On Sunday, September 11, 2022, His Eminence, Konrad Cardinal KRAJEWSKI, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, while on his way to Ukraine, stopped at the Conventual Franciscan Shrine of the Passion of Christ and the Mother of God in Kalwaria Pacławska, near Przemyśl, Poland. While there, he presided over the morning Mass in honor of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

“I will shortly cross the Polish border and enter Ukraine where I will continue to celebrate the mystery of the Cross, the mystery of human suffering and, unfortunately, see what one human being can do to another,” he confided to the faithful present in the basilica. The cardinal also noted that this was his fourth visit to Ukraine, carried out on behalf of Pope Francis. “The Holy Father very much wishes to visit Odessa, Donbass, Žytomyr and Kharkiv and be with all those who stayed behind, especially the religious families, the priests and the bishops. They didn’t flee because people stayed behind. You simply have to be with them, without words, without sermons, without useless instructions or moments of silence,” he added.
The Pope’s Almoner encouraged the faithful and pilgrims to look at the Cross of Christ and to experience his mercy, on both sides of the border.
Friar Krzysztof HURA, Guardian of the shrine, invited the cardinal to the great patronal feast of the shrine, which is celebrated in August of each year.
“It is better to come to you for the patronal feast than to cross the border and see where man has forgotten that God must be first. Because when we put man first, we have war. When we put God first, there is forgiveness and love,” the cardinal replied.
At the end of the Mass, Cardinal KRAJEWSKI conferred his blessing upon the faithful gathered at the shrine, their families, Ukraine and all those who have come to help the needy.

Friar Jan Maria SZEWEK