We, the bishops of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church from Ukraine and from countries of Ukrainian settlements in North and South America, Australia, and Europe, gathered at the annual Holy Synod in Lviv, conscious of the responsibility entrusted to us for our flock, raise our voice on behalf of the people of Ukraine and call out to the people of the world: “Ukraine is flowing with blood!” This peaceful sovereign nation has been subjected to a direct military intervention by a northern neighbor. Hundreds of units of heavy weaponry and technology, thousands of armed mercenaries and soldiers of Russia’s standing army are crossing the borders of Ukraine, sowing death and destruction, in disregard for the terms of the ceasefire and recent diplomatic efforts. At the same time, propaganda continues at an unprecedented level of hatred and distortion of the real state of affairs, which is no less damaging than weapons of mass destruction.
The entire world has been able to witness how, over the last months, the aggressor commits crimes against humanity on the territory of Ukraine. The whole world was shocked with the criminal act of the downing of the Malaysian plane, in which 298 people from 10 different countries died. Thousands of people, especially women and children, have been recklessly killed; and it has not been possible to even bury them with dignity. Many of the wounded are forced to simply wait for death due to the inaccessibility of medical assistance. Thousands of people are being kidnapped and subjected to torture and public humiliation against their human dignity.. Hundreds of thousands of refugees are being forced to flee their homes due to threats against their lives and the danger of death. If these crimes are not stopped immediately, with the onset of the winter cold, the death toll will increase tenfold. Those, who kill people in Ukraine today, will not hesitate tomorrow to turn their weaponry against anyone, in their own country and beyond its borders, or attack any other nation in the world.
In the face of such grave crimes we call out to the consciences of believers of all religions and faiths, we appeal to all people of good will, to heads of state, and members of the international community: “Stop the bloodshed in Ukraine!” Today, silence or inaction, reluctance to recognize the gravity of the situation, which has arisen in our country, can not only turn everyone into a mute or indifferent witness, but also into an accomplice of the sin of murder, which cries to heaven for justice as the Scripture says: “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground” (Genesis 4:10). How can we not recall the words of Saint John Paul II, who in the distant year of 1979, in the vicinity of the former concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau, said: “War is caused not only by those who wage it directly but also by those who do not do everything in their power to avoid it.” We especially call for responsible action from those whom the Lord has given authority, to take the necessary decisions at the political level in order to restore peace and security in Europe. And once again we call all believers and people of good will to urgent prayers for the end of aggression and the restoration of a lasting and comprehensive peace in Ukraine.
Convinced that God is with us in our sufferings and troubles, that He will hear our common pleas and prayers, and with the coordinated efforts of the international community, we will be able to stop the bloodshed, to defend human dignity, and restore life-giving peace.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav (Shevchuk)
Major Archbishop of Kyiv and Halych
His Grace Ihor (Vozniak)
Metropolitan of Lviv
His Grace Volodymyr (Vijtyshyn)
Metropolitan of Ivano-Frankivsk
His Grace Vasyl (Semeniuk)
Metropolitan of Ternopil
His Grace Ivan (Martyniak)
Metropolitan of Przsemysl and Warsaw
His Grace Lawrence (Huculak)
Metropolitan of Winnipeg
His Grace Stephen (Soroka)
Metropolitan of Philadelphia
His Grace Volodemer (Koubetch)
Metropolitan of Curitiba
His Excellency Borys (Gudziak)
Eparch of the Eparchy of St. Volodymyr the Great in Paris for the Ukrainians of the Byzantine rite
His Excellency Bryan (Bayda)
Eparch of Saskatoon
His Excellency Vasyl (Ivasiuk)
Eparch of Kolomyia and Chernivtsi
His Excellency Volodymyr (Juszczak)
Eparch of Wroclaw and Gdansk
His Excellency Hlib (Lonchyna)
Eparch of the Holy Family Eparchy of London
His Excellency David (Motiuk)
Eparch of Edmonton
His Excellency Dmytro (Hryhorak)
Eparch of Buchach
His Excellency Ken (Nowakowski)
Eparch of New Westminster
His Excellency Meron (Mazur)
Eparch of the Immaculate Conception Eparchy in Prudentopolis
His Excellency Mykhail (Koltun)
Eparch of Sokal-Zhovkva
His Excellency Paul (Chomnycky)
Eparch of Stamford
His Excellency Peter (Stasiuk)
Eparch of Melbourne
His Excellency Richard (Seminack)
Eparch of Chicago
His Excellency Stephen (Chmilar)
Eparch of Toronto and Eastern Canada
His Excellency Taras (Senkiv)
Eparch of Stryi
His Excellency Yaroslav (Pryriz)
Eparch of Sambir-Drohobych
His Excellency Bohdan (Dzyurakh)
Bishop of Major Archbishop’s Curia,
Secretary of the UGCC Synod of Bishops
His Excellency Petro (Kryk)
Apostolic Exarch of Germany and Scandinavia
His Excellency Vasyl (Tuchapets)
Exarch of Kharkiv
His Excellency Josaphat (Hovera)
Exarch of Lutsk
His Excellency Mykhail (Bubniy)
Exarch of Odesa, Administrator of Crimean Exarchate
His Excellency Stepan (Menok)
Exarch of Donetsk
His Excellency Daniel (Kozlinski)
Apostolic Administrator of the Protection of the Mother of God Eparchy in Argentina
His Excellency Ivan (Bura)
Apostolic Administrator of Parma Eparchy
His Excellency Dionisio (Lachovicz)
Apostolic Visitator for the Ukrainian Greek Catholic faithful in Italy and Spain
His Excellency Venedykt (Aleksiychuk)
Auxiliary Bishop of Lviv Archeparchy
His Excellency Josyf (Milian)
Auxiliary Bishop of Kyiv Archeparchy
His Excellency Eugeniusz (Popowicz)
Auxiliary Bishop of Przsemysl and Warsaw Archeparchy
His Excellency Bohdan (Manyshyn)
Auxiliary Bishop of Stryi Eparchy
His Excellency Josaphat (Moshchych)
Auxiliary Bishop of Ivano-Frankivsk Archeparchy
His Excellency Hryhoriy (Komar)
Auxiliary Bishop of Sambir and Drohobych Eparchy
His Excellency Basil (Losten)
Bishop-emeritus
His Excellency Irynei (Bilyk)
Bishop-emeritus