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Easter During Wartime: Orthodox Parishioners Gather for Protection and Reflection

Currents News Staff

As fighting rages on in the east of Ukraine, in Lviv, a city that has mostly been spared by Russia’s wrath, parishioners gathered for protection and reflection: a somber affair for many this year.

“It’s less festive this year but we want to keep up our traditions and we want our kids to understand that God is with us,” said resident Larysa Kovalyk, “He helps us. We will win and in this big day, the victory will be ours.”

Ignoring calls to stay home, young and old line up with their adorned food baskets for a blessing from above.  Around the corner, kindness is shared with strangers. It’s an opportunity too for many Ukrainians to support the troops on the frontline with food donations and prayers.

Others are still too scared to venture to church this Easter.

“I think I’ve never been this happy in my life,” said Anna Mariia Nykyforchyn, a Lviv resident.

Anna left Ukraine for Poland when the war started. She was alone and 9-months pregnant carrying a world of worry on her shoulders.

“When we were separated from each other, it put a huge burden psychologically on us,” said Anna. “We were constantly reading the news and the situation in Ukraine in general. We were very worried.”

Without her husband or family by her side, and while her own country was being ripped apart by suffering, the 25-year old was in her own agony. But she gave birth to their little miracle, baby Marharyta. The gushing father couldn’t be happier to have his girls by his side.

“I have realized that my wife is not just a woman, she is a hero,” said Nazar Nykyforchyn, “and that if I was in her shoes, I wouldn’t be able to… I would’ve broken down.”

The family is finally reunited and counting their blessings this Easter in the long and dark shadow of war.

FDNY Mourning the Loss of Timothy Klein Who Was Killed on the Job

By Currents News Staff and Paula Katinas

Six-Year FDNY Member Died Battling Blaze in Canarsie House

CANARSIE — A 31-year-old firefighter killed in the line of duty while battling a three-alarm fire in a Canarsie home on Sunday, April 24, is being hailed as a hero by city officials and those who knew him.

Firefighter Timothy Klein, assigned to Ladder 170 in Canarsie, died when a ceiling collapsed in a home at 10826 Avenue N, trapping him inside. Three other firefighters managed to escape the building by jumping out of second-story windows and climbing down ladders, FDNY officials said.

After Klein was brought out of the building, paramedics tried to revive him at the scene. He was rushed to Brookdale Hospital where he died.

Several firefighters were injured in the fire, including two who suffered burns and had to be transported to the Burn Center at Staten University Hospital.

Mayor Eric Adams said the entire city is in mourning. “New York City has lost one of its bravest today — Firefighter Timothy Klein. We pray for his family and his fellow firefighters during this terribly painful time,” he said on Sunday.

Klein leaves behind his father, Patrick, a retired member of the FDNY, his mother Diane, and three sisters.

His funeral will take place on Friday, April 29, at St. Francis de Sales Church, 129-16 Rockaway Beach Blvd. in Belle Harbor, said Father Jim Cunningham, the associate pastor. Firefighter Klein was a parishioner of St. Francis de Sales Church.

“The Department is heartbroken today at the loss of Firefighter Timothy Klein who died risking his life to save others,” said Acting FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh. “The Klein family has a rich history of service in the FDNY and he bravely followed in their footsteps.”

Bishop Robert Brennan issued a statement on Twitter in the wake of the firefighter’s death. “Our hearts are broken. Let us pray that Christ our Risen Lord will receive him and grant him the fullness of life and peace and console his family and fellow firefighters,” Bishop Brennan said.

Keith Goldberg, executive director of the Catholic Youth Organization, knew Klein from the time the firefighter was a boy and described him in a Facebook post as an outstanding person. According to Goldberg, Klein played CYO sports at St. Francis de Sales and his parents served as coaches.

“We love when CYO produces successful athletes but we are most proud of the Tim Kleins that CYO helps mold and produce,” he wrote on Facebook.

Klein offered a eulogy at the funeral of Firefighter Steven H. Pollard, a fellow member of Ladder 170 who died when he fell through a gap on the Mill Basin Bridge while responding to a two-car crash in January 2019.

Klein was active in the Firefighter Steven H. Pollard Memorial Foundation, which was formed after his death to provide scholarships in his name.

Klein also worked with the Fight for Firefighters Foundation, a non-profit organization that constructs ramps in homes for people who need them. On April 18, he posted photos on his Facebook page of a project in which foundation members installed handicapped accessible doors in the home of a firefighter’s son.

The foundation built a ramp in another home back in January to accommodate a little girl in a wheelchair. The Pollard Foundation donated the construction materials to the project.

Klein is the 1,557th FDNY member to die in the line of duty in the city’s history.

Mass COVID Testing Takes Place in Beijing as Chinese Officials Struggle to Contain Outbreak

Currents News Staff

China is attempting to tamp down a coronavirus outbreak. This week, one of the largest districts in Beijing, Chaoyang, is set to launch three round of mass testing for about three and a half million people.

“What the regime cares most about is cashing out its promises,” said Frank Tsai, founder and CEO of China Crossroads. “In this case, maintaining a very low case count.”

Meanwhile, in locked-down Shanghai, people who test positive are taken to government quarantine facilities.

“There’s nowhere for them to send me,” said American Josh Vaughn, “I’m not allowed to go into the hospital, and I have to stay here.”

Josh was taken to a pop-up tent near Shanghai hospital earlier this month.

“This is where I’m sleeping tonight,” he said.

The lockdowns and quarantines in Shanghai have sparked anger among many. Some expats have vented in chat rooms. One commented saying – ‘China used to really have it all. It’s just not the expat friendly place it used it be.”

“Because most of us have never experienced this sort of Draconian lockdown, it’s easy to support if you haven’t experienced it,” said Frank. “And if more of China experiences this in the coming months with rolling lockdowns across different cities, I expect the currently very high support for COVID Zero to drop.”

Sri Lankan Survivors Will Meet Pope Francis in Rome Three Years After Easter Bombings

Currents News Staff

On Easter Sunday 2019, a series of coordinated bombings in churches and hotels killed more than 260 people across Sri Lanka. The country’s minority Christian community was the primary target.

Three years after the Easter bombings, Sri Lankan Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith will come to Rome to celebrate Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica with survivors of the attacks and families of the victim, who will also meet the Pope. The Sri Lankan Catholic community in Rome is helping to coordinate the trip for those who, three years later, remain devastated by the attacks.

“We lost so many lives,” said Father Malith Thiwantha Kaluarachchi, a Sri Lankan priest in Rome, “and also the attacks left so many people injured, and up until now, there are some people who are bedridden without legs, limbs, and there are so many families that are suffering to date.”

The nine suicide bombers were identified as being linked to ISIS. Although 25 men are currently facing trial for the involvements in the attack, Fr. Malith says Sri Lankans are frustrated with the slow progress in bringing those responsible to justice, adding pressure to the government which is currently facing massive protests over the country’s severe economic crisis.

“We want to know,” Fr. Malith said, “The victims, they are demanding to know, who actually did this, who led this, who took the lives of our parents, our children, so that’s why, we are still waiting.”

By coming to Rome, Sri Lankan Catholics hope to send a message to minority Christian communities around the world to remain strong, and remember that they are not forgotten by the Church.

“To other churches in other countries who are suffering because of their faith, and those who are being persecuted, those who are going through difficulties, to say that our shepherd is feeling for us, to say that the Church is with us, that is a great evangelical message I guess,” Fr. Malith said.

With Pope Francis’ blessing, they will return home to advocate for justice for the communities devastated by the bombings, and on behalf of Christian minorities around the world.

Russia Continues its Hostile Attack on Ukraine on Orthodox Easter

Currents News Staff

Intense fighting continued across Ukraine on Orthodox Easter Sunday, April 24. But amid major Russian bombardment, some Ukrainian parishioners still made their way to church to honor traditions and to pray for those on the frontline of the war.

“It’s less festive this year…” said Lviv resident Larysa Kovalyk.

Some parishioners in Lviv ignored the warnings to celebrate the Orthodox Easter holiday from home.

“But we want to keep up our traditions and we want our kids to understand that God is with us,” Larysa said, “he helps us.”

Supporting troops on the frontline with food donations and prayers, as fighting rages on in Mariupol. Ukrainian officials say Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected a holiday ceasefire.

On Sunday, Russian forces continuously shelled a steel plant where hundreds of soldiers and civilians were holed up, according to a senior Ukrainian official. To the west of Mariupol, in Melitopol, the mayor there says Putin’s goal is clear.

“He wants to kill all Ukrainian nation,” said Mayor Ivan Fedorov. “And of course he start from occupied cities and now we can’t deliver humanitarian aid.”

In Odessa, new video shows a Russian missile strike on an apartment building. Odessa’s mayor says eight people were killed, including a three-month-old baby and her mother.

The White House said Ukraine can expect more announcements on U.S. assistance this week. The first Ukrainian-born member of congress is urging the U.S. to send more than money and weapons to Ukraine.

“It’s important for us to be on the ground and shows that, you know, our country stands with the people of ukraine,” said Indiana Rep. Victoria Spartz. “And I hope President Biden will actually someday, make it here, to meet with President Zelenskyy.”

Catholic News Headlines for Friday, 4/22/22

Easter Sunday is over but our celebration of the resurrection of Christ is not.

This Easter marked the first-year services and celebrations in the Diocese of Brooklyn took place the same way they did before the pandemic.

 

What These Nuns in Ukraine War Zone Are Doing to Protect Refugees and Themselves

Currents News Staff

When the invasion of Ukraine first began, Currents News spoke to a nun who just narrowly escaped the capital city. Sister Anna Andrusiv went home to her convent in the western city of Lviv, which was thought to be a safe haven for refugees.

But just a day after Easter, missiles hit the city. Still, she says this is where God wants her. Sister Anna joined Currents News to discuss her daily life in the besieged city.

 

Catholic News Headlines for Thursday, 4/21/22

President Biden announced an additional 800-million dollars in military assistance for Ukraine.

 We talk to a nun who is in Ukraine right now.

 The back and forth over whether to wear masks or not is leading to a lot of confusion among Americans.

More Help Arrives for Ukraine as President Biden Sends Additional Military Aid

Currents News Staff

Outside the besieged city of Mariupol, the city is Ground Zero. The Azovstal Steel Plant stands as Mariupol’s last line of defense.

Russian President Vladimir putting has scrapped plans to storm the plant and ordered soldiers to instead encircle it.

“There will be nobody left in this area. They will be dead,” said George Kurparashvili, Azov Battalion Commander, “all the children. I’m not talking about the soldiers, but the civilians will be eliminated and it will be on us, the civilized world.”

Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy warns that his troops do not have enough “serious and heavy” weapons to defeat the Russians there.

The U.S. is responding. President Biden unveiled his latest presidential draw-down. Any more money would need congressional approval.

“We’re in a critical window,” said the president. “Now of time where they’re going to set the stage for the next phase of this war.”

He Defense Department is now set to pull weapons and equipment like howitzers, ammo and drones from U.S. inventories to send to Ukraine.

“Putin has failed to achieve his grand ambitions on the battlefield,” Biden said. “After weeks of shelling, Kyiv still stands.”

In a move to further isolate Moscow, Russian-affiliated ships are now banned from American ports. In Mariupol, the help can’t come soon enough.

Ukrainian soldiers are remaining defiant and resisting Russian attacks and ignoring their calls to surrender.