Ukrainian refugees dream of a home at Orthodox Easter celebrations

WARSAW/PRAGUE/BERLIN, April 24 (Reuters) – Ukrainian refugees packed churches in central Europe on Sunday for Orthodox Easter in bittersweet celebrations, giving thanks for escaping a Russian invasion but dreaming of returning home to relatives left behind. .

At Warsaw’s St. Mary Magdalene Orthodox Cathedral in the city center, where priests said festive services were busier than in previous years, children carried Easter baskets adorned with Ukrainian flags and had blue and yellow bows in the hair.

“This is my first Easter vacation that I am not going to spend in Ukraine… but luckily there are a lot of people from Ukraine here,” said Anna Janushevich, 35, who fled Lviv.

“When the war is over I will return to Ukraine. I dream that I will be able to return so that I can celebrate Easter at home and that my daughter is with her family.”

More than 5 million Ukrainians have fled since Russia invaded on February 24, with most seeking safety in the European Union through border crossings in Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.

Many of the refugees have chosen to wait out the war with friends and family in Poland, whose prewar Ukrainian community of about 1.5 million represented the largest in the region.

Like many other worshipers, Bohdana Dudka, 27, took photos to send to relatives, including her two brothers, who remained in Ukraine to fight.

“I hope that the next Easter holidays will be at home in Ukraine,” said Dudka. “I would like to thank the Poles for helping the Ukrainians so much. We came with nothing and here people help each other.”

As Ukrainians celebrated Orthodox Easter on Sunday, there was no end in sight to a war that has killed thousands, uprooted millions and reduced cities to rubble. read more

Moscow, which describes its actions in Ukraine as a “special military operation” to demilitarize its neighbor, denies targeting civilians and rejects what Ukraine says is evidence of atrocities, saying kyiv organized them.

Inside Ukraine, subdued Easter celebrations were held across the country as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy promised in an Orthodox Easter message that no “evil” would destroy the country. read more

In Prague, which boasted a pre-war Ukrainian community of nearly 200,000, Nataliya Krasnopolskaia said she has been regularly attending services at the Saints Cyril and Methodius Cathedral Church since arriving from Odessa on March 6.

“In Ukraine I only go during the holidays, but in Prague I try to go to church every Sunday,” he said, referring to the Prague church where World War II resistance fighters hid after assassinating the police chief. Nazi Reinhard Heydrich.

“I pray that this horror in Ukraine will end soon and we can return home.”

At Berlin’s Nathanael Church, Ukrainian community leaders said the congregation of around 500 people would grow to around 2,500 people for the celebrations where the refugees said the singing and traditions reminded them of home. More than 369,000 Ukrainians have registered in Germany after fleeing the war.

Inside the church, attendees crossed themselves as they sang hymns while others quietly took turns lighting candles. Outside, a long line of children stood on the lawn with baskets of Easter eggs in front of them as a priest passed by sprinkling them with water.

“Today everything is like in Ukraine with so many people and this atmosphere,” said Diana Shyndak, 23, originally from kyiv. “It’s good to see so many people here who can celebrate Easter.”

“It’s my first Easter celebration outside Ukraine. It’s sad and my heart aches because so many people have died. We pray every day for our people and our children.”

Additional reporting by Kuba Stezycki in Warsaw; Written by Michael Kahn, edited by Emelia Sithole-Matarise

Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.