carried.  Jesus’ feet show not only the effect of torture and piercing, but also the withering effect of St. Anthony’s Fire, which disfigures the extremities in just such a manner.

David said ,“They pierced my hands and my feet"  (Psalm 22:16)   but we know from the gospels that the words describe Jesus  fixed to the cross by nails through his feet and hands. 

 From the Shroud of Turin we know that the Romans used thick nails with large heads for Crucifixion. The nails were approximately 1/3 inch thick, and about 9 inches long. They were thick enough to support the weight of a human body. 

The soldiers pierced the feet with the nails through the second inter-metatarsal spaces.  No bones were broken. ("They have numbered all my bones." ie. not one broken). Gravity naturally pulled the body downwards, so that a nail in the foot would not tear out. The dorsal artery of the foot would be severed, causing severe hemorrhage of blood. The whole body weight was suspended on the nail in the feet. This caused continuous agony for Jesus.

The dorsal image on the Shroud shows the Right foot more clearly than the Left. Both feet are turned inward. This means that the Left foot was on top of the Right, and only one nail was used to fasten both feet. When Jesus died, the body stiffened on the Cross. This position was preserved in Rigor Mortis after they took Jesus down and covered him with the Shroud.

                          Grunewald’s  "Crucifixion"-  Tauberbischofsheim Altarpiece

The wounds of  Jesus are  significant to our growth spiritually and are a part of His the Resurrection story. His wounds brought about healing from sin to all who would ever believe in Him.“

"But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His stripes we are healed.”Isaiah  53:5  

LENT FOR THE WHOLE WORLD

 

The world is being carried along on a rushing torrent of events which are beyond human control.  Armageddon seems to be approaching in one form or another. However, there is one power available to change the course of events and to support us in the great crises of life, and that is the power of prayer.  

Due to the crises in the Ukraine, which has the whole world reeling with worry, I would like to focus this Lent on the physical suffering of Jesus  in His last hours. We have in past Blogs seen the  Isenheim Altarpiece by Grünewald, which is a good place to start our meditation for a most difficult Lent for the world.

Bishop Robert Barron  (Los Angeles) said of  this piece , “What is, for me, most disturbing are the shut eyes and the gaping mouth: this Christ is no longer seeing or speaking; He is simply lost in the terror of the moment.”  

This work, is for me  the masterpiece which most  expresses for us the suffering of Jesus.  This haunting work  was never meant to just be looked at  as a piece of art, but rather it  was meant to be a means of worship, speaking to a people  suffering in extreme pain and facing  death. The painting was supposed to prepare people to bear their sufferings, facing death with their faith intact.  

At the Isenheim hospital, the Antonine monks devoted themselves to the care of sick and dying peasants, many of them suffering from the effects of ergotism, a disease caused by consuming rye grain infected with fungus. Ergotism, popularly known as St. Anthony’s fire, caused hallucinations and skin infection, and attacked the central nervous system, eventually leading to death. 

This depiction of the suffering Jesus, shows the violence and ugliness of crucifixion.  The darkness and despair of this painting is prophetic of the brokenness of the Church in its day but also of our world today - a brokenness which seems beyond repair except for the Resurrection.  But when one gazes upon this scene one does not yet know what is ahead.

The black background, vacant of any form, perhaps gives us the impression of Jesus' forsakenness by His Father, yet is the means  of bringing Him into the foreground- closer to us. We have nowhere else to look other than  His  broken body.

WOMEN OF OUTSTANDING COURAGE

 

Kateryna Dmyterko- Ukraine

 As we celebrate International Women's Day this week honoring women around the world, we  are watching women of the Ukraine  struggle in heartbreaking ways, trying to keep their families safe, while showing strength  and courage  as they seek refuge in other countries.

The number of refugees reached 2 million on Tuesday, according to the United Nations, the fastest exodus Europe has seen since World War II. One million were children, UNICEF spokesman James Elder tweeted, calling it “a dark historical first.” Most others were women.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of International Women's Day, which is normally a day for celebration in Ukraine saying:.

“Ukrainians, we usually celebrate this holiday, the holiday of spring. We congratulate our women, our daughters, wives, mothers. Usually. But not today. Today I cannot say the traditional words. I just can’t congratulate you. I cannot, when there are so many deaths. When there is so much grief, when there is so much suffering. When the war continues."

                                                                Khrystyna Kvyk- Ukraine

Kelley Currie, former Ambassador-At-Large on Global Women’s Issues said: “The strength that you see in them carrying their children across the border, they do everything with such dignity. And I think it’s important for people to see that anybody can become a refugee.

 “We need to stand in solidarity with the women in Ukraine as they show their bravery and stand up for their rights and democracy in this world," said Patricia Preston, executive director of the Vermont Council on World Affairs.

 Ukrainian women are known for their courage,  a strength of spirit and steadfastness.  So far away, we can only pray this spirit continues for the sake of future generations.

BENEDICTINES IN THE UKRAINE FLEE

 

                                                . Benedictines at Zhytomyr - Christmas 2021

News of our Benedictine sisters in the Ukraine  has been spotty at best. At the outbreak of the war they were holding the fort in Zhytomyr, but as of the weekend were fleeing westward.  Then came news they had arrived at the monastery in Lviv.  Benedictines in the USA have scrambled to get funds to them. So far over $100,000 has been raised.

We continue to pray for their courage, perseverance, strength and faith in the uncertainty of what they will one day return to.

In the East Slavic lands, the first appearance of the Benedictines dates back to the VII century. These were Irish missionaries who set foot on these lands before the official Baptism of Kiev Rus. Later, around 977, at the request of Prince Yaropolk (nephew of St. Olga), Pope Benedict VII sent ambassadors to organize the first monastery. These were the Benedictines, the first to establish a Christian diocese in Kiev Rus. This mission did not last long, until 979. It is possible that the reasons for the beginning and end of this mission were economic and political - the establishment of relations between Europe and Byzantium.

 In 1616 there was a Benedictine nunnery in Lviv. The school at the monastery was the first educational institution for women in these lands. The nuns were mainly engaged in the education of girls of the nobility. In Soviet times, the monastery premises were used as a warehouse, and educational institutions were located on its territory.

 The beginning of the monastic life of the Benedictine sisters in Zhytomyr dates back to 1988 when two nuns came from the Abbey of St Catherine in Vilnius, Lithuania, a monastery dating from 1620. The foundress of the monastery in the Ukraine was the Abbess of Vilnius, Mother Gabriel OSB, who recognized the will of God in an invitation to make a new foundation in Zhytomyr.

 The sisters' lives were initially marked by great financial hardship, yet despite the difficult circumstances, the community began to develop. The sisters worked as catechists with children and young people. They sewed and embroidered liturgical vestments not only for their own church, but also for the whole diocese. In 1995, construction began on a new monastery with a chapel for parishioners.

 On December 8, 1993, the formal erection of the enclosure in accordance with Benedictine tradition  took place,  one of the most important events in the history of the Benedictines in the Ukraine.

In 2014 the monastery received the status of an Abbey. In 2016, on the initiative of the Archbishop of Lviv, Metropolitan Mechyslav Mokshytsky, the building of a new Benedictine monastery began.. 

As of 2018, the  Abbey is affiliated with the Benedictine Congregation of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, among the founders of which was the Blessed Columbus Marmion.

In 2019, at the invitation of the Archbishop of Lviv, three sisters were sent to set up in a monastery built by a Swiss family which was standing empty. 

On June 4, 2020, the Metropolitan of Lviv consecrated the cross prepared for the church tower. On March 19, 2021, was the consecration of the church of St. Benedict and the monastery of St. Joseph, as well as the bell for the tower. Thus, for the first time in its post-war history, the Lviv Archdiocese once again has a contemplative monastery.This new foundation was supported by the arrival of Polish Benedictines who at present occupy the chaplaincy buildings, before constructing their own monastery.

(below:  Monastery and Church Lviv)

March 10 : A brief update on the Benedictine Sisters in Ukraine: 18 Sisters and 3 Brothers remain in L’viv.  They welcome, give food, basic care and overnight lodging to more than 100 refugees every day

A LETTER FOR PEACE

In October of 2019,  I did a Blog on an amazing Lazarist missionary who has dedicated  nearly 50 years of his life to the poorest people in Madagascar. FATHER PEDRO OPEKA (born in Argentina of Slovenian ancestry) has been nominated five times for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Dismayed by Putin’s invasion of the Ukraine, he wrote an open letter, imploring for a end to the massacre of innocent life.  The letter is too poignant to just give excerpts.   Icons by Kayeryna Shadrina of Lviv, Ukraine.

To my brother Vladimir Putin!

Brother Vladimir, this Thursday, February 24, we woke up with great astonishment, learning that you declared war and unleashed the attack on the Ukrainian population, a sovereign nation that respects international laws and never had the intention of attacking Russia.

 Brother Vladimir Putin, the citizens of numerous countries feel great bitterness, sadness and shame for your actions, full of madness and megalomania.

You are Vladimir, the president of Russia, which is loved and respected by so many in the world for its history and its deep spiritual roots.

 We wonder how it is possible that you want to impose on another nation the madness of the establishment of an imperialism of another time.

The only solution you found in your selfishness and derailed dominance was to start a war at three in the morning, surprising your once Soviet brothers. A minute after your speech, a cloud of rockets and missiles spread over Ukraine. From what you described, one could imagine that the attack was for a nation that is a threat to the entire world. But the reality is that the Ukrainian people simply want to live in peace, in their free and independent country.

We wonder how it is possible that you want to impose on another nation the madness of the establishment of an imperialism of another time.

 Under threat of being tried for treason, it was easy to force Russian soldiers, who did not want to go to fight, under false pretenses to attack and kill their brothers and sisters from another village.

Free men and women, humanists of our world! Raise your voice and condemn these barbaric, atrocious actions against the Ukrainian people! 

It is time to abandon this logic that divides countries between strong and rich on the one hand, and vulnerable and poor on the other. We are all citizens of our Earth, we all have equal value, we are all brothers and sisters, and we are all responsible for building a better world for all the children of the world, who will come after us and continue with life on Earth. We must stop thinking that some have more dignity than others.

 We live in the 21st century, and the weapons that people invented can destroy our planet Earth. How can you, brother Putin, play with fire and walk on the fuse of the explosive, which at any moment can explode and create total chaos, leading to the destruction of our entire civilization?

“Free men and women, humanists of our world! Raise your voice and condemn these barbaric, heinous actions against the Ukrainian people!”

Where did everything we learned from all past wars go, those wars in which people fought, and did not accept the other as an equal, a being with the same rights? Where was the wisdom of the heroes, of the poets and writers, who defended the ideals of all humanity from barbarism, savagery, tyrannies and dictatorships?

 If only we could, brother Vladimir, be more humane, more respectful, more honest, genuine and sincere. Well, only the truth will set us free and make us more brothers, more fraternal.

How could we today accept the dramatic death, imposed on Ukrainian and Russian soldiers? Each of these soldiers have a family, they have brothers and sisters who will cry for them, if they die.

I stop to think about the Russian soldiers: they will not know why they died, or why they were killed.

It is never too late to return to reason, and join humanity, that humanity that wishes to live in justice, in brotherhood and in peace. The war you have started is an irresponsible act that hurts humanity.

“Where was the wisdom of the heroes, of the poets and writers, who defended the ideals of all humanity from barbarism, savagery, tyrannies and dictatorships?”

With war we will never solve disagreements between humans. The peoples of this world converse and dialogue, with diplomacy. 

The intervention of third countries can always collaborate to solve problems and potential conflicts. It is always possible to find peaceful and just solutions.

That is why it is urgent to respect the idea that we all belong to one single family of humanity.

The whole of humanity unites us, beyond ideologies, creeds or racial concepts. Well, we are part of the same humanity, with differences, but free and equal, to each other. Our differences are a wealth. And if those differences are lived with respect, generosity and brotherhood, they make life more beautiful.

 Brother Vladimir, return to the cradle of the family of humanity, and be a brother who builds the common good and solidarity, so that all people of future generations on Earth can live with dignity, and with the same duties. and rights.

“It is never too late to come to your senses, and join humanity, that humanity that wishes to live in justice, in brotherhood and in peace. The war that you have started is an irresponsible act that hurts humanity “

War destroys, sows hatred and divides peoples for centuries, until they can unite again and live in cooperation.

 Would it not be more beneficial to use the money from sophisticated weapons (today used for death and terror), to cover the needs of the world’s forgotten people, and for the construction of more houses, schools, hospitals, and for the access to drinking water for all?

 I have always believed that every human being is my brother, is my sister. How can I convince you, brother Putin, to stop the war and stop the slaughter of innocent citizens?

I ask you please, dear Vladimir: stop the war, renounce the dictatorship, lies, false appearances and dualities.

Let us all be lovers of the truth, fair and supportive together!

May the Creator God enlighten all the leaders of our planet Earth, so that they can live in brotherhood, in equal rights and in freedom, that is, in the ideals of human dignity and human rights.

 

FLIGHT

                                       “Flight into Egypt”    Lyuba Yatskiv- Ukraine 

Pope Francis’ prayer for Ukraine

Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!
Open our eyes and our hearts,
and give us the courage to say:
“Never again war!”;
“With war everything is lost.”

Instill in our hearts the courage
to take concrete steps to achieve peace.
Keep alive within us the flame of hope,
so that with patience and perseverance
we may opt for dialogue and reconciliation.
In this way may peace triumph at last.
Amen.

 

The leader of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, said that Ukraine’s ongoing resistance to a full-scale Russian invasion is a “miracle.”

“Today is March 8, 2022, and Ukraine is experiencing the 13th day of this horrible war. That which is taking place on the territory of our homeland is being called the ‘Miracle on the Dnipro’ by some historians,” he said, referring to the river running through Ukraine, also known as the Dnieper.

Something similar took place almost 100 years ago on the Vistula, when the Polish army stopped the invasion of the Red Horde, and stood up for independence, the right for the existence of the revived Polish state.

Today, that Miracle on the Dnipro is being forged by our Ukrainian army, stopping this latest invasion of our northern neighbor, who set foot onto our land carrying destruction, carrying death, attempting to destroy the freedom-loving Ukrainian people.

But by the power of love, love for the homeland, by the power of the unity of the Ukrainian people -  we amazed the world.

We are creating a miracle of a people who demonstrate their love of freedom to the whole world and amazes the whole world."

MADNESS

Yesterday the Holy Father spoke in the Angelus:

Dear brothers and sisters,

Rivers of blood and tears are flowing in Ukraine. It is not merely a military operation, but a war, which sows death, destruction and misery. The number of victims is increasing, as are the people fleeing, especially mothers and children. The need for humanitarian assistance in that troubled country is growing dramatically by the hour.

I make a heartfelt appeal for humanitarian corridors to be genuinely secured, and for aid to be guaranteed and access facilitated to the besieged areas, in order to offer vital relief to our brothers and sisters oppressed by bombs and fear.

I thank all those who are taking in refugees. Above all, I implore that the armed attacks cease and that negotiation – and common sense – prevail. And that international law be respected once again!

And I would also like to thank the journalists who put their lives at risk to provide information. Thank you, brothers and sisters, for this service! A service that allows us to be close to the tragedy of that population and enables us to assess the cruelty of a war. Thank you, brothers and sisters.

Let us pray together for Ukraine: we have its flags in front of us. Let us pray together, as brothers and sisters, to Our Lady, Queen of Ukraine. Hail Mary…

The Holy See is ready to do everything, to put itself at the service of this peace. In these days, two Cardinals went to Ukraine, to serve the people, to help. Cardinal Krajewski, the Almoner, to bring aid to the needy, and Cardinal Czerny, interim Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

The presence of the two Cardinals there is the presence not only of the Pope, but of all the Christian people who want to get closer and say: “War is madness! Stop, please! Look at this cruelty!”

Icon: Yaroslava Tkachuk - Ukraine

 

WHERE IS CHRIST?

 

                                                     Ostap Lozynsky- Ukraine

 A very moving diary by a Catholic Ukrainian journalist is well worth listening to. It makes us see how lucky and grace-filled we are in our own country, watching another country fight for their rights to practice freedom.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/250575/dairy-kyiv-podcast-catholic-journalist

The daily videos are 3- to 6-minutes (You Tube)  and feature images or short video clips from Ukraine as the war unfolds. The unidentified journalist’s words give hope to a nation fighting to survive, praying to the Mother of God, to whom they have a great devotion.

“The question arises in my head, where is Christ in this?” He loves us, the Ukrainians, as well as the Russians, the Poles, and the Americans.

We are all his children. However, the devil has taken possession of hearts and blinded them, so there is war, destruction, and death. Today my task is to pray, be converted, do good as far as I can, and go through this Golgotha with trust in the Lord who passed through it first.”