'Under the drones and bombs, I found heroes in Ukraine'

By Svitlana Dukhovych 

"Even after three years of war, unbearable pain, and suffering, everyone continues to stay in their place, in places where at any moment a drone could fall, or some other type of explosive could strike their home, apartment, or the church where they gather. Regardless, they continue to meet, continue to pray, and are ready to help anyone."

Father Tomaž Mavrič, Superior General of the Congregation of the Mission and the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul, made this observation, in an interview with Vatican Media, as he spoke about his 10-22 March visit to the war-torn nation where he witnessed, firsthand, the Vincentian's on-the ground-operations.

Solidarity without fear

"The purpose of my visit," he shared, "was simply to be with them" and "to show the congregation's closeness, so that they don't feel forgotten or sidelined, but the opposite."

Fr. Mavrič said they constantly pray for Ukraine, and try to stay in touch via phone or email.

Regardless, he noted, I thought it was better to go and see for myself, not just one or two places, but all of them, regardless of whether the area could be difficult or dangerous. My confreres are there, and I needed to be there too." Father Tomaž managed to visit all six communities of the Congregation of the Mission located in Kyiv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Perechyn in the Zakarpattia region, Storozhynets in the Chernivtsi region, and Sniatyn in the Ivano-Frankivsk region.

When asked if he was afraid, the Superior General replied, "No, not at all. I was in total peace. Even hearing the drones here in Kyiv, in Odesa, in Kharkiv, or the sirens warning of an approaching danger, I felt calm," noting, "this is a grace."

A generous Church

Father Tomaž clarified that he went to Ukraine "not to give speeches, lessons, or advice," but rather "to learn, listen, see, and meet the people." What he observed in numerous encounters, was primarily a testimony of faith, adding, "I told them: 'You continue to pray, to participate in the Eucharist, and even in these terrible situations that you have lived and are living, continue to believe that Jesus will have the last word, that the truth will have the last word.

Another thing that struck him was the generosity of many priests, nuns, and laypeople who help those in need.

In such a critical situation, he observed, "they don't think only about themselves and their families but are ready to help everyone," bringing humanitarian aid that continues to arrive in various villages, cities, and, if possible, even to the soldiers at the front.

The courage to stay and help

He was asked what the main challenges facing the priests, nuns, and laypeople of the Vincentian family right now in Ukraine, to which he responded, "For them, it's very important to feel the spiritual support of the rest of the world, of the Vincentians in other countries, and to receive humanitarian aid as much as possible."

They constantly need it, he explained, "because our confreres, the clergy, in general, nuns, and laypeople, are organized in such a way that they bring aid to different parts of Ukraine as they receive requests."

"Those requests, he noted, are many, but primarily involve medicine, food, diapers, clothes, sheets, and warm blankets. "As for the rest," he insisted, "they are heroes because they stay there, they don’t leave."

"Often," the Superior General pointed out, "people say to them, 'If you, the religious, if you priests, brothers, and nuns leave, then we, the laypeople, will leave too. If you don’t leave, we will stay too.'

Therefore, he confirmed,  they all stay. "Even some who left at the beginning of the war, when the situation was very uncertain and difficult," he marveled, "have now returned." 

A completely different path for peace

During the eleven days of his visit, the Superior of the Vincentians met many people, looked into their eyes, and listened to their stories—what is usually not seen in the images presented by media outlets outside of Ukraine.

"In the news," he observed, "there is talk of fighting between Russians and Ukrainians, of the numbers, of the various international and European meetings, of destroyed buildings… but there is no opportunity to hear from the people who share their stories, their suffering."

His visit, Fr. Mavrič expressed, enabled him to learn their reality firsthand.

Returning from Ukraine, the Superior of the Vincentians took with him three things that sum up what he experienced, the first being their unwavering faith "because even after three years of war, unbearable pain, and suffering, everyone continues to stay and continues to pray." The second is their openness. "The Vincentian family," he emphasizes, "has become much larger than before." And the third takeaway is his own embrace of Pope Francis' incessent appeal, that "war is never a solution to any problem," nor "ever the way to peace." Rather, he argues, a completely different path must be pursued.