UGCC Head on the 154th Week of War: Russia Dehumanizes POWs and Denies Them the Right to Pray
This was stated by the Father and Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, in a traditional video address on the 154th week of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
The Primate stated that the events unfolding on the front line are horrifying. Russia is determined to achieve their political aims by military means at any cost, are sacrificing thousands of their soldiers daily. It is a carnage.
“However, we were most appalled last week,” said the Head of the Church, “by the footage of the brutal execution of six of our prisoners of war and the fact that the Russian who executed them wore a sticker with an icon of the unmade Savior on his chest. It is a truly ghastly scene… Christian conscience cannot tolerate this.”
“A sacrilegious war cannot be justified. Defenseless victims must not be slaughtered in the name of God. Pope Francis has unequivocally defined the current situation. This is no longer a war, as it does not respect military customs and rules and international humanitarian law—it is thuggery,” His Beatitude Sviatoslav emphasized.
The Head of the UGCC also noted that our cities and villages were being shelled by the enemy nightly this week.
“Despite the brutal realities that we cannot reconcile or get used to, we want the world to hear the voice of our people once again: Ukraine stands! Ukraine fights! Ukraine prays!” he emphasized.
According to him, last week became a special time of listening to our women, mothers who are relatives and friends of those who went missing or were taken captive by Russia from our territorial self-defense units.
“In this conversation with women,” said the spiritual leader, “I was most struck by the story that our captives, imprisoned hostages, are not even allowed to pray. Russia treats them like animals, saying that animals do not pray. Prisoners of war are denied all religious attributes, including a cross and the Holy Scriptures.”
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Video-message of the Head of the UGCC on the 154th Week of Full-Scale War, January 26, 2025
At the request of the women, the Head of the Church appeals to international institutions, the Red Cross, and everyone who can help to intervene and ensure that prisoners of war illegally held by the Russian Federation can fulfill their religious needs, in particular, pray.
The UGCC Department for Information