The war instigated by President Vladimir Putin of Russia has caused Europe’s largest refugee crisis since World War II, with over 4 million Ukrainians displaced and another 7 million internally displaced in western Ukraine, according to U.N. agencies. Photos and videos from formerly Russian occupied towns like Bucha showing executed and tortured civilians only add to the horror and fervor for the war to end.
Read More(ANALYSIS) A newly released journal issue of “Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe” explores the Russian state’s dependency on a morally compromised Russian Orthodox Church to legitimize its quasi-religious fascism. Meanwhile, pastors in Bucha, Ukraine, where hundreds of civilian bodies were recently found shot to death, reflect on the theology needed to survive so much pain and suffering.
Read More(ANALYSIS) At around the same time a Russian Orthodox anti-war statement was distributed to collect nearly 300 signatures, several of Ukraine’s evangelical theological educators expressed to Russian evangelical leaders deep disappointment over their failure to speak out against Russia’s unprovoked attack. Some Russian evangelicals have issued their own anti-war statements.
Read MorePope Francis offered up a special prayer for Ukraine and Russia in connection with a Marian apparition that’s over 100 years old. The pope called on all bishops, priests and believers to join him in the consecration of Ukraine and Russia, an act triggered by a 1917 apocalyptic vision of Mary to three children in the Portuguese city of Fatima.
Read MoreFolk and rock anthems in response to the Russian invasion have created an air of nationalism and unity among Ukrainians. Besides the explicit protest in their lyrics, they recall other historical periods of conflict in the country.
Read More(OPINION) Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church has defended Russia’s actions and blamed the conflict on the West.
Read MoreOn March 11, President Ilham Aliyev signed further religion law amendments handing responsibility for naming prayer leaders in all mosques from the Caucasian Muslim Board to the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations.
Read MoreLithuania’s Hill of Crosses, where many visitors have left crosses to honor soldiers who died in uprisings against czarist Russia, has become a site to pray for Ukraine. The history of the Hill of Crosses is unclear. Folklore says the first cross was placed on the hill, formerly the home of a wooden castle, to remind others to pray for mercy and health of people. Soon, crosses began appearing to honor soldiers who died fighting against Russia, which disapproved and repeatedly demolished them.
Read MoreAs Russia continues its assault on Ukraine, many American Christians are trying to help in any way they can, whether through prayer, donations or housing refugees. There is a tremendous amount of care and concern for Ukrainians — and a desire to do something.
Read MoreOn March 10, a court fined the Rev. Ioann Burdin of the Moscow Patriarchate's Kostroma Diocese one month's average local wages for online remarks and a Sunday sermon in church condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine and stressing the importance of the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.”
Read MorePope Francis — in a private video call on March 16 with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church — said religious leaders “must not use the language of politics, but the language of Jesus.” Francis’ remarks to Patriarch Kirill, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, were the latest in a series of moves to broker a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.
Read More(OPINION) Orthodox leaders with ties to the European Union and highly European Western Ukraine have issued fierce statements after the Russian invasion. Many Orthodox churches with roots in Russian Orthodoxy have also condemned the invasion of Ukraine and urged a ceasefire.
Read MoreAlabama minister Mark Posey was preaching the gospel in Ukraine when Russia began its latest incursion into the former Soviet nation. “If we wait for ideal circumstances, then we’ll never go anywhere or do anything,” he said in an interview, now back home in North Alabama.
Read MoreFighting has intensified in eastern Ukrainian cities near the separatist-held regions. Meanwhile, Christians take supplies to congregations in these hard-hit cities. They plan to help churches set up bomb shelters and deliver aid. They also plan to bring refugees back with them.
Read MoreIn 1961, seven young couples moved to Vienna, Austria, to set up a printing press that would churn out tiny Bibles as small as a pack of cigarettes — small enough to be snuck through the Iron Curtain. But now that Russia has invaded Ukraine, the mission they founded is working with its longtime partners in the region to deliver emergency aid.
Read MoreOn this International Women's Day, here are five women of faith to remember who were pillars for building their societies: Sojourner Truth, Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, Prathia Laura Ann Hall, Mother Teresa of Calcutta and Zilda Arns.
Read MoreAlong with local nonprofits and private initiatives, the Romanian Orthodox Church is at the front line of the response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis. The church established a base at the Siret border crossing from the first day of the Russian invasion on Feb. 24.
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 More(OPINION) Desta Heliso, an Ethiopian-British lecturer on early African Christianity, used to believe in Western intervention in Africa. Today he does not. Here’s why.
Read MoreOrthodox churches around the world are all preparing for Easter, a celebration of Christ defeating death, by reflecting on Judgment Day. Despite this relative unity in worship, the Orthodox schism between Moscow and Constantinople that broke open in 2019 is cracking further. What is good and what is evil in the war in Ukraine is far from agreed upon.
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