Madrid – The association Acoger y Compartir, led by Redemptorist José Miguel de Haro, is collecting humanitarian aid to send to the people in need on Monday, 10 April. “We have a responsibility for the suffering of others,” he says.
One year ago, the beginning of the war in Ukraine generated a wave of solidarity in Spanish society. Hundreds of humanitarian aid convoys were organised by citizens to help the population, which had been subjected to a constant barrage of bombs by Russia. A year later, however, the situation is very different. The war continues, but it is taking up less and less time on the news and less and less interest from the international community, which has led to a significant drop in humanitarian aid.
The association Acoger y Compartir has spoken out against this lack of interest – as it has also done in the face of the earthquake in Haiti – and has organised a new collection of humanitarian aid to send to the country. “The Christian communities must do their utmost to carry out these gestures that remind us of the importance of fraternity. We have a responsibility towards the suffering of others,” says the organisation’s president, José Miguel de Haro, CSsR. “This Sunday, for example, we read the Gospel of the resurrection of Lazarus”, where we see “the humanity of Jesus, who goes to look for his friend even though he knows he is dead. So do we”, adds the parish priest of the Santísimo Redentor in Madrid.
The lorry is due to leave for Ukraine on Monday, 10 April. The parish has launched an appeal for help. “We need all kinds of school supplies”, from pens to markers or blackboards, “unused sports clothes”, and also “sweets, biscuits, sweets and toys that don’t need batteries – new or in good condition – for the children”, De Haro explained. In addition, you can collaborate by making a deposit in the association’s account: ES80 21 00 5622 0702 0008 3804 (Caixa Bank). The goods can be left at the parish (Calle Félix Boix, 13, Madrid).
Everything collected will be distributed throughout the country through the network of Redemptorist communities, who are the ones who have launched the appeal for help. “The lorry is going to Poland, and the Redemptorists there will distribute the load in different vans, like ambulances, which are the ones that will enter Ukraine to deliver all the donations”, explains the president of Acoger y Compartir.
(alfayomega.es)
