Ukraine: Conveying the joy of the Faith - expressed in a pectoral cross

Sisters of the order "Servants of the Lord and of the Virgin of Matará". @ACN
Sisters of the order "Servants of the Lord and of the Virgin of Matará". @ACN

Burshtyn is a small town in West Ukraine. It lies southeast of Lviv, on the road to Ivano-Frankivsk. Burshtyn is equivalent to the name Bernstein. Originally this time was a Jewish „Shtetl", an almost entirely Jewish settlement. Before their liquidation and expulsion by the Germans, such Jewish communities were very widespread in Eastern Europe. All that is left in Burshtyn is the old Jewish cemetery, a reminder and a warning at the same time.

Burshtyn was never a centre of major importance, of course. In fact it was not until 1993 that it acquired the status of a town. Today some 18,000 people live here, including - since 2009 - a group of „Matará" Sisters belonging to a congregation founded in 1984 in Argentina. What is unusual about them is the fact that some of them live a contemplative life, devoted entirely to prayer, and in this way support their fellow sisters who are engaged in the social, charitable and pastoral initiatives of the congregation. The full name is the Institute of the "Servants of the Lord and of the Virgin of Matará" (Siervas del Señor y de la Virgen de Matará, SSVM). Through their particular charism, rooted in prayer and contemplation and devoted entirely to the service of their fellow men, they wish to recall the women who accompanied Jesus Christ to his death and stood by him faithfully beneath the Cross.

These sisters wear a pectoral cross, which not only shows Christ crucified but includes many other symbols as well. It originated with the indigenous Matará people, a native tribe in northern Argentina in the region of the modern city of Santiago del Estero. The Jesuits, who discovered the Matará towards the end of the 16th century, explained the Christian message to them with the help of signs and letters, which they carved in wood. For the sisters of the Institute, which is present today in 29 countries around the world, the Matará cross symbolises the idea of evangelising the culture, rather than imposing their own cultural preconceptions on others. In Ukraine, for example, the women wear a black habit, corresponding to the tradition of the country, rather than the blue-grey habit that is actually more typical of their community. In addition, the sisters follow the Byzantine rite.

The Matará sisters came to Burshtyn at the request of Bishop Volodymyr Viytyshyn of Ivano-Frankivsk. They have quite recently moved into a house that is in urgent need of renovation. Only the most urgent and essential repairs were initially done to the convent, but further important work is needed. They are currently housed in part of a building complex that was originally established at the beginning of the 20th century as an orphanage by the then Greek Catholic Metropolitan Andrei Sheptytskyy of Lviv. The building was confiscated by the Soviets and used as a hospital and only returned to the Church at the end of the 1990s in a totally derelict condition.

The sisters do not have the necessary resources, however, and are dependent on outside help. They have therefore requested the international Catholic pastoral charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) for the support of their reconstruction of the old monastery. And ACN helped with 20.000 Euros.

There is great interest in Ukraine in the life and apostolate of the sisters of Matará. Many people are coming to them, seeking counsel and wanting to learn about the Faith. They are very grateful for the many initiatives of the sisters. In just a few short years more than 50 young women have joined the congregation. There are already foundations in the city of Ivano-Frankivsk and in the Zakarpattia region, and Burshtyn is now the most recent. Here, until the end of the 1990s, there was just one priest caring for the parish and so the faithful are delighted to have the sisters among them. For the congregation, the new convent provides the opportunity to welcome visitors to share in the celebration of the Eucharist and to meet the sisters and talk with them.

But as soon as the available space is ready, the community will also cater for the elderly people locally, and also for single parents and young people too. "We want to convey to young people the joy that the Faith can bring", says Sister Maria de Montserrat Vega, adding "In this way we are quite consciously following the tradition of John Bosco, who took young seriously and trusted them". This 38-year-old Argentinian sister has been 20 years in the congregation. As a „sponsa christi", or bride of Christ, she has devoted herself totally to the mission of the community. The same is also true for the other sister, Maria de las Victorias, who is also from Argentina and who also joined the community at a very young age. Both women appear astonishingly youthful, and yet mature, dynamic and at the same time at ease.

In addition to the contemplative sisters and those in the active apostolate who are devoted to working in the hospitals, retirement homes, youth centres and pastoral parish apostolate, the Institute, founded by the Argentinian priest Carlos Miguel Buela, also includes a separate foundation for priests, the Instituto del Verbo Incarnado (IVE), or Institute of the Word Incarnate, founded four years earlier and also present in numerous countries around the world.

To know about this and many other similar projects in favour of the pastoral needs of the suffering Church, please contact our national offices.