The special collection on behalf of the poor and needy in Ukraine, set down by the Pope for 24th April, may also be a contribution towards helping overcome the crisis in this country. This was the hope expressed recently by Auxiliary Bishop Jan Sobilo of Kharkiv-Zaporizhia, in East Ukraine, in conversation with the Catholic pastoral charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). He is praying that "the fruits of this collection will not only ease the material needs, but also heal the spiritual wounds that people have inflicted on one another, and help to accelerate the process of forgiveness and reconciliation".

The news of the planned collection has been welcomed with great joy, the bishop said. "When people heard that the Pope is organising help, it gave them hope. The Catholic Church looks simply on the suffering a person is enduring, without asking what church he belongs to, or indeed whether he even belongs to a church, and what political views he holds. By helping those in need on all sides, the Catholic Church can make a contribution to reconciliation", Bishop Sobilo explained. The collection will also be a good example of unity and solidarity, he believes. "I tell people, 'Look, there are people far away who are willing to share with you, even though they have never even met you. This help for us is from all people of goodwill in Europe'." He adds that the mission of the Catholic Church is "to unite all people, whether they are Christians or not, in brotherly love".

The poverty of many people in Ukraine is "shocking", he explains – not only among the refugees and internally displaced, but even among the rest of the population. In the rural regions the poverty is particularly severe. In the big cities it is easier to obtain help, but the people in the villages often have no access to medical care or to other basic essentials, he says. As so often, those hardest hit are the children and the elderly. And the situation for those who are dependent on long-term medical care is particularly acute. "What is most urgently needed is medicines and food", Bishop Sobilo says, adding that the government is simply "incapable of providing help, since all the money is going to the Army."

Bishop Sobilo especially thanked ACN for the help it has provided. "Thanks to your support, we have been able to help many people who were in need and really provide them with the things that were most essential to them. You were the first, and the only ones to have helped us to ease the most burning needs."