“Killing in the name of God is blasphemy”: Ukrainian translation of the Document on Human Fraternity Presented in Kyiv
On January 29, the Patriarchal Center of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Kyiv hosted the presentation of the first Ukrainian translation of the joint “Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together”, which was signed on February 4, 2019, in Abu Dhabi by Pope Francis and Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmad el-Tayeb.
The trilingual edition (in Ukrainian, English, and Arabic) makes the text available to Ukrainian readers for the first time. The presentation was prepared by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Commission for Interfaith and Interreligious Relations.
Pope Francis and Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmad el-Tayeb sign the Document on Human Fraternity, Abu Dhabi, February 4, 2019, photo: Vatican Media
During the event, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Father and Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, elaborated on the significance of the document for the modern world and especially for Ukraine, which is currently enduring war.
“This document is a manifestation of the mutual will of the Catholic Church and the Muslim world, which aims to show us an example of brotherhood,” emphasized His Beatitude Sviatoslav. He highlighted the fundamental idea: “There is humanity outside my Church or my religious organization… A person is the pinnacle of the Creator’s wisdom. And respect for that person, regardless of which church they attend or which religious organization they belong to, is something that the Creator’s wisdom urges us to do today.”
The Head of the UGCC particularly emphasized the principle of brotherhood: “Those who are not Christians are also my brothers. Those who are not Muslims are also my brothers.” The Patriarch described this as an important challenge to philosophical trends that dehumanize people or divide them into categories based on their dignity.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav devoted considerable attention to religious freedom: “I am obliged to respect my brother’s freedom. Only then can we speak of brotherhood.” Recollecting Patriarch Lubomyr’s words that “dictators fear hungry riots less than free people,” he attributed this to totalitarian practices of restricting freedom of religion.
The document’s call to stop using God’s name to justify violence was particularly poignant: “We ask that you stop using God’s name to justify murder, expulsion, terrorism, and oppression… Omnipotent God does not need any protection nor does He want His name to be used to intimidate people.”
Against the backdrop of Russian aggression against Ukraine, His Beatitude Sviatoslav stated: “This ideology, which is currently waging war against Ukraine, known as the ‘Russian world’ ideology, justifies murder in the name of God and calls the war against Ukraine sacred.”
The Head of the UGCC expressed hope that the Christian world will develop immunity against this ideology: “The Islamic world had immunity — antibodies — to reject the use of religion for political purposes… I hope that Christians will also gain such immunity in order to resist the ideology of the ‘Russian world’… And together we will declare that killing in the name of God is blasphemy, it is contempt for God, whom we call the Creator and Savior.”
At the end of his speech, His Beatitude Sviatoslav thanked the UGCC Commission on Interfaith and Interreligious Relations for preparing the translation and expressed his hope that the document would become a tool for a deeper understanding of the themes of brotherhood, peace, and the responsibility of religious leaders in countering the abuse of religion.
