Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church to Ukrainian Families: Do not be Afraid to Give Birth and Raise Children During Wartime
The Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which took place in Rome within the framework of the Jubilee Year of Hope, devoted special attention to the theme “Pastoral Care for Families in Wartime.” After the Synod, the bishops addressed the clergy, monastics, laity, and all families both in Ukraine and in diaspora with a post-synodal message entitled “Persevering in Hope, Strong in Love (cf. Rom 12:12): The Ukrainian Family in Wartime.” It called on Ukrainian families to keep hope alive and continue to build “domestic churches,” and not to be afraid to have and raise children during the war.
In their message, the bishops of the UGCC acknowledge the serious challenges facing Ukrainian families due to Russia’s full-scale aggression. “The missiles of the insidious enemy are deliberately aimed at Ukrainian families—attacking cities and villages, destroying civilian infrastructure, hospitals, schools, daycare centers, and residential buildings,” the document says.
Among the major challenges, the hierarchs cite separation, alienation, loss of loved ones, financial instability, a constant sense of danger, health problems, and psychological trauma caused by the war.
Despite all the difficulties, the Synod addresses parents with special words of comfort: “Do not be afraid to give birth to and raise God’s children, who are a living testimony of the hope you place in the Lord of heaven and earth, and the seed for the growth and constant renewal of His Church and our people.”
The bishops express their gratitude to parents for their love for their children, sleepless nights, sacrifice, patience, living witness of faith and hope, family prayer, and participation in the life of the Church together with their children.
Over more than three years of full-scale war, the UGCC has accumulated significant pastoral experience in serving families. The Church actively cooperates with experts in mental health, and monasteries have become “oases of spiritual healing, support, and strengthening of family and interpersonal relationships.”
Special recognition was given to the ministry of priests who, often experiencing their own traumas and family difficulties, continue to support their flock as “wounded healers.”
The Synod calls on every parish to become a place of healing and spiritual support for families through participation in communal prayer and the sacraments, as well as through the creation of mutual aid groups. Considerable attention is devoted to helping those who have lost loved ones. “May the parishes in which you serve be a true family home, a community of communities, a place where every family finds support,” the bishops appeal to priests.
The message separately emphasizes the importance of spending time together as a family. “Among the most precious gifts that the Lord has given us is time, an inexhaustible resource,” the hierarchs remind us, calling on us to use this gift to communicate with God and with one another.
Of particular concern is the need to care for the elderly and people with special needs, especially the wounded, the suffering, and those traumatized by war.
In their message, the bishops mention the words of Saint Patriarch Josyf from his “Testament”: “The Christian family is the foundation of a healthy society, people, and nation. It is the guarantee of their growth and strength!”
They also quote the teachings of the righteous Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, who emphasized that the Christian understanding of the family is a science “on which the future of all humanity depends and on which it rests.”
The message concludes with the assurance: “Your Church is always with you!”
The UGCC Department for Information
