If you feel like the news you are reading or seeing on television is capturing your will, mind and feelings or attempting to become your inner occupier – know that this propaganda is implications of evil. Let us resist this very moment! We have to realize that we are able to win, but not by our own strength, but by the power and grace of the Holy Spirit. His Beatitude Sviatoslav, the Father and Head of the UGCC said in his daily video-address on the 37th day of the war.
Source: The UGCC Department for Information
“During the past day and night, Ukrainian land, cities and villages have been shuddering with air strikes. Our special prayers are flowing to Mariupol, which has been surprising the whole world with its strength for a month now. Truly, the miracle on the shores of the Sea of Azov is being revealed. Kharkiv, Chernihiv are standing heroically, our special prayers are for Kherson, heroic Mykolaiv”, mentions the Head of the UGCC.
His Beatitude Sviatoslav noted that under pressure of the Ukrainian troops the enemy was retreating, and Ukrainian towns and villages were being liberated. However, the enemy, having no success on earth, is increasing the attacks in the sky. Therefore, the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations is appealing again to the world to help to protect the Ukrainian sky, thus the lives of civilians in cities and villages of Ukraine, said the Head of the UGCC.
The Primate stressed that the struggle of the Ukrainian people against the aggressor has all hallmarks of a spiritual struggle, because every big war is accompanied by big lies. According to him, today the war is also being waged for our minds, hearts and free will.
The spiritual struggle, he says, is characterized by the devil trying to influence us with his thoughts through intimidation and propaganda. Then, the bishop continues, the person begins to dialogue with sinful allusions. Thus, there is a struggle within our minds and hearts. “Inside a human, there are street fights with evil that is trying to capture us. And then, if we continue to succumb, consent of our will to evil comes, the internal occupation by sin, the enslavement of a man, passion, sin”, explained the Head of the UGCC.
He emphasizes that to win this invisible struggle, one must first realize that we cannot dialogue with sin, with the devil. It must be rejected and won.
Moreover, in order to resist the hostile ideology, to expel the devil first from our minds and hearts, and then from our homes and lands, we must first realize a lie and resist it with all our strength and will. Only then elimination, liberation will come and freedom afterwards.
“Let us pray for the Ukrainian army, for those who are fighting against the occupier! Let us support them with our prayers! We are waging our invisible struggle against untruth and all that is trying to paralyze our will and capture our inner spiritual world! Let us pray for Ukraine, resist the occupier and all evil! Let us eliminate evil from our hearts! Let us be Christians and people even in the circumstances of war”, asked His Beatitude Sviatoslav.
