Friar James (right) is pictured with his confrere and friend, Bishop Edward Kawa, OFM Conv., in the Chancery of the Archdiocese of Lviv’s bomb shelter.
Our Lady of the Angels Province Minister Provincial Emeritus, Friar James McCurry, OFM Conv. met with Bishop Edward Kawa, O.F.M. Conv. ~ Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Lviv while visiting with the Franciscan Friars Conventual who serve in Poland and Ukraine. Bishop Edward and the friars of the Provincial Custody of the Holy Cross in the Ukraine (a custody of the Province of St. Anthony and Bl. James of Strepar in Kraków Poland) asked Friar James to extend to our Minister Provincial, Friar Michael Heine, OFM Conv., a very sincere thank you for the Province’s generosity, which was made possible through the generosity of our many donors. He also stated that the refugee situation is expected to worsen.
Below: These peace murals in Lviv were designed by Ukrainian children. The inscription reads: “Through thorns to the stars.”
August 31, 2022: The photo below was taken in the Friary of St. Francis of Assisi in Lviv, Ukraine, after Morning Mass in our Franciscan Church. Pictured with Friar James is Friar Paweł Odój, OFM Conv. (at right), two religious sisters, and a young parishioner who is a commando in the Ukrainian Army’s elite special forces. They asked Friar James to give him a blessing. He also gave him a miraculous medal. Later that day, the air raid sirens blared while Friar Stanisław Kawa, OFM Conv. and Friar James were visiting the graves of war victims in the large Lviv cemetery. Fr. Stanisław remarked that it was an appropriate place to meet their end. Nothing happened, however, and the all-clear signal followed an hour later.
