On the last day of the month of Our Lady in May, Pope Francis recites the Rosary with many faithful in the Basilica of Santa Maria in the heart of Rome. The first Ukrainian family to lead the scriptures is volunteering in the Hagia Sofia group. The family’s mother, Boyko, gave a phone interview to this news network before chanting.
(Vatican News Network)Oksana Boyko, who volunteered at Hagia Sophia in Rome, sent her children to the “Peace School” run by the St. Echid’s group. She was free to talk to this news network by phone regarding her asylum and service in Rome. experience, and her expectations for reciting the Rosary with the Pope. The 40-year-old Ukrainian woman studied at the Pontifical Angel University in Rome in 2008 before returning to her hometown. After Ukraine was plunged into war, the family fled their homeland, found shelter in Rome, and volunteered for fellow refugees.
Boyko said that when the priest of the church of Santa Sofia in Rome invited her to recite the Rosary with the Pope, she was initially apprehensive, worried that the younger two of her four children would be unruly. But Boyko understood the importance of the prayer. “War should disappear from the earth,” she said. “It must never be seen as a just war. I hope this prayer event will help to get out of this murderous war. May the concept of war disappear.”
The woman was very close to the Virgin Mary and always explained to her children that “God and Mary are not strangers. Mary said ‘yes’ to God’s will and became the mother of us all”. Born into a devout family, Boyko followed his grandmother in devotion to the Virgin, especially during the month of Our Lady of May. The Rosary is a daily prayer in her family. Boyko shared, “Every time I have a baby, I buy a rosary and use it to pray during my pregnancy. Now the kids know that they each have their own rosary.”
Talking regarding his service to the Ukrainian refugees at the Hagia Sophia in Rome, Boyko said: “In the beginning, I often looked up at the statues of Jesus and the Virgin in the church, looked them in the eyes, and begged them to help me not to make mistakes.” In fact, “many people want to help, but this kindness makes mistakes”, for example, by providing wrong information and fostering incorrect expectations.
The woman believes that the most delicate key to dealing with refugees is gentleness: gentleness with refugees, gentleness with those who have had to abandon everything because of the bomb. The next step is to quickly understand how to help. “Some people wanted to tell everything regarding their experiences, but we didn’t have time to listen,” Boyko said. “So we arranged for our Ukrainian psychiatrist.”
In March, around 500 people from “all backgrounds and skin colors” came to help the church of Hagia Sophia in Rome every day. Boyko thanked everyone who reached out. What touched her most was that the refugees who arrived just a week ago volunteered. “A seed of goodness just sown grows into another goodness in a week.” “I see in everyone an innate willingness to do good.”
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