Train with the Peace Light of Bethlehem arrives in Odesa

The train with the Peace Light of Bethlehem, which was supposed to arrive in Odesa from Kyiv and was delayed for four hours, has reached the Odesa railway station.

This was reported by an Intent correspondent.

Ukrzaliznytsia did not name the reason for the delay, but it was most likely caused by damage caused by recent shelling by Russia.

Marusya, a Plast sister in Odesa, told Intent that this is the fourth year in a row that the tradition has been maintained.

"This tradition originated 40 years ago. It was started by an Austrian TV channel that decided to give a symbol of Christmas to those who cannot celebrate this holiday at home. A year later, this tradition was picked up by scouts, and a year later it went beyond Austria," she said.

In the future, the Plast members will hand over the Peace Light of Bethlehem to local councils and charitable organizations that want to support this tradition.

The Fire from Bethlehem arrived in Kyiv on the evening of December 7. This year, for the fifth time, it will be delivered to different parts of the country by Ukrzaliznytsia trains. It was delivered by Austrian scouts and handed over to Ukrainian Plast members on Mykhailivska Square in Kyiv.

For the past almost 40 years, Ukraine has been participating in the international scouting event, the Peace Light of Bethlehem. This tradition began in 1984: scouts in the Palestinian city of Bethlehem light a fire and transfer it to other countries to celebrate Christmas. The fire symbolizes peace, love and kindness.

The Fire from Bethlehem is brought to Europe in late November by Austrian scouts in a special container, and from Vienna it travels from hand to hand, in the so-called scout relay from Austria, through Slovakia and Poland, and in mid-December, the Fire arrives in Ukraine, where it is cared for by the largest scouting organization in Ukraine, Plast.

Кирило Бойко