Ukrainian Church Leader: Forgiveness Can Heal Europe

In the midst of war, Ukraine's most prominent Catholic leader is sharing an unexpected message of hope and healing.

Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, met with Vatican envoys in Kyiv this week to discuss something bigger than the current conflict. He's calling for forgiveness to heal the deep wounds scarred across Europe's history.

"We are all sinners," Shevchuk told Vatican Media. "We all know that we have offended our neighbor." His solution? Forgiveness, both given and received, as the medicine that can heal the historical memory of Europe's peoples.

The archbishop hosted Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Pope Leo XIV's special envoy, who traveled to Ukraine for celebrations marking the 35th anniversary of the Latin Rite Catholic Church's reopening in the country. Just days earlier, Cardinal Zuppi had also visited, bringing messages of solidarity from Rome.

For Shevchuk, these visits represent more than diplomatic gestures. "To pray together with the Holy Father's special envoys is to pray with the universal Church," he explained. In times of war, he says, prayer becomes a balm for healing wounds.

The need is immense. Five million Ukrainians currently face humanitarian emergencies, but international resources only reach two million. Yet Shevchuk says people hunger for something beyond physical aid. "What people need from the Church, even more than clothing, bread and food, is a word of hope," he shared.

That hope comes through action. Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim communities are working side by side through the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches, now celebrating its 30th anniversary. "Working together quite literally means saving lives," Shevchuk said.

Why This Inspires

Shevchuk's call for forgiveness echoes the words of St. John Paul II, who visited Ukraine 25 years ago with the same message. The late pope believed his mission was to heal Europe's historical memory, especially wounds from World War II that remain raw today.

Now those old wounds sit alongside new ones from the current conflict. But Shevchuk refuses to let his people become prisoners of the past. "We cannot rewrite history," he acknowledges. "But through forgiveness, we can build a better future."

His vision extends beyond immediate relief to something deeper: new evangelization. He calls this moment of suffering a "kairos," a time of profound conversion when people hunger and thirst for God. The Church's response is to offer the Bread of Life and words of hope to those who need them most.

In a world often defined by division and old grudges, one church leader in a war zone is proving that hope and reconciliation can coexist with justice and survival.