From the perspective of the Dominican mission in Ukraine, the images of “fishers of men” and “shepherds of the flock,” presented in the Master of the Order’s letter The Dominican Journey with the Church toward Pentecost 2033, take on a very concrete meaning. The full-scale war, which has continued for more than four years, has revealed both the depth of human wounds and the power of the Gospel. It is in the light of the Word of God that we seek to read reality and allow ourselves to be guided by the Holy Spirit.
The mission of the fisher is to go out toward those who are far away — people pushed to the margins by suffering, forced displacement, poverty, grief, political and religious conflicts, or simply exhaustion. The “deep waters” into which we are called to cast our nets are often places of danger, trauma, and loneliness. To cast the net there means to go to those who live in fear, especially to those who are unable, by their own strength, to come to Christ and to the Church. It also means being ready to leave behind our own comfort, to remain close to people in their struggles, and to create spaces of encounter, dialogue, and reconciliation.
People affected by war need patient accompaniment, places of safety, prayer, spiritual and intellectual formation, and concrete assistance. Above all, they want to be welcomed and heard. In Ukraine we see very clearly that preaching cannot be separated from mercy. The Word must become bread, shelter, friendship, and presence. As Dominican sisters and brothers, together with our lay collaborators, we strive to live this mission in our parishes and communities, especially in the St Martin de Porres Centre in Fastiv and at the St Thomas Aquinas Higher Institute of Religious Sciences in Kyiv.
The war has also taught us how important presence is — simply being with another person. Such presence is itself a sign of Christ, who after His Resurrection promised His disciples: “I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Mt 28:20). To remain with a suffering people, to pray with them, to share their fragility, and to speak the truth without losing tenderness — this too is part of being “co-workers of the truth.”
As we journey toward the year 2033, we need a renewal of our communities so that they may become ever more capable of listening to the voice of the Lord and discerning where we are called to cast the net once again. We need preaching that is intellectually honest, spiritually rooted in the tradition of our Order, and genuinely close to people.
We must allow Christ to shape in us a heart that is both apostolic and pastoral: courageous in going out to others, humble in listening, and faithful in remaining close to those entrusted to us. In this way, the Dominican Family can offer the Church on its journey toward Pentecost 2033 a witness of truth united with mercy, contemplation joined to solidarity, and preaching expressed through the concrete healing of wounded lives.
— Fr. Jarosław Krawiec, OP
Provincial Vicar of Ukraine
