Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in the 186th Week of the War: The Ukrainian Military Are True Peacemakers
While some seek the path to peace, others demonstrate their readiness for renewed aggression. Even amid negotiations, Russia continues to kill—bombing our cities and villages night after night. These were the words of His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Father and Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, in his traditional military address marking the 186th week of this horrific war—a crime against both God and humanity.
This week, the Primate noted, we witnessed European leaders gathering in Paris alongside representatives of the international community to form a “coalition of the willing”—those determined to stop the aggressor’s deadly hand and ensure Ukraine’s security.
The Head of the Church expressed heartfelt gratitude to all who are committed to ending the war, striving to halt the aggressor, and providing Ukrainians the opportunity to live peacefully and freely in their own homeland.
“Ukraine prays for the success of these efforts,” he said. “I remember how, at a prayer breakfast, General Kellogg—President Trump’s special envoy and a devoted Catholic—turned to me and said: ‘Pray for us.’ That same request comes from our defenders on the front lines. Today, the Ukrainian army are true peacemakers. They defend our land, paying for it with their own blood.”
His Beatitude also highlighted a significant event: the gathering of the faithful at St. Barbara’s Church in Vienna to inaugurate the Congress of Eastern Catholic Bishops of Europe with a prayer offered by the Ukrainian community. This pilgrimage coincided with a blessed anniversary—the 250th year of the Barbareum. Founded at this parish, the Collegium took its name from it and became a gateway to European culture and civilization for the Greek Catholics of the Austrian Empire.
“Today we give thanks to God for the gift of education and formation within our Church,” he said. “We again emphasize that it was our Church that carried the torch of education—education that later laid the groundwork for the creation of modern Ukraine. We are grateful to all who contributed to the founding of the Barbareum, and we honor its alumni—metropolitans, bishops, intellectuals, and leaders of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church—whose role in nation-building was passed down through generations and culminated in an independent Ukraine.”
Read also:
Video Message of the Head of the UGCC on the 186th Week of the Full-Scale War, September 7, 2025
His Beatitude Sviatoslav stressed that, through this pilgrimage, the Church is once again creating space for the unity of Ukrainians—those living in Europe and those in Ukraine. The Church acts as a network, bringing together strength and solidarity to help the Ukrainian people and state endure in these unprecedented times.
The UGCC Department for Information
