“Now I see the horror of war no longer on the news. I see it in the eyes of the people I meet. These are families who have already seen tanks in the squares of their cities or who have had their homes destroyed. They knock on our door without knowing anyone, they see the monastery on the street and they come and ask for refuge,” writes Abbess Klara, Benedictine nuns of the Immaculate Conception of Zhytomyr. Read more.

The Benedictine Sisters of Erie have joined with women’s Benedictine monasteries around the world in offering financial support to our sisters and those they serve in the Ukraine. By way of Communio Internationalis Benedictinarum (CIB), whose members represent women’s monasteries on almost every continent, the sisters have sent more than $200,000 in dollars and euros to aid victims and refugees of Putin’s war on Ukraine. The monies have gone directly to Mother Blandyna Michniewicz, Abbess of the Monastery of Benedictine Nuns of Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in Warsaw and a CIB delegate for the region of Poland, Ukraine, and Lithuania. She and the sisters in the Ukraine are working together to meet needs as best they can.

If you would like to offer financial assistance CIB is collecting funds via their PayPal account. All monies donated through this link will go directly to the Benedictine Sisters in Poland for immediate refugee relief. DONATE HERE.

Sister Lynn McKenzie, OSB, moderator of the CIB, communicates information received from the sisters in Poland. “The nuns of the monastery in Zhytomyr have evacuated to another monastery in L’viv, in the far western part of Ukraine. I have learned that they are receiving approximately 100 refugees from other parts of Ukraine per day and feeding them and sending them on their way, hopefully to safety. We pray for the safety and good health of the nuns now in L’viv. Indeed, we pray for all Benedictines and people of Ukraine who have lived through this atrocity. We give God thanks for their fidelity and love.”

In addition to financial assistance, CIB sisters in Germany have also organized the shipment of medicines and bandages to Ukraine. The transport went from Germany to Warsaw and from there passed through a “well organized ‘corridor’ and transportation network in Ukraine to reach the most needy,” according to Sister Caterina Gorgen at the Benedictine Abbey of Engelthal in Germany.

Both Mother Blandyna and Sister Caterina have sent photos. “I think you will be moved as I was in viewing the video (see below) of the Missionary Sister of St Benedict playing the guitar and singing a rhythmic song to the children, as well as the photos of the children doing artwork that depicts the war that they have just escaped in Ukraine as they came to Poland for refuge,” wrote Sister Lynn. “As I viewed the children’s expressiveness in their art, I thought how terrible it is that these children know so much about war. Thanks be to God that they made it safely to Poland. Who knows what the future holds for them.” The photos were taken in Poland where the children and the Missionary Sisters of St. Benedict from Ukraine have arrived safely after their escape.

The other photos show the preparation and sendoff of the medical supplies, including their border stop.

If you would like to offer financial assistance CIB is collecting funds via their PayPal account. All monies donated through this link will go directly to the Benedictine Sisters in Poland for immediate refugee relief. DONATE HERE.