The Catholic bishops of Ukraine and Poland claim that the Russian Federation, in violation of Ukraine’s state sovereignty and territorial integrity, disregards the binding norms of international law and poses a massive threat to the entire European continent.
According to the Credo outlet, this is stated in an appeal signed by the Head of the UGCC, Supreme Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kyiv and Halych, Chairman of the Polish Episcopal Conference, Archbishop Stanislaw Gondetczki, Acting Presidents of the Episcopal Conference of Ukraine, Archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokszycki, Metropolitan of Przemyśl-Warsaw of the Greek Catholic Church in Poland, Archbishop Eugeniusz Popowicz, and Apostolic Administrator of the sede vacante, Mukachevo Greek Catholic Diocese of the Diocese of Sui iuris, Archbishop Nil Luszczak
The hierarchs emphasize that “war is senseless violence, destruction from which there is no gate, which destroys the present and threatens the future of the people.”
“Any military action aimed at destroying entire cities or large areas of the country along with their inhabitants is a crime against God and against humanity that deserves firm and immediate condemnation… the extermination of a people, nation, or ethnic minority must be condemned as a mortal sin,” remind bishops.
They call on the leaders to “immediately abandon ultimatums and use of another country as a bargaining chip.”
The co-authors of the appeal also invite everyone to unite in common prayer.
“God of our fathers, great and merciful! Lord of life and peace, Father of all people. Your will is peace, not suffering. Stop the war and overthrow the pride of the violent. You sent your Son Jesus Christ to preach peace to those near and far, to unite people of all races and generations into one family. Hear out the cries of all your children, the torment of all mankind. Let there be no more war – a bad experience from which there is no return, let there be no more war – the tumultuous struggles and violence. Let the war that threatens Your creation in heaven, on earth, and in the sea cease. With Mary, Jesus’ and our Mother, we beseech You: speak to the hearts of the people responsible for the fate of the nations. Overcome the logic of retribution and revenge and, through the Holy Spirit, give new, generous and noble solutions in dialogue and patient anticipation – more fruitful than a war of violence. Father, fill our time with days of peace. Let there be no more war. Amen,” the text reads.
