Choose life! -- The Head of the UGCC urged all people of good will to stand with Ukraine on Day 93 of the war

“Over the last day and during the night, the entire eastern and southern regions of Ukraine were on fire again. The enemy is forcefully attacking the Luhansk region,” declared the Head of the Church, adding: “Today our prayers are especially going out to Severodonetsk, to our soldiers who are courageously defending the Motherland in the Kharkiv region, to our troops who are defending the south of Ukraine in Kherson and Zaporizhia regions.”

“The enemy is shelling peaceful towns and villages in Ukraine, wiping them off the face of the earth. Once again, many more people in Ukraine have died in the last 24 hours. Particularly insolent was the shelling of peaceful Kharkiv, which killed at least eight people and wounded many. We Christians, and all people of good will, embrace those who suffer from this terrible war, with our love, respect, prayer, work, and help,” the Primate stated.

His Beatitude Sviatoslav continued his reflections on “other people's” sins, by commenting on the next category – defending sin.

He noted that Christians believe in God the Savior, who is the source of life, who cares for people and called himself the Good Shepherd. It is the moral duty of every Christian, the Head of the UGCC emphasized, to protect human life from conception to natural death.

“When someone defends something that kills, destroys, or devastates human life, he becomes an accomplice to the crime, to murder or destruction, that is, to sin, the seed of death,” the Primate pointed out.

“We in Ukraine are going through really cataclysmic times now - we are defending life,” stated the Head of the UGCC, and added: “The Ukrainian army is protecting the life and peace of ordinary people, civilians. Therefore, the behavior of those who defend and justify the actions of carriers of death, of those who bless the war, -- specifically the war in Ukraine, -- who encourage and promote it – that stance is absolutely unacceptable.

According to him, today the conscience of every honest person is on the side of the suffering people of Ukraine. God blesses only those endeavors that protect a person. That is why today any political stance, be it ecclesiastical or international, which protects and supports the interests of the aggressor – is very offensive to us.   

“God bless Ukraine! O God, bless our Ukrainian army! O God, wipe away the tears of children, mothers, widows, orphans, and all those who today are forced to flee their home and country.  O God, bring the children of Ukraine back to their Ukrainian land, given and blessed by You. O God, bless our long-suffering people!” pleaded the Ukrainian spiritual leader.

The UGCC Department of Information