The church in the village of Novoekonomichne in the Donetsk region was destroyed. July 2024.
Photo: Serhii Korovainyi Image with permission of of the official Website of Ukraine
The New York Times reports:
Ukraine is sending its largest-ever delegation to a gathering of politically influential Christian leaders in Washington this week, seeking to lay out an argument that protecting religious freedom is a strong reason for continuing U.S. aid to resist Russian aggression.
…
“Russia doesn’t just kill people, doesn’t just destroy our cities — Russia also destroys and bans religious communities” in areas under its control, said Roman Lozynskyi, a member of Parliament with the opposition Holos Party.
…
More than 100 Ukrainian pastors, politicians, military chaplains and priests, including the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Epiphanius I, are in Washington for the prayer breakfast on Thursday and related events through the week, said Pavlo Unguryan, a former Parliament member organizing the Ukrainian effort.
…
The Ukrainians also intend to highlight the plight of evangelicals, said Mr. Unguryan, who is Baptist. Within its borders, Russia has targeted evangelical Christians with investigations and has arrested Jehovah’s Witnesses. The repression extends to occupied Ukraine.
“Ukraine is the center of the Bible Belt of Europe,” said Mr. Unguryan, and expressions of evangelical faith there are now under threat. About one million Ukrainians attend evangelical services weekly, he said.
…
“A part of this war is spiritual,” Mr. Unguryan said. “It is important for America to know about this.”
The Ukrainians attending the prayer breakfast want to showcase the vitality of Christian churches in the country, where about 70 percent of the population say in surveys they are religious.
…
The effort is aimed at swaying supporters of Mr. Trump, who has voiced skepticism about the Biden administration’s heavy military and financial aid to Ukraine. This week Mr. Trump said continued aid could be exchanged for U.S. access to Ukrainian minerals.
Previous religious outreaches in the United States have already yielded results for Ukraine.
Glory to Ukraine!
0 Comments