Mass Stipends for Priests in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine has impacted the entire country, including areas where there has been no fighting. As a result, even in the west of the country, people have become poorer and many have lost their jobs, and pension and social security payments are struggling to keep up. At the same time, food and living costs have risen sharply.

Many priests have also been hard-hit, since the faithful can no longer contribute to their support. This is happening even as these priests are striving to help the refugees and all those in need, including opening up their own parish houses to them. They also help to collect food and basic essentials for the needy, repeatedly sending truckloads of supplies to the war-torn areas. This leaves them with little to provide for their own needs.

Archbishop Volodymyr Vijtyshyn of Ivano-Frankivsk in Ukraine has written to ask our help: “We would be immensely grateful to you if you could support our diocesan priests and those teaching as professors at the seminary with Mass stipends, since these would be a great help to our priests and give them great encouragement.”

We are therefore proposing to help the 523 priests of the Archdiocese (Archieparchy) of Ivano-Frankivsk and the 25 priests working as formators at the seminary for the 200 seminarians currently in training there, with Mass stipends for a total value of $75,800.

As Archbishop Vijtyshyn further wrote: “We are hoping and praying that you will be willing and able to help our priests with these Mass stipends and thank you in advance for your understanding and your helping hands!”

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Code: 438-04-99