The Auxiliary Bishop of Donetsk, Ukraine, will take part in the Congress of Mary Help of Christians in Fatima. Bishop Maksym Ryabukha, SDB, will give testimony to the congress participants and preside over the rosary and procession on the last day of August at the Fatima Shrine.

D. Maksym Ryabukha, Salesian Bishop of Ukraine, will give his testimony about living St John Bosco’s dream amid a community at war.

The Salesian was director of the Salesian House of Mary Help of Christians at the gates of the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, at the time of the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army. Since the invasion, the Salesian has been a point of contact with the Salesians in the country. The ANS Agency reported on the way the Church has supported the population, distributing humanitarian aid, celebrating the Eucharist in the bunkers, visiting displaced people and trying to maintain the normality of the daily lives of children and young people, where possible, with travelling oratories and holiday camps.

In the summer of 2022, the Salesian was responsible for organising summer camps in Ukraine, providing “at least a few moments of serenity for young people who have seen death up close and are still pursuing life with all their might”, the religious explained.

In August, the Ukrainian bishop will be in Portugal to speak to the participants of the IX Congress of Mary Help of Christians, which will take place in Fatima between 29 August and 1 September.

On Saturday 31 August, Bishop Maksym will preside over the Rosary at 9.30 pm and the Candlelight Procession, on a day when, as usual on this date, a large turnout of faithful is expected.

D. Maksym Ryabukha was ordained Auxiliary Bishop of the Donetsk Archiepiscopal Exarchate and appointed Titular Bishop of Stephaniacum in the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Kyiv on 22 December 2022.

Foto © Ukranian Greek Catholic Church