The priests had been arrested on Nov. 16, 2022, in Berdyansk, a city on the north shore of the Sea of Azov, an area occupied by the Russians. Despite the danger, both had decided to stay to serve the “communities of Roman Catholics and Greek Catholics, to give them hope in the face of the occupation.”
The ACN news brief also noted that Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic major archbishop of Kyiv-Halyč, expressed his “deep gratitude to the Holy See,” in particular to Pope Francis, to Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin; to the Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who has carried out various peace missions to try to end the conflict; and to Archbishop Visvaldas Kulbokas, apostolic nuncio to Ukraine, for his efforts to obtain the release of the two priests.
“Despite the joy of this news, ACN recalls that many innocent civilians remain in custody and invites its friends and benefactors to continue to pray for their release, and for peace in Ukraine,” the news brief concludes.
On multiple occasions, Pope Francis has encouraged prayer for “martyred” Ukraine and has urged dialogue to end the conflict.
On June 23, in his last public intervention on the matter, he asked the Holy Spirit to “enlighten the minds of the rulers,” stressing that “negotiation is needed” to end not only the war in Ukraine and the Holy Land but also in other places in the world.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
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