"Renovabis" urges politicians to take care of de-escalation, in particular in Ukraine

This was reported by the UGCC Information Department.

Do "everything possible to maintain internal peace and peace on external borders, preventing, first of all, the suffering of the population." On the eve of the World Day of peace, which was celebrated on January 1, Professor Thomas Schwartz, director-general of the Catholic agency for solidarity with Eastern and Central Europe "Renovabis", addressed all responsible politicians, referring to Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"We call for de-escalation for the sake of people who want nothing more than to start the new year 2022 in health, without coronavirus, and in peace in the face of escalating threatening scenarios. So that for these people – women, men, children and the elderly – between whom there are many people who receive support from Renovabis, the transition to the next year 2023 will be better than it is now, and that they will have better prospects for the future," notes Thomas Schwartz, pinning high hopes on a fruitful diplomatic dialogue. Wishing constructive progress and success to the planned negotiations, he quotes the words of St. John Paul II, who stressed that "war is an adventure without return, and not a means to solve political problems."

At the initiative of the Central Committee of German Catholics, the Episcopal Conference of Germany in 1993 established the "Initiative of solidarity of German Catholics with the people of Central and Eastern Europe "Renovabis". The name of the organization is taken from Psalm 104 "Emitte spiritum tuum... et renovabis faciem terrae" – "remove your spirit... and you restore the face of the Earth", and its headquarters are located in Freising.

For almost 30 years of activity, Renovabis has financially supported more than 25 thousand projects in 29 countries of the former communist bloc worth more than 810 million euros. The funds come from donations from German Catholics, as well as from the federal treasury. Half of the funding is allocated to the restoration of church life, which includes the construction or restoration of churches and pastoral facilities, as well as the training of clergy and laity, and the second part is directed to social projects such as charity canteens, assistance to the homeless, guardianship of orphans, the elderly and people with disabilities.