With the Ukrainian Sabbatarians

A message home from Ukraine - Friday 19th April, 1996.

Victor Kubik and I send you our greetings and love from Ukraine. We have travelled by road from Chernigev, 40 miles from Chernobyl, to Kiev and Rovno over the Carpathians to arrive at the home of Vasyl Mondich head of a Christian group at 3.50 pm (2 hours ahead of British time) on Friday 19th April. The journey is much longer than the road as one has to brake, swerve and zig zag around potholes - big ones, little ones, deep ones and deeper ones.

We received a warm welcome from the Mondich family and have just met Victor Pavliy. We have been unable to communicate via compuserve as the lines were not working but we think of you all. If ever there was a place where the words of Jeremiah 10:23 applied then it must be Ukraine, families destroyed by Stalin's collectivisation, invaded by Hitler, mercilessly exploited by Russia resulting in a poor fragile society. The economy is non-existent, doctors, nurses and teachers have not been paid for four months and the political parties are at loggerheads resulting in anarchy. Ukraine has 30% of the world's soil so fertile anything will grow yet Ukraine imports wheat from Canada. Large areas are leached by nitrates and now there are no fertilisers. On top of all this came the Chernobyl disaster. 7 out of 21 areas around Chernigev have been declared disaster areas. 140,000 children have been effected by radiation and only 1% are perfectly healthy. The effect of radiation on the brain is now called the Chernobyl syndrome of physical and mental retardation of varying severity with muscle wasting, paralysis, malignancies especially thyroid and psychological damage. There are more divorces than marriages, add drug addiction and the legacy of Russia - vodka alcoholism even in young children. As Victor Kubik says, this is meltdown. This is a totally disintegrated and abandoned nation, yet we have been warmly welcomed and allowed to inspect everywhere. They are so grateful that they have not been completely forgotten. We spent five days in Chernigev, not once were we even allowed to buy our own breakfast, lunch or supper and this by doctors who receive only half our weekly old age pension per month. We visited a doctor's mother in Zone 3 in a humble cottage, spotlessly clean inside and had a meal of cabbage and potatoes baked in a black earthernware pot and birch sap to drink. She was so courteous and generous and she had every justification to be full of hate and anger. All meals including breakfast are preceded by toasts of vodka - to our eternal friendship, to international peace etc. then the tears over the tragedies of the past. Then to top it all gifts of embroidery as we leave which politeness demands we accept one, but decency demands we refuse the rest.

We have visited one Polyclinic and two hospitals - to see the conditions in which the nurses and doctors work with ancient or no equipment, no drugs, no anaesthesia, no linen - a situation which is an accusation levelled to the rest of the world. Even worse is to see their quiet patience and fortitude which can be seen in their faces - I could only stand and weep.

The children are beautiful not only in looks but in the way they express themselves. Tiny tots come forward to shake hands, say their name and introduce their soft toy - usually a present from somewhere because they have absolutely nothing else.

I do not know how to end this short message, but I do know that the understanding which we do have is precious. There is pain and tears here and I know it will come to an end. Jeremiah was right.

20th April, 1996 - A Sabbath with the Transcarpathians.

Victor Kubik and I walked with Vasyl Mondich from his home about one and a half miles to the meeting hall in Khust. The streets are dusty and the roads have many potholes. A gypsy market was gathering in the town and horses and carts were trotting in from all directions. The hall was once a Jewish synagogue which was closed by the Russians and it became a cinema. When the Russians left in 1991 the hall was empty for a few years and the City Council gave it to the Sabbatarians for their continual use free of charge. The service is due to start at 10:00 am, but members drift in up to 10:25 so Vasyl Mondich compromises and starts the services at 10:10 am. The service starts with three hymns which includes a song of welcome to our brothers and sisters. Then there is a long opening prayer, an address for ten minutes by Vasyl Mondich, pastor of the church and administrative head of the 14 regions of the Sabbatarians, then more hymns are sung followed by a ladies choir who are so relaxed and spontaneous. Their singing is so natural to them. Then I gave greetings and love from our church in England and spoke on what is religion pure and undefiled. Victor translated. More hymns and Victor then spoke for about 25 minutes about our spiritual journey comparing it to the Israelite's exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land. Then more hymns, several addresses from members of the congregation, more hymns and two hours later the closing prayer which is given so fervently. The service then continued with a poem recitation, a trio presented the story of Cain and Abel talking with a music background, children of all ages spoke and sang, more hymns, then there was intense interest in my job as a doctor and what I felt about alternative medicine and extra-sensory perception - appears that the questions were concerned about the influence of Satan in such a practice. Just after 1:00 pm everyone dispersed and individuals were introduced and chatted. We had grape juice in an adjacent office of Mission Nazareth and Victor was presented with a large colourful plate with Victor and Beverly's name glazed into it. We walked to Victor Pavliy's home and had lunch of soup, rice, veal stew and bread. The wives do not eat with the men when there are guests present. They serve the men at table and eat later in the kitchen. This is not inferiority but custom and accepted by all. The women are happy and join in the conversation in snatches. Children are hugged and are very much part of the scene but also do not eat with the men. The children play together harmoniously and are quiet and very happy. They prefer the hugs of the their father to anything else because then they know that they have their father's warmth. Then coffee and two trays of cakes next door at Alexander Mazhan's home who is married to the Anna, Victor Pavliy's sister. There is a strong interlocking of families that stabilizes them.

The next service started at 4:00 PM in Rokosova, six miles away. We set off in a van at 4:00 PM again swerving around massive potholes or occasionally hitting one with a thud. We arrived at a large church in Rokosova filled with men, women and children. I cannot describe the singing because it is so full of feeling and the harmonizing is perfect. Several addresses were given about children as the afternoon service is usually devoted to the children. An old woman in peasant clothes recited a long poem about the resurrection - had been a gynaecologist and imprisoned for six years for her religious beliefs. A man gave a 30 minute address about the dangers to their children which had a great effect on the congregation who usually sit quietly and unemotionally. More fantastic hymn singing, a blessing of a baby during which both mother and father pray most fervently followed by the pastor. Then children gave a spoken and a singing presentation with unbelievable lack of self-consciousness - are so secure in their human relationships. The hall is not unlike a Methodist hall, but the Ten Commandments are boldly presented where an altar would be. All singing is unaccompanied. The hall was built by the members themselves and opened in 1992. They have a secret method of making a beautiful building material which looks like marble but it made from concrete at half the price. They have been unable to market it. I will bring a piece home and see what I can do.

We then walked to the home of Ivan Pavliy and met more brothers:

Pavlo, Misha, Anton and their wives, mothers and some children. We were waited upon with another tasty meal - borsht, rice meat stew and gherkins. All was served cold as they will not kindle a fire on the Sabbath. Everyone talks and listens most attentively with much laughter. Everyone seems to love and respect everyone else. When the Sabbath ends, they fall silent and kneel to say a prayer. Then men then moved into the main room and conversed while the women came in and out doing their work or listened quietly. After a while they all gathered and I was asked to give a biography of my whole life and how I came to be in the Church. I showed them the Kent church photograph and they were most interested in where Caroline was and was examined by everyone and approved of. Victor gave an account of the recent history of the Church and then theology was discussed. First, on the date of the Passover, they keep the 15^th Abib. Then on Colossians 2:16 and Romans 10:1-4. The place of God's law and faith was discussed in a thoughtful and friendly way. The KGB persecuted the Sabbatarians. Ivan Pavliy said they were not afraid of the KGB then, and not afraid of them now. Victor said that they will go on talking Bible until 4:00 am and he was exhausted with all the translating. We left at about 10:30 pm still talking, laughing, and photographing. And another bumpy drive to Khust and to bed at 11:30 pm. This had been the most intense Sabbath I have ever kept a total of five hours of services and Bible talk at a high level in between. Victor said I fell asleep and had a nightmare.

A bank in Khust went bankrupt last month and no one has paid in five months. Trade appears to be by barter, yet everyone is so happy. There are rumours of the possibility of civil war as the present economic situation cannot continue. The Russian coal miners in the Donetsk are of SE Ukraine could start a rebellion as they will not tolerate being unpaid for much longer. This is just one day!

Sunday 21st April, 1996 - Khust, Transcarpathia

Breakfast, men only, of Carpathian spring water, cherry compote, battered beef burgers, shredded beet root, crepes and cream. Wow! At 10:00 AM two villagers arrived for a consultation. First, Anya D., age 51 had a goiter and early hypothyroidism. Second, Olga P., age 48 had a lump of the thyroid three cm diameter. Appropriate advice was given and a box of apples was received. Although both women were worried they were jolly and so grateful.

Arrangements were made to set off on a picnic at 12 midday. We eventually left at 1:30 PM, the cars loaded with husbands, wives, young people and small children. One would have thought no one had a problem in the world. No one is time urgent. What matters is people. On the way the convoy wanted to show Victor and me their spa and sanitorium at Shayan which is overlooked by three steep hills: Father Shayan, Mother Shayan and Baby Shayan. The cobble road was built by the Hungarians a sixty years ago or so, so it did not have too many potholes. There was no edge to the road because it disappeared in hard mud. We entered a small brick building and drank glasses of water from the taps in the wall. It was superb. I took a look behind the wall to see the plumbing which had to be photographed as no one would believe me if I said it was dilapidated. It was like everything in the plumbing and mechanical line here, it just worked but only just and probably only had another five minutes to last.

Transcarpathia is so warm compared to the rest of Ukraine and the buds are bursting changing the bleak concrete town and countryside to a place of beauty although it is difficult to hide the litter and broken bottles which are everywhere.

The Ukrainian character is patriotic to death but they do not see the rubbish, they drop and tip even in the forests and river banks. They vice-administrator of the sanatorium walked around the grounds with us. Forty Chernobyl children stay at the sanatorium each month and we photographed a group of 12-14 year old who had gastric problems and were resident for recuperation. We visited the boiler house. Again the boilers, pipes and valves were the oldest, the most broken down collection of rusty metal one could see in a scrap yard, yet hot water was coming out, and to swing from the sublime to the ridiculous, it was controlled by a computer. Onto a tiny brick spa house where the well was over 600 feet deep up sputtered fizzy mineral water which was controlled by bending the rubber pipe by 180 degrees. It could not have been bettered by Sainsbury's. Plastic lemonade bottles were filled and off we went to the banks of the River Tissa. If I write that this is the world's most perfect camp, I am not exaggerating. As the snows were melting the river was full, running at two meters per second and about 400 meters wide. In summer it is perfect for water sports, fishing, swimming or just sitting by. Then there is a grass plain at least one mile long and ½ mile wide for sports and camping and huge round hills surround it covered in beech trees with plenty of logs camp fires and the undefeated castle of Khust overlooks the river and the Carpathian mountains in the distance. The food is superb and cheap and there are two Sabbath-keeping churches within a short distance. How about it, John Meakin? The mayor waits to hear from you!

Then the event of the day. The Picnic. The wives and older girls prepared the food, while the men talk in groups, play football, including Victor, and turn the kebabs over the charcoal fire. The families stood in a circle around the picnic and Vasyl Mondich said the blessing-no group of people have been blessed with the abundance of the earth more than this group yet compared to western standards, they have nothing. Not once have I seen a TV switched on, they are all too busy talking, laughing and eating. They do not see the concrete, the potholes, the rubbish or fear the future-they only see each other, love the present and have faith in God.

This was no picnic. It was a feast yet no one has been paid for months. I was questioned about BSE (Mad Cow Disease) and I explained our problems. I would not hesitate to eat anything they presented because it was Levitical and natural. After the picnic the same women, girls and one man who were in the church choir gathered into a group under an oak tree and sang for Victor and me. The song was "I Give You A New Commandment That You Love One Another." I not going to even attempt to describe it because I can't. (I have recorded it for you.).

The Sabbatarians have human problems but they are controlled and resolved biblically. They control the impact of the outside world on their children but they then generate their own world to replace it with values the world has lost. The world today has replaced with people with things, to Carpathian Sabbatarians people are first and last, above things and above time. What matters is a laugh and a hug. Our roles have reversed. I came to give help, bit it is I who have been helped.

Monday 22nd April, 1996 - Khust, Transcarpathia.

Yesterday an incident occurred which is an illustration of the Carpathian Sabbatarians way of handling a misdemeanour. The 15 year old son of a minister was given the car keys to practice driving around the grass plain by the river Tissa. Instead, he took the car and drove around Khust for about an hour. He had no insurance, no license and should not have driven on the roads until he was 18 years old. The parents were distressed but not a word was said. When they arrived home the father and mother went into a room with their son and closed the door. There was silence for one hour. There was no shouting, protest or blows. I do not know what was said but I suspect that most of the time was spent in prayer. I'm informed that the boy suddenly knelt before his father, expressed his sorrow and repentance and asked for forgiveness. When the door was opened the atmosphere was if the event had never occurred.

Today the working week started and it started so naturally with family prayers. We are having difficulty with the lines to Kiev which are breaking in mid-transmission, hence the irregularity of these messages.

Victor said that the next two days are important as he is discussing many matters with Vasyl Mondich and laying foundations. Victor feels that this has been the most successful of his five visits to Khust. He is comfortable with the Carpathian Sabbatarians who respond to him.

This morning I walked around the town of Khust by myself while Victor held talks with Vasyl Mondich and Victor Pavliy, head of Mission Nazareth in the office of the Church. It is difficult to get to the point of a meeting as there is so much social banter to overcome first and then when one is getting to an understanding or agreement there is interruption after interruption. Talks continued into the afternoon after lunch and eventually understandings were reached.

Help for the Carpathian Sabbatarians is more useful in the form of money rather than goods. It is not good sense to transport goods from the USA at great cost when the same goods can be bought in Germany and transported to Ukraine at $4000 per lorry load.

The dangers to the Ukraine used to come from the East and historically their defences point in an easterly direction. Now, different religious groups are entering from the West but there no need to fear for the Carpathian Sabbatarians for they who have survived the KGB and will survive the evangelicals and charismatics.

While I was walking around the town I was spotted by a Sabbatarian Ivan Mathishinets who signalled me into his car and drove me to the museum, but it was locked. He then drove to the school and called out his beautiful fifteen year-old daughter Nelya as she spoke English. Nelya showed me the old parts of the town and we walked through the crowded market which sold clothes made in Turkey, stalls of seeds, flowers, engineering parts and bric a brac. Victor and I wanted flowers for our dinner hostess in the evening. I asked Nelya if her father would negotiate the buying of the flowers which he promptly did. And then he refused to allow me to pay for them. I selected about seven vegetable seeds at one stall and which are scooped out of little bags with a type of egg cup and put into paper cones and folded. In no way was I allowed to pay. It means that I cannot buy anything without Ivan paying which is very awkward. The Sabbatarian treat their guests with overwhelming courtesy.

Even small decisions require detailed discussion and eventually we went to the home of Alexander Mazhan and his wife Anya (nee Pavliy). Alexander's sister is Alla who was therefore a Mazhan and is now married to Sasha Pavliy. In other words, a brother and sister have married a brother and sister. Add many Pavliy brothers, Victor Pavliy being the eldest and all of whom have young children, add Grandfather Vasyl Pavliy and his wife Anna and the complexity of relationships becomes too great for an outsider to take in. Beans in a milky soup is a Carpathian speciality and was followed by lamb stew, potatoes and spring water. Jokes abounded.

1. Patient: "Should I sleep with my head towards the West or the East?"
Doctor: "It is best to sleep with the whole body in the West."

2. Seller: "Do you want Spanish, Italian or Portuguese sardines?"
Buyer: "It doesn't matter, I'm going to eat them, not talk to them."

Lunch was followed by a tea made from the buds of the linden tree and cakes covered in chocolate.

An unpleasant incident occurred in the morning when the Khust Customs inspector appeared drunk at the church hall. He entered the hall and sat next to me. Vasyl Mondich came to my aid and we all left the hall, but the inspector forced his way into the back seat of the car saying "I am the inspector, I can do what I like." Mondich spoke quietly to him saying, "These are upstanding people and you are embarrassing all of us." The situation was tense because if Vasyl Mondich upset him, then as Inspector of Customs, he could stop all help coming to the Church. As it is, he pilfers what he wants. There is no purpose complaining to his chief because he certainly has a part of the pilfering.

Nelya's father brought his daughter to me because she had been told she had a large thyroid and everyone is very touchy about thyroid problems, quite naturally. She had a physiological enlargement consistent with her age and I could reassure her that all was well.

A Khust soldier in the Russian army was killed by the Chechnians who surrounded and massacred an entire regiment three days ago. He left a wife and two children who live in Khust.

We left for dinner to arrive at 7:00 PM at the home of the Rokosova minister Vasyl Roman and his wife Anna. We arrived one hour earlier than planned because we calculated by Khust time which is Kiev time which is one hour ahead of Rokosova time, or Hungarian time, although it's only in the next village. There used to be a third time - Moscow time- it is all very confusing. We had a marvellous dinner accompanied by his four daughters Yuta 3 ½, Volika 6, Tanya 12, and Lydia 13 and singing "How Happy I Am In Jesus"; and "In Beautiful Ukraine, the Flowers are Blooming". It beat a royal command performance.

Nearby there are stone quarries producing road gravel causing severe silicosis among the miners. There are no precautions. The attitude is:

"We need the gravel".

The Rokosova meeting hall was built by the Sabbatarians who designed perfect acoustics into the hall. When I spoke I was unaware there was no public address system. The reason for perfect acoustics lies in the curved ceiling which is 11 inches of reinforced concrete and stone walls lined by the secret marble.

The economics of Ukraine was discussed. On the collapse of the USSR raw materials stopped entering the Ukraine which resulted in the factories closing. Also, Communists have halted production. It is expected that the next leader of Russia will be a Communist. Also, some Ukrainians are lining their own pockets by selling the raw materials elsewhere and stacking the money in Swiss banks. Ukraine, in effect. is being sold. People feel that this has been planned at a high government level deliberately to break their spirit.

The graft of some doctors is too terrible. A 32 year old man was in great pain after a gastrectomy and the surgeon said that for $200 he could perform another operation to relive the pain. The patient had never ever seen $200 in his whole life. A mother went to a doctor who prescribed drugs which would cost half her year's pension. There is anger toward doctors who have the attitude, "no money, no operation."; They emphasized that this is not all their doctors. The pastor said that there are many heart attacks among men now due to the pressures for survival.

To our delight in walked in Anna Palchey of Rokosova, sister of the founder of the Carpathian Sabbatarians, Michael Palchey. She was a small whizzened old lady dressed in traditional black clothes and head scarf with the gentleness of a dove. This may be the problem with all Carpathians, even Ukrainians, they are so gentle that they can be manipulated, exploited and violated. After an exchange of gifts, we bode farewell. How am I going to get my three foot high Carpathian basket on the plane. I do now know, but it would offend not to accept it. We travelled by car which had square wheels, down the Tissa Valley to Khust as the sun set behind the mountains, we saw many families planting potatoes in their of earth-not to plant is not to survive.

Back in the Church hall there were about 30 young people and a few adults conducting a sing a long, poetry reading, recitations, short sermonettes, and having a general chatter. They are very close-knit, many, of course, being related. The singing is stunning, the harmony perfect, the rhythm the greatest, but they are too modest to find themselves the top of the pops. Victor and I were unexpectedly asked to speak. (thanks for spokesman's Club training.) A Sabbatarian woman doctor, Dr. Vera Vasilovna Andrashko consulted me on the advances of muscular dystrophy as a patient of hers was a father with MD and his son was backward, neither could look after the other. She gave me a jar of marinated white mushrooms. And so to bed by midnight, full of thoughts,.

Tuesday 23rd April, 1996 - Khust, Transcarpathia. Last Day.

Victor and I now wake up exhausted as we think of the day ahead packed with activities. We bumped our way by car to Lenin Square to meet the President of the rayon, Fedir Fedorovitch Turchin and the vice-president Volodimir Pavlovich Kashchuk followed by the press and photographs. Is this getting out of control or are we in a Hollywood film? We walked up the steps of the huge grey square concrete government building up several flights of marble stairs through several ante-rooms getting grander and the staff more reverential as we approached the Presidential office. We were ushered in with hushed tones. Behind a plain desk in a large plain room sat a serious looking heavily built man with a black moustache, the pale blue and yellow Ukrainian flag behind him. He rose slowly and beckoned us to sit around plain table, himself at the head, with Victor Kubik, Victor Pavliy and myself with a press man seated away against the wall. Victor explained the double purpose of our visit as the President likes to know what's going on. He seemed to approve as I saw the edge of a gold tooth. It is evident that as President he has many problems, but again he was gentle and asked about the problems in England; Ukraine is not alone when it comes to great problems. Ukraine survives because of its strong family bonding, but its social structure is not non-existent. The reverse is true for England. It is always 'England' when one is abroad, but this was not the time to argue a fine point. Slowly the interview closed. The President signed a book on the history of Khust for each one. Group photographs were taken, hands shaken and appreciation expressed all around. We had been approved and our work could continue.

It is the same story everywhere. No one will risk investment in Ukraine for fear of revolution, yet after five months of no pay the people are calm. It appears the most unrevolutionary society ever because it is family-based and not socially-based and it is the large interlocking families that make it strong and stable, even though everything is falling to pieces. Discovering Ukraine is like discovering a huge untapped oil field which no one will drill or a gold field where no one will pick up the nuggets. Where in the world are all the entrepreneurs?

Back to the Church hall where Victor was approached by a car salesman who was seeking international support, then a smartly dressed young man who operated a bank's computer. The church's computer had been left fully-operational two years ago but was not functioning now. After much discussion, he said he would fix it. So much time is wasted in just waiting as men walk in and out of rooms, make telephone calls or exchange views. It is very tiring not coming to conclusive decisions. Victor said he was already worn out and it was not even noon yet. We are not here to reconstruct Ukraine's business economy and we resolved to stick to our original objectives although it is the economy which is the root cause of Ukraine's predicament but it should be left to appropriate experts.

It is declared we should visit the hospital and we suddenly set off.

Khust Rayon Hospital is adjacent to the ruins of Khust Castle which is set on a high hill. The architecture of the hospital is sombre with square grey buildings. We were ushered in to see the head doctor of the rayon Volydimir Michalovich Roman, a very alert smartly dressed man of about 45 years. First things first. In came the champagne, coffee and lemon slices because it was his birthday. The Odessa champagne was delicious. Then followed a clear and perceptive analysis. The rayon has a population of 130,000. The hospital has 650 beds taking a wide range of patients from obstetric, paediatric to surgical and geriatric problems. There are four village hospitals with up to 90 beds and an ambulatory hospital, that is, the patients are ambulatory and are not admitted overnight. Also, a tuberculosis centre and dental clinic. The nearby Shayan sanatorium takes digestive problems. There are 400 doctors in the rayon with 1,200 nurses and other staff. Due to the complex economic situation they only receive just sufficient drugs and equipment. They are short of dressings and needles. They can save 30% of the cost by quantity buying and careful management. They have used up their stockpile. The hospital is in debt to 74 billion Coupons or $37,000 which is an immense amount for them. Preventative medicine is practised in only two of the 12 rayons of Transcarpathia. Dr. Roman was hopeful that Ukraine would come out of the crisis and said that medical services do receive priority, especially for the children. He has had discussions with the Minister of Health on the budget and they are trying to develop an insurance system. The cause of the present economic difficulties is because the old system of dictatorship has fallen apart and that they now must develop new market relationships. This is a time of transition between old and new and they need time. The West do not invest because they are not confident of Ukrainian stability but they are never going back to Russian domination. We should tell our business people to help in a realistic way with technology but not in such a way that they become a dependent nation. Ukrainians will build their own nation, but they need help. They have received no pay for over three months and this reveals their determined attitude. Doctors live at the same poverty level as the patients.

Dr. Roman then conducted us on a tour of the hospital with the Head Nurse. The wards and corridors had been painted shining white with Hungarian help. We toured the post-natal and paediatric wards and saw three abandoned beautiful babies who were well cared for, then a renal unit with one kidney machine and a simple intensive care unit. Then onto the surgical floor where we were introduced to the Head Surgeon, Vasyl Yurievitch Ladani, a stocky able-looking man full of warmth, courtesy and humour accompanied by a very pleasant traumatology surgeon. Fracture-fixation was seen on several patients and was very impressive, the patients being able to walk at any stage and it was possible to shorten or lengthen the limb as desired. Then we went into the theatre where a surgeon was removing a tibial plate. We were greeted and warmly welcomed at every stage by every one. Whatever was the Cold War all about?

A patient was presented for my examination: Lyena eight years old was not thriving. Was it her thyroid? History and examination revealed infective generalized enlargement of the lymph nodes. She would get better especially with good food. Dr. Ladani agreed and the mother was delighted. The child was so calm and co-operative - again, the Ukrainian trait of gentleness. We took our departure in the usual manner, handshakes, appreciation and photographs. This was the most disciplined hospital we had yet seen, probably the result of the commanding personality of Dr. Roman. One man can change a nation or an institution.

We then jolted our way to the home of Ivan Urishko, printer and businessman and his wife Nina. We disappointed our hostess by not being able to eat vast quantities. As Victor says, eat small, run fast.

After the meal I continued my collection of economic viewpoints. Unemployment in the rayon is 70%. Many travel to seasonal jobs outside the country. Unemployment money is sufficient for only two to three days of the month. Many unemployed stay at home and work in the garden or buy a calf. Sickness benefit is minimal. Even when employed there is no work to do as there are no raw materials. Also, there is no fuel and no seed. The economic position is so complex that people cannot work the land when it is offered. Apples rot at canning plants because there are no jars or cans. Produce rots in the fields. The USA takes Mexico's crops but Europe does not take Ukraine's crops. Any trucks on Ukrainian roads are in transit to Moscow. Also, business laws do not encourage business. The teachers were going on strike to fight for their wages, so the government decided to get rid of half of the teachers who then become frightened to go on strike. They prefer to even keep unpaid jobs. They are trapped and are losing the will to fight. They just want to survive.

The land is rich, but the crops rot for want of processing. Italians take the mushrooms. There are great opportunities to export walnuts, plums and cherries, especially as jams and conserves if investment came. There are a wide range of cereals, grapes, wines and acacia honey. Ketchups and sausages could be made. A trade mission should investigate the many opportunities in Ukraine. It should insist that corruption should be rooted out. Ivan said we need a new generation like the Exodus in the wilderness entering the Promised Land. We have everything, yet we have nothing.

Wednesday 24th April, 1996 - Ibis Aero Hotel, Budapest. On our way...

Once Victor and I had packed we wanted to get going and on our way but the farewell rituals had to be held. Added to our overflowing suitcases was added their overflowing generosity. Large traditional personalized plates, huge maps of Ukraine and bulky Carpathian baskets which challenged us with their survival. Ivan Pavliy insisted we visit him and his family for 40 minutes at his home in the next village of Rokosova. There was coffee and cakes while we chatted and laughed and then horror upon horror we were each very lovingly presented with a tea service in large well tied-up boxes and other gifts. This was a carrying crisis. We consolidated our friendships, the farewell ceremony eventually ended and loaded like two Marco Polo donkeys, we were on our way.

The car drive to the border was spectacular as the cherry trees were in full bloom. The border crossing consists of a narrow bridge of one lane traffic each way - the lorries stretched for miles and they wait for up to three days to filter over. Cars wait all day and longer. But Ivan Urishko had a special pass and we went past everyone at speed, showed our passport and through. I felt like the President of the U.S. of A. We drove to Nyiregyhaza, 47 miles into Hungary. The train was leaving in two minutes - we all grabbed an object and ran over the railway lines and missed it. The basket disintegrated. Two hours later at 3:25 we boarded a super intercity train - clean, comfortable and smooth. We arrived at Budapest at 6:20 pm. Two weeks earlier this had been a dreary place for me, but now it was the pinnacle of civilization with clean windows, lavatories and plumbing that worked. The British Airways plane takes off at 2:30 pm and arrives at Heathrow at 4:00 pm.

Victor and I have been to hell and back, but we also found heaven. We found that the human spirit can survive in the most evil of environments. When we argue among ourselves and grumble among our comforts, we should say the names of the radiated children: Olga, Vitaly, Lena and Yuri and tens of thousands more.

The Chernobyl reconnaissance is over. Our findings are true. Thank you for reading this report. Over and out. Over to you.

Maurice and Victor

History of the Carpathian Sabbatarians

The following history was obtained from Ivan Pavliy of Rokosova during April 1996, with Victor Kubik translating.

There are strong similarities to what we had been taught by Mr. Armstrong regarding the biblical Sabbath and what Michael Palchey came to understand.

In 1948 a man called Philip who lived 35 km from Rokosova walked in his willow shoes to Michael Palchey's home. He told him that it had been prophesied that the Sabbath and Levitical food laws should be kept. Michael Palchey told him that if Phillip walked 100 times to him he would not keep the Sabbath. Michael Palchey attended a Baptist church and the church fasted on the day of Pentecost in 1949 so that they should receive the Holy Spirit. While speaking in tongues they were told to keep the Sabbath and Levitical food laws. Michael Palchey was converted to Sabbath keeping. Ivan Pavliy's father gave his four pigs away and 32 churches in this oblast (county) began to keep the Sabbath. Soon non-Baptist church villagers became Sabbath-keepers.

At present Rokosova has 150 Sabbatarians, or 200 if the children are included. There are 3,000 Sabbatarians in Transcarpathia and they are largely united in doctrine. In 1949 the Sabbatarians met secretly in their homes. They would be raided during services by the KGB and they would all pile out through the back window of Michael Palchey's house. Once a man was stuck in the window and could not escape. A Sabbatarian could be sentenced to prison in Siberia for 5 to 25 years. One man sentenced to 25 years, refused to work in prison on the Sabbath so he was given no food or water for 3 days every week. He became very weak but he restored his strength when an angel came and gave him food on a plate. The man was released after 6 years in 1957 following the amnesty after Stalin's death in 1956. One said, "We were not afraid of the KGB then, and we are not afraid of them now."; In 1978 they started meeting in a hall and they accepted the teaching of Michael Palchey.

The present hall, built by the Sabbatarians was opened in 1992. They are registered as Christians of the Sabbath Day and emphasise that they are Christians, not just (Sabbatarian) Carpathians. There are over 10,000 Christians of the Sabbath Day just in Transcarpathia, Rumania and Moldava.

There are thousands more in 14 regions around the world. The term Carpathian Sabbatarians refers only to those in Transcarpathia.