Month: August 2021

June 29, 2022, Wed. Saints Peter and Paul.

In Krakow, life goes on with a normal rhythm. In Ukraine, in two different regions of it, war – rocket raids. People are dying. Twenty people were killed in a shopping center. Rockets fell on Dnieper, a city of a million inhabitants. Our brothers live here. God give us peace.

The Word… “…. a Church prayed for him (Peter) constantly to God.” There are many testimonies of Ukrainian soldiers who talk about the incomprehensible moments thanks to which they are still alive. They say simply, it is thanks to God and people (the Church) who pray for them. The miracle for Peter is not that he got out of prison, or for us that this war will ever end. The miracle is what Peter himself says: “Now I know for certain that the Lord sent his angel and delivered me from the hand of Herod.” (Putin) The miracle is for the soldier, each of us to believe that there is a God in our lives and He will win my war and defeat Putin in my mind. “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” God make me believe, make every Ukrainian and Russian believe that there is a God in our nations and countries. Jesus is Lord !!!

We live in war, we do not live by war.

Every day is a gift, writes Br. Sergij Gubicki. (photo)

Krasilov:
In Krasilov relatively normal life. We work with parishioners, the sisters distribute humanitarian aid, we take care of refugees who live in our retreat house, who feel more and more comfortable with us, they are smiling, open to conversation… .

Kiev:
Volunteers are present. (photo) Displaced people get help. (photo). Children are having fun. (photo)

May the Lord bless you and keep you…

June 28, 2022, Tuesday.

In the places where the brothers live, the night passed peacefully. In yesterday’s attack on a shopping center in Kremenchuk 18 people were killed, all civilians.
Kharkiv shelled all day and night! Regular war in Donbass. Kherson occupied. Nikolaev shelled, similarly Odessa. God be merciful…..

The Word….. “Who is He that even the winds and the lake obey Him?” On the answer to this question depend my fears, anxieties, resentments, etc. “Lord, save us, we are perishing!” – There is no end to war. Children die, innocent people die. Rockets are scattered all over Ukraine. “Why are you so fearful.” – We don’t know who you are. “I hope in the Lord, I trust in his word…” Lord increase my faith that You watch over us, my brothers, over Ukraine.

We live in war, we do not live by war.

Today in Ukraine is Constitution Day of Ukraine – let us pray for the rule of law and peace in Ukraine.
The friars are assisting refugees. In Krakow, on the Main Square, there was another action against the war. (photo)

May God protect us…. from Russian missiles.

June 27, 2022, Monday.

I have been staying for a few days in Krakow. I have been following the events in Ukraine, especially in the Capuchin Ukraine where our brothers and friaries are located. God is merciful. We pray for …..

The Word…. I am touched by the simple statements that God uses to reveal Himself to man: “Thus saith the Lord…”; “I brought this out before them…”; “And I brought this out…”; “Behold, I will crush…”
This is the mighty hand of God showing its strength in my life story. In the story of my life, God and his love is revealed. Follow this God, his Word, not your declarations, your desires. I will follow You, but….
Let God’s ” Here am I” be mine too: “here am I…”

We live in war, we don’t live by war….

Yesterday (Sunday) in Kiev, at our monastery, the brothers and Sisters of the Nazareth organized the 10th World Meeting of Families. (photo)

Short video clips.

Vineyard:
It is alarming at our place. But despite this, the Franciscan Youth of our parish are doing a charity fair. (photo) You can see and of course join in, you are welcome:
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02Qnqb4Bdt2xnKbmy3ejj3AEcSaLFNq2b2PWhbYLQoG1kjPs4NUrS4j1hn5RHnJu31l&id=100001157038184&sfnsn=mo

May God grant us peace and keep us…

June 26, 2022, Sunday.

In Kiev, in the morning, rockets fell on an apartment building in one area of the city. We do not know whether there are casualties. There are reportedly people under the rubble of the building.(Photo) Other regions of Ukraine were also bombed. God grant us PEACE.

The Word…. “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. You have the words of eternal life.” Willing to listen to You means I am open to change my thinking whatever that thinking is. This is freedom. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” War. Kill the enemy, in your mind, in your heart….This is my thinking…. Lord, do you want us to say, ‘Let fire fall from heaven and consume them?’ “But Jesus, having turned away, rebuked them.” You follow me, that is, look to me, listen to me, “This is what I teach: walk by the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Obey Israel….you shall love….and the enemy also….Russian also …

Voronezh (Russia):
I would like to send some photos of the dedication of our chapel in front of our house. (The maker of the project of Our Lady, Br. Grzegorz 🙂
May God give us peace.

June 25, 2022, Saturday. Immaculate Heart of Mary.

About 40 rockets fell on Ukraine that night, according to media reports. How important is this peace in the heart…. Regular war in the east and south of Ukraine continues. God grant for peace. …!!!
Word… “Son, why have you done this to us? Behold, your father and I have sought you with an painful heart” gives me the courage to ask God questions. Don’t be afraid to ask God.

The answer is: “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I should be in what belongs to My Father”? Yet they did not understand what He told them.” War? Is it the will of the Father? God allowed war? Answer….? One thing I know is that only God can bring good out of this cruel war for me, for Ukraine…. “… I should be in what belongs to my Father.” The Father’s will is for me to know His love for me. God loves you. Keep this truth in your heart, just as Mary did.

We thank the guardian, Brother Tomasz, and the Capuchin community of Krakow for their fraternal welcome and hospitality to our “temporary Ukrainian diaspora” (photo). Here is our guardian, Br Tomasz:

Another song to keep up the spirit of the nation has appeared on the internet…. “We from Ukraine”:

 

Caritas Zagreb, Croatia put on their website: https://www.czn.hr/vijesti/humanitarna-pomoc-caritasa-zagrebacke-nadbiskupije-stigla-u-ukrajinu

Dnipro
Today at 4:20 a.m. Kyiv time, I opened the sign-up form for the queue to dispense humanitarian aid. At 6:30 I had to close because 2 thousand families and individuals had signed up. Greetings from the train to Wroclaw. (photo)

Kiev:
The right equipment for the right people in the right place has been purchased and donated. Thank you to the benefactors!

Brothers from Malta donate an ambulance for the cardiology institute in Kiev. The delivery of the vehicle is in progress. I thank the Provincial Minister for his support and Br. Rafał for his direct involvement! Immaculate Heart of Mary, intercede for us!

Vinnitsa:
Peace Brothers! There were a lot of air raid alarms yesterday and tonight. The last alarm was very long. May God bless us and keep us safe from Russian missiles also …

June 22, 2022, Wednesday, 118th war night.

Calm – Transcarpathia, where I am staying now, Uzhhorod, the city of the presence of our Capuchins in the Byzantine rite, is probably the most peaceful city. It is peaceful because in Eastern Ukraine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (ZSU) are waging a regular war. Can we call it peace in Transcarpathia ?

The Word…. To what extent is a prophet in sheep’s clothing dangerous…and how dangerous? The prophet himself is not dangerous. More dangerous is the word, which is proclaimed by a false prophet. A false prophet, a false, untrue word. A word that is preached, but not life-giving or peace-giving, it is loveless. Who and what am I listening to?

The word …. from our brother Robert, a missionary: Hello Blazko! My sister Anne is a faithful reader of your reports after another night of war. She wrote to me, but since she asks to pass on her greetings, I am sending her words to you:

“Thanks so much for the information from the brothers. They are very uplifting to me. I don’t want to, but sometimes (thank God rarely, but nevertheless) I fall into a kind of marasm…and fear of the future (what if there is a war and they come… ?). And then, when I read that [the brothers] are building and renovating ‘out there,’ despite everything, I immediately feel better. I remember the Gospel from Saturday, that I won’t even add a moment to my life by worrying. God bless!”

Robert, if you can, thank her from the bottom of your heart from me. Anyway, we are doing what you did during the rebellion in central Africa. You dealt with what you have influence over – no matter what. And for that, God bless you!

Yesterday – thank God – I reached 850 km from Kiev to Uzhgorod. On the way I visited Lviv and brother Zbyszek. Our Lviv brothers were at the funeral of Pavel, son of our benefactor Katia from Ostropol. God give them Peace.

In Uzhgorod, Br. Justyn, the priest of Bilki, is conducting a retreat for the candidates for priestly ordination. We live….(photo)

Dnipro:
Things are calm in Dnipro. A volunteer took our bus to Khmelnytsky to transport a lady with belongings and animals, and on the way back he takes clothes from Kiev to distribute. Preparations are underway to provide a car for us from Lublin. Thank God for all the brothers and people who help us. (photo)

Kiev:
Zoom retreat for the priests of our diocese – Serhii and Slawek – we are listening for the second day. Sr. Bogumiła is developing the ministry for the displaced people. People come every day… more and more, she has already invited volunteers to help. Yesterday our chaplain went to visit us. (photo)

May God grant us peace.

June 18-19, 2022, Saturday-Sunday 114-115 war night.

God was merciful and gracious. We are alive. In the east and south the war continues. From the south a big threat….

The Word…another excerpt from the “Sermon on the Mount.” Is it fantasy or my reality? As God, is my Father – Abba, the Word in today’s Gospel is life-like and real. And if God is somewhere, far away, high in the sky or just in the church, it means that I have to take care of myself and others and this Gospel of the lilies is a pious fantasy.
Hence my call to return to the Word “Our Father” and seek the true God – Father – Abba. God has not left Ukraine. There is war and God is here and knows our fears, concerns, needs. God is love. God loves you.

If God is Father, then we are brothers, born of the same fatherly womb. Our Capuchin General Government, headed by General Roberto, prays for us, for Ukraine in their national languages, asking for mercy on us: Lord have mercy on us !!! Господи помилуй !!!
https://youtu.be/wHYvsCeNx8g

Brothers, thank you for your brotherly love. I already thank the Minister General for visiting us in July, from 14 to 17.07. Thank you and we look forward to it. We are waiting for the General Councillor Br. Peter and the Provincial Minister Marek.

We have bought a temporary house for the brothers in Lviv. A pre-war plan, now finalized. We thank the benefactors who helped us before the war. Brothers, let us live in gratitude, it will protect us from being false poor. Today’s Gospel will be fulfilled before our eyes. In the same spirit, the project of buying apartments for refugees in Vinnitsa was born. The benefactors are a family from the USA. We are slowly entering into the implementation of this project. Brothers from the province of Austria want to buy us a bus. Let us pray with gratitude for our brothers and benefactors. Thanks to the support of our benefactors, the brothers in Dnieper have renovated the guest room. Deo gratias ! (photo)

Dnieper:
It’s quiet at our place. One alarm in the night. We are happy for the happy return of the brothers and volunteers after yesterday’s trips to deliver aid near Donetsk. This morning the dedication of the new guest room for the brothers, volunteers and refugees took place. Our greetings. (photo).
The brothers in Dnieper say that help is coming from only two European Caritas: Caritas Poland and Caritas Croatia are helping our Caritas. (photo). Brother Jure, from Zagreb – thank you Caritas Croatia.

When the war started, in our lower church, the shelter, there was all-day Adoration, i.e. we were in His presence, and the enemy was overcome in our heads and at the front. He was defeated in Irpin, Bucha, etc. Hence another time and so to the end of the war….

In Vinnitsa “Saturday” action with children. Children, Bishop Leon Dubravsky and Br. Konstantin Morozov (photo)
May God sanctify us with His Presence.