At a Sept. 21 ecumenical prayer service to remember those who have been killed in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Washington Cardinal Wilton Gregory joined Archbishop Borys Gudziak, metropolitan archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, to pray for the dead and renew calls for peace for that war-ravaged nation.
Archbishop Gudziak prayed that God would “in blessed repose grant (the victims of the war) eternal rest” and “render their memory eternal.” He also prayed God would “place the souls of His servants, the victims of the war in Ukraine, which have departed from us, in the abode of the just, and give them rest in the bosom of Abraham, and number them among the just.”
The prayers were offered during the Panakhyda, a Byzantine Rite Service for the Deceased that was held in the Crypt Church at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. The service also marked 200 days since the start of renewed hostilities by Russia against Ukraine.
“We join in this evening according to the prayer of the Byzantine Ukrainian tradition to show our solidarity in the one Body of Christ,” Cardinal Gregory said. “We pray for those defending their homeland so that they may be strengthened to live in the fullness of God’s love.”
Cardinal Gregory and Archbishop Gudziak were joined by Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA; representatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the Melkite Greek Catholic Church and others including Washington Auxiliary Bishop Mario Dorsonville, the chairman of the Committee on Migration of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Slightly more than 100 people – some in traditional Ukrainian dress – attended the mostly sung prayer service.
“Tonight, as we gather to remember the senseless suffering of the Ukrainian people, we turn to our God, our only help,” Cardinal Gregory said. “Tonight, we pray in solidarity with the people of Ukraine. Tonight, we remember our freedom, we remember the love of Jesus Christ for the entire world as we gather before the cross. The cross of Our Lord represents the greatest manifestation of love.”
On Feb. 24, Russia invaded Ukraine, and Sept. 12 was the 200th day of the war, but many consider the invasion an escalation of a war that began in 2014 when Russia invaded and later annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.
The United Nations has reported that between the renewed start of hostilities in February and this week, more than 5,900 Ukrainian civilians have been killed and an additional 8,700 civilians have been injured. The U.N. reported that at least 972 Ukrainian children have been killed or injured.
“These staggering statistics tell the tale of a horrible tragedy,” Cardinal Gregory said at the prayer service. “Yet amid this dreadful tragedy, we have seen some of the most charitable acts. It brought out the best in so many people throughout the world as they opened their home and hearts to refugees.”
Both Cardinal Gregory and Archbishop Gudziak lamented reports of war crimes and other atrocities being committed against the people of Ukraine by Russian soldiers.
Recently a mass grave in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Izyum was discovered and believed to contain the remains of about 500 people. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a video message, said investigators saw evidence that some of the victims had been tortured.
Similar mass grave sites were found earlier this year in other areas formerly occupied by Russian forces.
In addition, in areas recaptured by Ukrainian forces, the U.N.’s human rights monitors have found evidence of torture, mutilation, rape, looting and the deliberate killings of civilians by Russian troops as well as targeting civilian buildings such as churches, houses, hospitals, schools and other buildings.
“Today our Ukrainian sisters and brothers face unspeakable tragedies,” Cardinal Gregory said. “These war crimes call out to God as countless people mourn their dead. We must remember these people. We remember and name these atrocities to remember what is not authentically human, to remember these sufferings are not from God.”
Archbishop Gudziak asked for prayers for “those who were tortured and executed and there were not prayers said for them.” He also reminded the faithful to “pray for those who are in constant pain … pray for all those killed and for their eternal repose.”
The current hostilities have caused Europe’s largest refugee crisis since World War II, as approximately 7.3 million Ukrainians have fled the country and another third of the population is displaced from their homes. The war has also been blamed for a worsening global food insecurity crisis.
On Sunday, Sept. 25, the Catholic Church marks the World Day of Migrants and Refugees. “Many nations of the world have opened their countries and their homes (to Ukrainian refugees),” Cardinal Gregory said. “This is a wonderful example of humanity, but we cannot say we are doing enough until there is peace in Ukraine”
The evening prayer service was held on a day when war rhetoric dominated the news.
On the morning of Sept. 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a televised address to his nation, threatened to use “all means necessary” – seemingly referring to deploying nuclear weapons – to assure a Russian victory in Ukraine, and he also announced a partial mobilization of 300,000 reservists to join the military action.
Also on Sept. 21, President Joe Biden addressed the United Nations General Assembly, criticizing Russia for shunning its nuclear non-proliferation agreements; “shamelessly violating the core tenets of the United Nations charter,” and for “extinguishing Ukraine’s right to exist as a state.”
Speaking Sept. 21 to those gathered for his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis lamented the “pain, the savagery, the monstrosities” suffered by the people of Ukraine and asked the faithful to pray for “these people who are so noble and martyred.”
Recalling the day’s events, Archbishop Gudziak conceded there is a lot to worry about, but he added that “fear is something the devil wants to instill. We have to trust we are in the hands of the Lord. If we pray, if we trust in the Lord, if we look at the example of the martyrs, then we will find what we are looking for.”
At the end of the Byzantine liturgy, Archbishop Gudziak noted that he has been to Ukraine four times in the past four months “and I have seen the people of Ukraine are standing up for justice (and) risking their lives.”
“Everyone I have met (in Ukraine) – they thank you for your support. They thank you for you being informed and standing up for the truth,” he said. “They thank people of goodwill for their humanitarian aid. Everywhere I went, Ukrainians were thanking Americans and American Catholics.”
The archbishop added that by his own estimate, American Catholics have contributed about $100 million in humanitarian aid to the suffering people of Ukraine. Cardinal Gregory remarked on that and said “the generosity of Catholic people in the United States should not be underestimated. The people of Ukraine need all the help we can provide them, and we must insist peace return to people from whom peace was taken.”
Archbishop Gudziak said that while he was heartened by that fact that “there has been a thundering chorus of support from the United Nations” and that the Church “has participated in the efforts of freedom and liberation,” he has also been saddened by “the daily stream of funerals to the cemeteries.”
“Seeing so many funerals and so many grieving families is so painful,” Archbishop Gudziak said. “However, I have not heard one Ukrainian say, ‘We have to give up.’”
Archbishop Gudziak said that those who wish to help should send donations to Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities, the Knights of Columbus and the many other Catholic agencies that are collecting money. He noted that donating money is the best way to help the people of Ukraine because not only does it avoid shipping hassles, many of the needed items can be purchased in Ukraine, and thus supports the local economy.
“Please continue to pray,” he said. “There is nothing more powerful.”
