Address by the Head of the UGCC for the 236th Week of the Full-Scale War, August 23, 2026
Glory to Jesus Christ!
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ!
This Sunday marks the 236th week of a horrific and violent war that is becoming increasingly likely to be forgotten in today’s world. Ukraine is receiving less and less coverage in the global media, with other topics taking center stage in news outlets, yet people continue to die in Ukraine. The war, which claims the lives of dozens of people every day and night, unfortunately, continues.
This week, on the night of August 20, the enemy launched yet another massive strike on the capital of our homeland—the city of Kyiv. According to the data released, at least 16 people were killed and about 40 were wounded.
It is very important to note here that, with the advancement of modern weaponry, those who kill in Ukraine do so in real time. By deploying drones equipped with modern video cameras, the killers see exactly whom they are killing; therefore, this cannot be described as a mistake, but rather as the deliberate and intentional killing of civilians. Specifically, this attack on Kyiv—which involved dozens of state-of-the-art missiles designed to strike targets on the open sea or in other circumstances—was deliberately directed at residential neighborhoods in Kyiv. In the Solomianskyi district of Kyiv, one such missile struck a nine-story building; children’s hospitals, kindergartens, food warehouses, and even Red Cross warehouses were damaged.
Thus, we are indeed witnessing daily crimes against humanity and violations of international humanitarian law. Therefore, the world has no right to grow accustomed to this and has no right to remain silent about it.
This week, on Friday, August 21, a Day of Mourning was declared in Kyiv.
Our Church is striving to save lives. Every day, the crypts of the Patriarchal Cathedral in Kyiv are turned into bomb shelters where people seek refuge from deadly Russian weapons.
Therefore, we once again thank the Lord God and the Armed Forces of Ukraine for saving our lives, for allowing us to continue praying and working, and for enabling us to serve others amid the inhuman conditions of war.
This week, however, we also have one joyful and heartwarming event to celebrate. One hundred and three Ukrainian defenders were released from Russian captivity. Among them is one servicemember who had been held captive since 2017. After more than nine years of torture, abuse, and imprisonment, he survived and returned to his homeland.
Today, we envelop in our prayers, in particular, the families who are praying for their husbands and children held captive by Russia; the families of those missing in action, who are sincerely praying today for their sons and daughters on the front lines; and the relatives and loved ones of our fallen—both military personnel and civilians.
And today, as Ukraine approaches its Independence Day, the nation is praying, reflecting, and working toward national unity.
This week was marked by a very important event in Ukraine’s civic society. As we approach the 35th anniversary of our country’s independence, a roundtable discussion was held with national unity as its main theme: 35 years of independence, united under a common cause.
Today we see that the very concept of national unity is not merely a set of beautiful wishes for yet another national holiday. National unity is a necessary condition for victory and the preservation of Ukrainian statehood today. Nationwide unity does not mean that everyone must think alike or agree with a particular political party or political course. Not at all. National unity does not relieve us of the duty to oppose evil, to fight corruption and falsehood, and to hold those in power accountable.
Responsibility for society is precisely the core of national unity in wartime. This unity means a common goal that unites Ukrainians today.
We understand today that our internal difficulties cannot overshadow this primary goal. We know that today, the one who seeks to destroy our Ukrainian people and our state is the Russian aggressor. And in the name of victory over evil, in the name of defending our Motherland, we must all unite.
And Christians unite not because someone from outside imposes on us the need to act in unison or in the same way. No. Christians feel a moral, inner imperative of conscience to serve the common good. And this is the core of the unity that Christians in Ukraine are speaking about, thinking about, and praying for today. They pray that old prayer: “In unity lies the strength of the people. God, grant us unity.”
I believe that today, united by our common prayer, our common work, our common service, and our common defense of the Motherland, we are once again declaring to the whole world: Ukraine stands! Ukraine fights! Ukraine prays!
Today, August 23, as Ukraine celebrates National Flag Day, another international spiritual event took place in Kyiv—a Prayer Breakfast attended by church leaders from countries around the world, representing different Churches and denominations. Public figures, world opinion leaders, intellectuals, and human rights defenders came to Kyiv—even amid the dangers and threats that confront us here—to express their solidarity with our people in their struggle.
We would like to thank all those who came to pray together with the Ukrainian people and to pray for the future of Ukraine, which today serves as a beacon of authentic, universal, democratic, and Christian values for the entire world.
Today we are also preparing to celebrate Ukraine’s Independence Day. Tomorrow marks 35 years since our people proclaimed their right to build a free, sovereign, united, and independent state. For us—for us Christians—Independence Day is not merely a political event. It is also a day of prayer and gratitude to God for the gift of freedom and for the gift of being able to be ourselves.
That is why we are celebrating this day in prayer, united within the framework of the Ukrainian Council of Churches. Tomorrow we will stand before the face of God at St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv to thank the Lord God for the gift of this freedom and then to pray in intercession for our homeland and our people. Our prayer will be for peace and for the quickest possible end to this war.
We pray: O God, bless our people and our homeland with Your just, heavenly peace!
The blessing of the Lord be upon you, through His grace and love for mankind, always, now and forever, and for the ages of ages. Amen.
Glory to Jesus Christ!
