“The feeling of the Ukrainian people is one of deep fatigue. People are exhausted because there is no prospect of an end to the conflict,” said His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Major Archbishop of Kiev and leader of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, in an interview with the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN, for its acronym in English).
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is one of the 24 Churches sui iuris (in its own right) that make up the Catholic Church. In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him Auxiliary Bishop of the Eparchy of Santa María del Patrocinio, in Buenos Aires (Argentina). Since 2011 he has been the Major Archbishop of kyiv, the Ukrainian capital.
From Lviv (Ukraine), the major archbishop analyzed the current situation in the country, which has been at war against Russia for more than a year. “The population is terribly traumatized by the war and the key question is how we are going to combat this trauma,” he said. For His Beatitude, the Ukrainian future depends on this question.
“80% of the people are hurt, many physically but above all there are wounds in the soul. On the other hand, there is psychological trauma and I can tell it firsthand. When I go out somewhere else, it is terribly difficult for me to get used to the noises of that new place. As a Church we have to take care of the priests first. More than 50% have told us that they are exhausted,” said the major archbishop.
He also expressed that in Ukraine we are experiencing “a war of exhaustion”, which can only be overcome by “authentic love, which does not tire of the struggle” and “authentic values, which are what can help us overcome discouragement.”
Last year, about 60% of Ukraine’s electrical infrastructure was destroyed by the war. Furthermore, according to the archbishop, about 75% of the population will depend on generators for electricity and heating in the coming months.
On the other hand, he shared his fear that the conflict will be forgotten by the international community, leaving the country without humanitarian aid and in a situation of extreme need.
ACN explains that the war “has created divisions and resentments in society,” and that the pain is present every day. Bishop Shevchuk recognizes that feelings can vary in families, depending on the experience each one has had with the conflict.
Likewise, he shared that these ruptures have occurred especially in families, but also in society in general. “Feeling abandoned, resentments against others are also sociological weapons of war. “They are looking for a scapegoat, someone to blame for everything,” she said.