American pilgrim Jimmy John Rice, who last year walked about 800 kilometers in 90 days from Warsaw to Kyiv with a cross on his shoulders, has returned to Ukraine.
This is reported by CREDO.
On June 30, 2024, Jimmy began a new pilgrimage. He decided to go to the East of Ukraine this time.
The cross he brought with him last year has been in the Church of St. Nicholas in Kyiv since November 2023.
The cross was made by Jimmy himself. It weighs about 25 kg and is decorated with a pattern of 12 clover leaves, each bearing the name of one of the Apostles of Christ.
Having learned about the deprivations the parish of St. Nicholas suffered, the pilgrim decided to leave his cross there. During the Easter Triduum, it was placed in the Holy Sepulcher. In a short video, Jimmy thanked the parishioners who had respectfully kept his pilgrimage cross while he was in the United States. Now the pilgrim has returned to continue his pilgrimage with the intention of peace in Ukraine.
Ukrainian soldiers from the parish of St. Nicholas helped Jimmy carry the cross out of the church. At Independence Square, the parish priest, Fr. Pavlo Vyshkovsky, blessed Jimmy for his pilgrimage, assuring him that the entire parish would pray for him. For his part, the rector also asked Jimmy to face the trials of the road for the speedy return of St. Nicholas Church in Kyiv.
On May 1, 2024, the deadline for the Ministry of Culture to return the building of St. Nicholas Church to the parish expired, but once again, the decision was not made. On May 3, 2024, the parish sent a resolution to the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Denys Shmyhal and the acting Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, Rostyslav Karandieiev, calling on government officials to keep their promises and give the Catholic community the opportunity to preserve the neo-Gothic church.