On September 5, Chen Jianzheng, former vice president of Taiwan, visited the procathedral of Saint Sophia in Rome to pray for peace in Ukraine and the world.
The liturgy was led by Fr. Marko Semegen in co-service with a priest of the local Taiwanese Catholic community, the Information Department of the UGCC reports.
"While participating in this prayer, we ask for the forgiveness of our sins and peace. In this Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, we entrust the Ukrainian and Taiwanese peoples to the Lord, asking Him to lead our peoples on a peaceful and holy path," said Fr. Marco
At the end of the service, Chen Jianzheng said:
"It is a great honor for me to be the special envoy of the President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen. After all, in addition to participating in the beatification ceremony of Pope John Paul I (September 4), I willingly met with good friends of the Ukrainian community in Rome to convey Taiwan's best wishes to you. Ukraine is fighting against her authoritarian and powerful neighbor. In the face of China's attacks, intimidation and military threats, Taiwan has learned the tenacity of Ukraine to never give up, defending a free and democratic way of life."
In his opinion, in order to stop the global expansion of totalitarianism, "Ukraine and Taiwan urgently need the support of democratic partners around the world, and the world needs the good forces of Ukraine and Taiwan to continue supporting democracy." He added that within the first month after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Taiwanese government quickly collected almost 33 million dollars in donations and 582 tons of humanitarian aid.
"Today, as a sign of deep respect, on behalf of the government of Taiwan, I am handing over this donation to support the activities of your cathedral in helping Ukrainians. Taiwan and Ukraine will continue to work together to deepen their relations based on the universal values of democracy, freedom and human rights," he concluded and donated 10,000 euros to aid the humanitarian mission of the Hagia Sophia community to Ukrainian immigrants.
At the end of his visit, Chen Jianzhen attended the expositions dedicated to the war in Ukraine and the room-museum of Patriarch Josyf Slipyi.