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Sacrifices for devil drops
Panevėžys St. Romualdas Zdanys, pastor of the Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul, said that it was always possible to meet three or four regular beggars in the cemetery after services. According to the clergyman, what is humanity here to drop the euro to a person kneeling in the cold and rain? So he decided to take the initiative himself, and after asking the faithful to trust him and not to hand over the money for the poor directly into his hands, but to throw it into a special sacrificial box.
“I asked a beggar why he was kneeling. The answer surprised me a bit: buy a bread. Isn’t it that we can’t take care of the poor? It can’t be the case that people starve to death in the cemetery these days. How can I feel for myself and the faithful if we cannot care for poor parishioners? ”Said the priest.
He bought a variety of foods with the donated money and invited beggars to visit the rectory at any time. Such beautiful facts did not fascinate the beggars.
“On the first Friday, when we distributed the rations, one of them, only after receiving the package, offered to buy one of our parishes for five euros. Another asked me for two euros, but when I offered to help the church collect the sheets, I received a response that I did not realize that I needed two euros instead of a job. They don’t lack food, but alcohol ”, says R. Zdanys.
Romualdas zdanys
© Sekundė.lt
Help those who really need it
The saddest thing for the clergyman is that the elderly donate their already precarious pensions to those “poor”, and the young often offer the poor who are looking for work. The priest asks: why do the elderly have to hurt themselves so that the vain ones get what to drink and smoke?
“What mercy there is here when they deceive you. We are ready to help our parishioners to stand up, but only to not be intoxicated, ”emphasized R. Zdanys.
According to him, the faithful who came to the services donated about 300 euros per month to those most in need. And one person donated up to a thousand euros, another – 500 euros. Who will make these sacrifices, admitted the clergyman who did not know yet. You can contact the Social Department of the municipality of Panevėžys to indicate a family in need, but the mission of the parish is different. R. Zdanys would like to help her parishioners, who would not really ask for help themselves.
“I listen myself, I have asked the parishioners and our religion teachers to let me know, maybe they will hear about a mother who cannot afford to buy shoes or a computer for her children. Last year, before Christmas, we installed a bathroom for a family, because they didn’t even have a place to bathe their children. Good work must be done in silence, we are still looking for who we could create a Christmas miracle for this year, ”said R. Zdanys.
Opi problem
The priest Kęstutis Palepšys, administrator of the Cathedral of Christ the King in Panevėžys, stated that the position of the Episcopal Conference has long been that the clergy should turn to organizations that care for those in need. The more so since the help network for these people is quite developed in the cities.
“It is a delicate problem, because we do not know on whom the beggars spend the donated money. On the other hand, a large proportion of believers cannot remain indifferent to seeing a poor man standing with his hand extended. It is very important to properly assess the situation so that goodness is not taken advantage of. A man usually begs for alms in the cathedral, we have repeatedly offered him a visit to a charity soup kitchen, where he would receive food, but we do not know if he will take advantage of the offer ”, said K. Palepšys.
Talent to survive
Irma Zabulionytė, director of the Panevėžys branch of the Lithuanian agency SOS Vaikai, which feeds everyone who comes here in her charity canteen, is open: they haven’t had so many poor people in a long time. Since the start of the second quarantine, at least one or two new people are admitted every day. Volunteers at the charity canteen prepare around 80 servings of hot food a day. Saturated soup and steamed fried cottage cheese on the table on Monday.
Panevėžys branch of the Lithuanian agency SOS Children
© Sekundė.lt
“It just came to our notice then. Young and old alike are mired in poverty. We were recently approached by a woman with a disability. Her twenty-year-old son lost his job. Their income helped both of them survive. Now both of us they come to eat with us, ”said the patron saint of the poor.
I. Zabulionytė also realizes that the number of older people who come to them for lunch has increased significantly. They were usually assisted by children, but when quarantine deprived them of their livelihood, the ancients were forced to work on extremely modest incomes.
“Younger people tend not to pay better for an apartment, no matter how much they accumulate debt, but to be eaten. Older people pay taxes first and what is left is for other needs. But if you need to buy medicine, there is practically nothing left for food. It takes an infinite amount of ingenuity and incomprehensible talent to survive for 200 euros a month, ”said I. Zabulionytė.
Asking is not embarrassing
According to the rescuer of the poor, the food that is prepared in the canteen is usually the only one for its visitors that day, so the rations are prepared in large quantities to be able to take them home for dinner. Efforts are being made to add bread, margarine and other products to the poor. With the start of the quarantine, people are no longer required to provide documentation that they need food aid. According to I. Zabulionytė, it is really difficult to ask and only those who are cornered by poverty and hunger come.
“At this time, we also have a kind of stress, we do not know how many people will come tomorrow, we cannot just tell the hungry that we are sorry, that they are gone,” said I. Zabulionytė.
To feed the rapidly growing ranks of the poor, volunteers themselves have to turn to people of good will for help. They get a variety of food products from the Food Bank, they help local farmers, but they also have to buy some products and spices themselves.
“It just came to our attention then. I’m glad when our requests for help are heard,” says the manager.
Save a bowl of soup
Every day, about six dozen hot, poor bowls of soup also come to the Bethlehem soup kitchen. According to St. Patrikas Skrudupis, the director of Joseph’s nursing home, he used to have hot soup at the beginning of winter. In the summer, some visitors found day jobs, which helped them survive. But in the winter it is more difficult for them to get a job, and with the onset of quarantine, the chances of finding work have decreased.
“Every day we prepare about 60 rations of food, about 12,000 a year. dose. I would like to help these people more, but that bowl of soup is better than nothing, ”says P. Skrudupis.
When the coronavirus entered the grandparents’ house a few weeks ago, the activities of the soup kitchen were hanging by the hair, because there was no one left to prepare hot food. Fortunately, several volunteers responded to the request for assistance, who took charge of preparing food for the poor.
“We already have volunteers who have committed to preparing additional rations before Christmas to make the holidays more full,” said the head of the institution.
Supported by Lithuanians in Chicago
According to P. Skrudupis, the story of everyone who uses the gate of Bethlehem is different. Many people have told you that they never believed they would order food.
“No one is immune from poverty. Many of those who come have a disability. As long as the parents are alive, these people will be cared for, but when they are not left they will have to do it themselves in some way. Not everyone has the right to do it. ability to manage finances, ”says P. Skrudupis.
He does not deny that there are those who have been driven into poverty by addictions. Despite such circumstances, the desire to eat nowhere disappears.
The leader takes comfort that when the ranks of the poor grow, compatriots, even from outside the Atlantic, extend a helping hand to the people of Panevėžys.
“Every year, the Lithuanian community in Chicago hosted a charity luncheon, during which the funds raised were used to maintain the Bethlehem canteen. His contribution was around 30-40%. all amounts required for the year. This year, due to the pandemic, the event had to be abandoned, but the community still donated, knowing what the current difficult situation is, ”said P. Skrudupis.
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