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COMMENTARY: The words spoken this month by Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kjiv, at a joint event marking the 80th anniversary of the Volhynia massacre, were carefully chosen for their historical resonance.
KRAKÓW, Poland — While international attention on the Russian invasion of Ukraine was focused on during the NATO summit in Vilnius last week, an important reconciliation, both religious and political, took place in Warsaw, Poland, and Lutsk, Ukraine. The occasion was the 80th anniversary of the 1943 Volhynia (Volyn) massacre. President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish President Andrzej Duda met in the western Ukrainian city of Lutsk. Gathered in a Catholic cathedral, both Catholic and Orthodox prelates led prayers for reconciliation and then both presidents lit candles to honor the victims of the massacre. That the ceremony was held in a church was already something of a gracious gesture from Zelensky, who is Jewish.
The presidents jointly posted on Twitter: “Together we pay tribute to all the innocent victims of Volhynia! Memory unites us! Together we are stronger.” On his own website, Zelenskyy added: “We value every life, remember history, and defend freedom together.”
Continued below.
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KRAKÓW, Poland — While international attention on the Russian invasion of Ukraine was focused on during the NATO summit in Vilnius last week, an important reconciliation, both religious and political, took place in Warsaw, Poland, and Lutsk, Ukraine. The occasion was the 80th anniversary of the 1943 Volhynia (Volyn) massacre. President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish President Andrzej Duda met in the western Ukrainian city of Lutsk. Gathered in a Catholic cathedral, both Catholic and Orthodox prelates led prayers for reconciliation and then both presidents lit candles to honor the victims of the massacre. That the ceremony was held in a church was already something of a gracious gesture from Zelensky, who is Jewish.
The presidents jointly posted on Twitter: “Together we pay tribute to all the innocent victims of Volhynia! Memory unites us! Together we are stronger.” On his own website, Zelenskyy added: “We value every life, remember history, and defend freedom together.”
Continued below.
Ukraine and Poland’s Message of Reconciliation: ‘We Forgive and Ask Forgiveness’
COMMENTARY: The words spoken this month by Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kjiv, at a joint event marking the 80th anniversary of the Volhynia massacre, were carefully chosen for their historical resonance.
