Cardinal CzernyReligion can demonstrate the unity that war tends to destroy"."Catholics in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus, are united."The visit began on Wednesday, May 18 and is scheduled to end today after talks with Dmytro Kuleba, the country's Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The trip, initially scheduled before Easter on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Ukraine and later postponed for health reasons, included numerous meetings with religious leaders and institutional representatives of the cities visited.
The first day, Wednesday, was a day of great participation and recollection. In the cathedral of Lviv, one of the oldest ecclesiastical buildings in Ukraine, which survived the communist regime unscathed, Monsignor Gallagher gathered in the afternoon for an intense moment of prayer accompanied by the Archbishop of Lviv of the Latins and president of the Ukrainian Bishops' Conference, Monsignor Mieczysław Mokrzycki. Also to witness the closeness and empathy of Pope Francis towards a people at war for three months.
In the morning, welcoming the Secretary for Relations with States at the Korczowa border crossing between Poland and Ukraine, Archbishop Mokrzycki himself was accompanied by the Ukrainian Ambassador to the Holy See, Andrii Yurash; from there, escorted by an effective security detail, the prelate arrived at the Archbishop's Curia building in the center of the city, and then left for the Greek-Catholic archdiocesan complex for a fraternal meeting with Archbishop Igor Vozniak, Archbishop of Lviv, Auxiliary Bishop Volodymyr Hrutsa, and other Greek-Catholic bishops of the region. Igor Vozniak, Archbishop of Lviv, Auxiliary Bishop Volodymyr Hrutsa, and other Greek Catholic bishops of the region.
Among the highlights of this first day of the trip was the meeting with two different groups of displaced Ukrainians hosted in the parish of St. John Paul II and in the Benedictine monastery of St. Joseph; in total, about two hundred people, mostly young mothers with children and elderly people. However, these two centers of the Latin Catholic community have come to welcome a total of more than four hundred people fleeing the bombings and the fighting, still very violent, in large parts of the country.
In two separate moments, Monsignor Gallagher addressed the displaced people, assuring them of the Pope's prayers and sympathy for the anguished suffering inflicted on them by the ongoing conflict. And he reiterated his hope that peace will soon return to all of Ukraine. "In these few hours - said the Archbishop - I have already been able to hear many testimonies of your suffering, your courage and your great spirit of solidarity. And it is precisely solidarity," agreed Archbishop Mokrzycki, "that is the key to focus on for the future reconstruction of Ukraine, when the madness of war comes to an end."
In fact, it will be through the spirit of solidarity that has emerged in these days that we will be able to try to rebuild the national society and the people who compose it. Celebrating Holy Mass in private in the chapel of the residence of the Archbishop of Lviv, Archbishop Gallagher, in a brief homily, said he was convinced of the historic moment in which the Catholic Church in Ukraine is living, in particular the challenges to which pastors are called to respond with great love and closeness to their flock. A situation that transforms a terrible time of war into a time of hope, in which everyone has the opportunity to demonstrate that they are firmly rooted in Christ.
The program for Thursday, May 19 and Friday, May 20, marked by important institutional and ecumenical meetings, involves the Secretary for Relations with States mainly in the capital, Kiev, with a visit to some of the places that have become symbols of this war, which has been going on for three months.
First of all, talks with the president of the Lviv region, Maksym Kozytskyy, and then the meeting with the major archbishop of Kiev, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and with the president of the Polish Bishops' Conference, Stanisław Gądecki. In fact, a delegation of Polish bishops is in Ukraine from May 17-20 and will stop in Lviv and Kiev.
The aim of their mission is to show solidarity with the Ukrainian people and to outline a common future of cooperation between the ecclesial structures of the two countries in different fields: religious, spiritual and humanitarian.
In the interview with Mariusz Krawiec of Vatican News (Thursday, May 19), it is Gallagher himself who focuses on the scope of his mission in Ukraine and explains his impressions after the first two days: "Seeing the war on television is one thing, touching this reality is another. I also want to express my support and solidarity on behalf of the Holy Father.
The Holy See and the Holy Father himself are ready to do everything possible, the Holy See continues its diplomatic activity with contacts with the Ukrainian authorities and also through the Russian embassy to the Holy See we have some contact with Moscow.
The Holy See wishes to continue to encourage the sending of humanitarian aid and, at the same time, to sensitize the international community, which is always necessary". On the response of the Catholic Church to the tremendous humanitarian crisis, Gallagher highlights the help offered to all, not only to Catholics but also to members of other religions.
On the mission of the Secretary for Relations with States, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, responded to journalists on the sidelines of a meeting at the Catholic University of Milan: "Let's see how Gallagher's visit to Ukraine goes and when he returns we will make an assessment".
However, the Cardinal reiterated that, for the moment, "there is no intention on the part of the Pope to go to Ukraine". Moreover, the Pontiff himself, while declaring his readiness to do everything for peace, had specified that the hypothesis of his visit should be very carefully evaluated.
On the question of sending arms to Ukraine, an issue that divides public opinion and political alignments: "I refer to the Catechism of the Catholic Church - the Cardinal replied - which says that there is a right to armed defense under certain conditions that must be respected in order to be able to speak of a just war. The question of arms is placed in this context. It is necessary to relaunch the system of international relations and the role of international organizations - such as the UN - which are in crisis, but which the Holy See has always supported and trusted".
