Olya Syniuk – Calvary Chapel https://calvarychapel.com Encourage, Equip, Edify Mon, 05 Jun 2023 19:09:13 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.2 https://calvarychapel.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/cropped-CalvaryChapel-com-White-01-32x32.png Olya Syniuk – Calvary Chapel https://calvarychapel.com 32 32 Welcoming Ukraine: Stories of Refugees and Locals Coming Together to Heal https://calvarychapel.com/posts/welcoming-ukraine-stories-of-refugees-and-locals-coming-together-to-heal/ Wed, 07 Jun 2023 06:00:11 +0000 https://calvarychapel.com/?p=157753 ]]>

Veszprém Community

One of the biggest challenges people face in a new country is integrating into a new social circle. With all the differences in language, culture, accepted daily routines, and other details, it is not easy to feel “at home” in a foreign country. Adapting takes a long time.

The situation is even more complicated if you are a refugee. On the one hand, the move was not something you planned and prepared for: you did not have enough time to say goodbye to your old life, so you are often not ready to accept your new one. On the other hand, you almost never feel equal to the locals: they may pity you or want to help, but often they are not ready to make you a part of their lives.

That is why we, the BridgeUA team in Hungary, see such great value in creating Ukrainian-Hungarian communities. And we can already share our first success story. Recently, a team of people from Calvary Chapel in Philadelphia, USA traveled to Hungary to help us serve Ukrainians here. With their help, we organized a holiday celebration to bring together Ukrainian and Hungarian women in the city of Veszprém.

Despite the language barrier, the women were able to make earrings together, have lunch together, and even have a lesson in traditional Hungarian dances!

The church in Veszprém did a short Bible study. The story of Hagar, who was forced to flee into the desert while pregnant and met God there, touched the hearts of the Ukrainian women, who are also going through trying circumstances. At the same time, it was obvious how good this time was for the Hungarian women because they too received spiritual encouragement, care, and an opportunity to practice the love of Christ.

We all need healing.
We all need community.
And each of us has something to share with others.

]]> Finding Community and Hope: The Spiritual Needs of Ukrainian Refugees https://calvarychapel.com/posts/finding-community-and-hope-the-spiritual-needs-of-ukrainian-refugees/ Wed, 05 Apr 2023 06:00:58 +0000 https://calvarychapel.com/?p=157359 ]]>

By Sharon Markey, with Olya Syniuk as co-author

You never get used to war. Over a year has passed since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The news cycle may have moved on, but the war continues, and Ukrainians all over the world continue to face grave difficulties.

BridgeUA Europe has been working with refugees in Hungary and Poland. The majority of these Ukrainian families are from the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine. Even if the war were to end tomorrow, they would have nowhere to go because their cities are ruined.


These women and children face enormous challenges. For the most part, their husbands and fathers are still in Ukraine, if they haven’t been killed defending their country. They are on their own, and they have to fill out official paperwork in an unfamiliar language, find lodging, find a job and learn new job skills to support themselves (many had to get factory jobs), enroll their children in schools where they don’t speak the language, figure out how to navigate an unfamiliar medical system, and the list goes on. Even simple tasks become overwhelming when you don’t understand the system and can’t speak the language.


On top of these challenges, these families are struggling with loneliness and wrestling with deep spiritual questions. They are searching for answers and for community. Nadia, a refugee whom we met while doing aid deliveries around Hungary, has a typical story. Her husband is still in Ukraine, and Nadia is taking care of her 11-year-old sister and her own child.

Nadia told us, “You don’t have to bring us anything—just come and spend time with us. Our greatest need is spiritual.”

Over the last year, we have developed relationships with hundreds of Ukrainian refugees all over Hungary. We started by simply meeting their physical needs—groceries, toiletries, clothing. Then in the fall, we also took them school supplies. At Christmastime, we gave gifts to the kids. As a result of consistently showing these families the love of Christ in practical ways, we now have Ukrainian communities in five cities across Hungary.

 

 


We want to serve these families’ physical needs, help them form communities, and be a bridge between Hungarian churches and the refugees living in their cities. Many Hungarian Christians would like to help, but they don’t know where to start. When they minister alongside us and see the positive impact they can have in the lives of these hurting people, they want to get even more involved!



Our ultimate goal is to form discipleship communities that will multiply through the refugee population, bringing the hope of Jesus to these scattered and hurting people. This has been a year of great trial and pain, but it has also been a year of deeper faith and hope for a better future.

https://bridgeua.org/
https://cgn.churchcenter.com/giving

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