Two Ukrainian Christians, separated in age by a half-century, experienced the love of Jesus and the horrors of war. Artem Vinogradar, 22, died in mid-August while fighting against invading Russian forces. Two weeks later, longtime church leader and theologian Igor Kozlovsky, who spent nearly two years as the prisoner of pro-Russian separatists, died of a heart attack. He was 70.
Read MoreRussia’s National Guard seized two priests in Russian-occupied Berdyansk on Nov. 16. The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Donetsk Exarchate denies Russian claims that Father Ivan Levytsky and Father Bohdan Heleta stored explosives in the church and had “extremist” literature.
Read MoreYes, God loves Russians, Sorina Vintila told Zahar, a five-year-old Ukrainian refugee and his classmates. But “God doesn’t like when we are doing bad things. It makes him sad. God wants us to listen and obey him, just as Samuel did.”
Read MoreUkrainian refugees have revitalized a Warsaw, Poland, congregation, which had dwindled to a handful of worshippers in recent years. Mission efforts here have struggled, and supporting churches have pulled out. But in recent weeks, church attendance has topped 60.
Read MoreHuddled in a hallway as bombs reduced their Ukrainian city to rubble, members of the Mariupol Church of Christ urged Alexander Chekalenko to call on the Lord for protection. When he stopped, they could hear the gunfire, the explosions. For 51 days, the church members lived in the darkest of valleys — Mariupol, the Ukrainian port city obliterated by the forces of Russia and the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic.
Read MoreThis week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights the religion angles key to understanding the Russia-Ukraine war. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
Read MoreAs an American missionary and Ukrainian Christians say tearful goodbyes and cross borders, some stay behind and appeal to Russian troops, ‘Lay down your weapons, stop shooting.’
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