Global Courant 2023-04-29 15:29:56
Pope Francis has thanked the Hungarians for hosting Ukrainian refugees during the war and asked them to help anyone in need.
On the second day of his visit to Hungary, the Pope met refugees in a church in Budapest and praised Hungary’s Catholic Church for providing aid to people fleeing war.
The Holy Father also urged Europe to rediscover its founding values of peaceful unity, as he denounced Russia’s aggressive behavior towards neighboring Ukraine. The Pope heard the story of members of a Ukrainian family who fled Russian occupation, traveling for days to reach Hungary after rockets fell on their hometown of Dnipro in May last year.
Oleg Yakovlev said he decided to bring his wife and five children to Hungary because he had worked there as a cook years ago and remembered being welcomed.
“For us and our children, Hungary was the beginning of a new life, a new opportunity. Here we were welcomed and we found a new home” – said Mr. Yakovlev to the Pope.
About 2.5 million Ukrainians fleeing the war in their country have found open doors in Hungary. About 35,000 of the refugees remain in Hungary and have registered for temporary protection there, according to the UN.
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