The 25th “Good Samaritan” point of invincibility was opened in Pokrovsk, 50 kilometers from the front line

Today, Pokrovsk is very close to the front line, fifty kilometres away, and is often subjected to rocket attacks and shelling. Not so long ago, on January 6, 2024, Pokrovsk and Rivne (Myrnohrad community) were shelled with S-300 missiles. This Russian attack killed eleven people, including five children, and injured 8 others.

However, under the leadership of Fr. Serhiy Palamarchuk, the parish community of St. George continues to serve and pray here. Therefore, on January 16, 2024, Bishop Maksym Ryabukha, together with Fr. Serhiy Palamarchuk, served the order of the blessing of the “Good Samaritan” point of invincibility. They were concelebrated by representatives of the Patriarchal Foundation Mudra Sprava — Fr. Lyubomyr Yavorskyy, Patriarchal Econom of the UGCC, and Fr. Yaroslav Valyukh.

“The opening of the invincibility points in Zaporizhzhia and Pokrovsk is a visible sign of God’s love for those people who are looking for some kind of rescue, support, encouragement; people who are looking for physical and human warmth; looking for light above their heads, but also for light in their souls. These are places of meeting. These are the places where you feel and find your value, the dignity of your life, as well as support, understanding, and guidance. These points of invincibility are not just places of stay, but places of creation of a living community, a living space that supports, encourages, comforts, but at the same time also inspires,” said Bishop Maksym Ryabukha to the press service of Mudra Sprava, commenting on the event.

In his turn, Fr. Lyubomyr Yavorskyy, addressing the assembled parishioners, noted the uniqueness of this community: “Thank God, this community is alive. No matter what ideas we have, no matter what efforts we make, if there was no one to serve this community, nothing would happen.”

He emphasized that God loves this land. Even though the devil encroaches on it through different people, God also acts through different people. “Thanks be to God, this land has received excellent gift from the Church. Recently we celebrated only one year since Bishop Maksym became a bishop. Only one year! But during this period, he has already travelled so far and met so many needy people. On the other hand, I have known Father Serhiy for a long time. We have done much together, both in Lysychansk and Severodonetsk, and now here. Today I am pleased that we, as the Patriarchal Foundation Mudra Sprava, have someone to help through. If we did not have such priests and bishops, we would not be able to embrace the whole of Ukraine,” said the Patriarchal Econom of the UGCC.

Then Father Lyubomyr informed about the food packages, which were delivered to the point of invincibility with an amount of 500 pcs. “Today we have also brought food packages for you. These food packages were formed thanks to the support of our diaspora in Canada through the CNEWA organization. This is the fourth or fifth generation of people who have left Ukraine, but they continue to have a heart for their homeland. So, they make their modest donations to help Ukrainians. When I went to thank the Canadian people for collecting aid for Ukraine, a woman who was living in a nursing center at the time met me and said: ‘Father, I refused to have dinner. And these seven dollars go every day to support the Ukrainian people.’ She does not eat dinner because she gave it away. So, it is not always the way it looks to us, like a great life there,” said the priest.

“In the church community, we are all united, and because of this we have the opportunity to serve each other. I thank God for seeing all this today, because now I will go out into the world and testify. First, I will testify that there are wonderful and good people for whom I want to live, serve, and do good deeds. I want us to survive and win. And let this point of invincibility become a space of stability for us, a spiritual, physical, and material support,” Father Lyubomyr Yavorskyy concluded his speech.

We would like to mention that in Pokrovsk, the Patriarchal Foundation Mudra Sprava has already established the 25^th Good Samaritan point of invincibility. This happened with the financial support of Porticus (International Charitable Organization).

Each of these invincibility points can accommodate up to fifty people. It is equipped with ventilation, heating, and a stove, which allows people to meet and warm up with warmth and a kind word. There is a kitchen where you can cook your own food. There is also an opportunity to connect to the Internet and recharge mobile devices via Starlink, which allows people to stay in touch with their families. The priests immediately began to use this space to meet the spiritual needs of the people, for prayer, Divine Liturgy, catechesis, or spiritual conversations.

Press service of the Patriarchal Foundation Mudra Sprava