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Notes from War-torn Ukraine

Fr. Jarosław Krawiec, O.P. wrote this Christmas greeting on December 22, 2022. It is a humbling tale of the struggles and incredible faith of the people of Ukraine through the eyes of a Dominican friar.

Translated from Polish:

Dear sisters, dear brothers, I never thought that one could long for lights. When I got off the Kyiv train in Warsaw, I was surprised by the festival of brightly lit streets, buildings, and, above all, colorful Christmas decorations. When you add to it the snow that just fell in Poland in abundant supply, it all looked like a New Year’s fairytale. In Ukraine, the last couple months have been getting colder and darker. The longer this lasts, the more I squint my eyes in disbelief when looking at the bright streets and storefronts as well as entering warm houses and priories abroad.

On the day of Saint Nicholas — which in Ukraine is celebrated on December 19 following the Eastern calendar — a new Christmas tree was officially unveiled in the center of Kyiv. It was placed, as in previous years, on the square in front of the Saint Sophia Cathedral, the oldest and most important Christian church in Ukraine. The Christmas tree is much more modest and 60 feet shorter than last year. There is no market place surrounding it, which  in Ukraine used to be a necessary element of the “New Year holiday,” as Christmas is frequently called here.

Over the last couple weeks, a great discussion has been taking place in Ukraine on the subject of whether Christmas decorations and trees should be displayed in public places during the time when so many millions of people suffer daily because of war and lack of power. The opinion is divided. The mayor of Chortkiv, a small city in western Ukraine where the Dominicans have been present for over 400 years, had already announced in mid-November that: “This year, the Christmas tree and New Year celebration in the city center will be canceled!” To avoid misunderstandings, he immediately added that the most important thing is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, and the decorations and loud festivities can wait until the war is over. Many people think similarly.

The capitol decided differently. “We must have the Christmas tree!” stated the mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko. “Our children should be able to have festivities! Despite the fact that the Russian barbarians are trying to rob Ukrainians from the joy of Christmas and New Year.” I understand the opponents of Christmas trees, but my position is decisively closer to the attitude of the mayor of Kyiv. I heard the opinion of a frontline soldier who was unhappy that his children would be deprived of Christmas. “But this is exactly what we are fighting for, a normal life for our families!” he argued.

Near the Kyiv Christmas tree, I spotted a strange contraption. Cement blocks that until recently had been positioned across the street as a barricade were now painted red, and large eyes were attached to them. It’s part of an artistic project called “Children shouldn’t see the war,” whose authors want to spare the youngest inhabitants of the city the painful experience of seeing a landscape of war during the holidays. This is important since Kyiv now hosts a couple hundred thousand people who have escaped from destroyed cities and villages. This is also the way in which the initiators of this project want to raise funds to help children who have lost one of both parents as a result of the war. Sadly, this number is also growing daily.

Amid war, doves replaced lights on Ukraine Christmas tree.

This year’s Christmas Eve will mark exactly the tenth month of war. On February 24 we all woke up in Ukraine early in the morning to the sound of air raid sirens, explosions, text messages, and phone calls from the terrified friends and family members attempting to find out if we are okay. On the evening of December 24, billions of Christians around the world will begin the celebration of the birth of Christ. This number will include a handful of Roman Catholics in Ukraine, since a majority of the citizens of the country are Christians of eastern traditions and begin celebrations two weeks later. War, however, is causing many of them to demand with increasing intensity the transition to the “Gregorian calendar,” and the bishops of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which is independent from Moscow and led by the Metropolitan Epiphanius, are allowing some parishes to celebrate Christmas together with the western world.

This Christmas will be a different one, quieter and wrapped in darkness. Even if we tried to forget for a moment about the hard times and lose ourselves in Christmas shopping, visiting, and decorating, we can’t. Many people have lost their jobs and are in a very difficult economic situation. They will not be able to afford a plentiful Christmas table and gifts. Apart from this, for the last two months there has been a shortage of power and light. Some people have power only periodically; others, like people from Antonivka, don’t have it at all.

Ukraine’s children and the trauma of war.

Antonivka is a village outside of Kherson, with a huge bridge connecting the shores of the Dnieper River that was first attacked by the Ukrainian army and then by the Russians. We delivered humanitarian supplies there two weeks ago. The bus with boxes of food was unloaded very quickly. The village is located right on the bank of the river, and on the other side is the Russian army.

“My friends, don’t stay in groups. Do not create a gathering, so that drones won’t detect us and start shooting,” yelled the ladies coordinating the distribution of humanitarian aid. A couple hours earlier, artillery had destroyed a nearby house, and we helped an older woman get out of her basement and transported her to a safer location. While Father Misha talked with the inhabitants of Antonivka, I saw tears in their eyes. They cried out of disbelief that someone came to them. This is another time that I realized that one of the worst things in war is the feeling of being abandoned. I remember the first days of fighting around Kyiv, when Maryna had asked me to bring supplies to a single mother of a son. When we were leaving the woman had asked, “When it gets really bad, will you help me? Will I be alone?”

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The Good that Comes from Struggle

Student preaching at all-school Mass: Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, October 7, 2022.

By Anna Androsyuk ’24 (Chicago)

When you think of Our Lady, Mary, what comes to mind? I assume many of you think of motherhood, affection, love or care instead of things like warfare or strife. And, while these are all true, the origins of this celebration comes from our troubled history, in the Battle of Lepanto.

“Our Lady of Victory”

On this day, 451 years ago, combined forces of Naples, Venice, Savoy, among many others, fought in an intense battle with the fleet of the Ottoman Empire. They were called the “Holy League” and aimed to diminish Ottoman control over the Mediterranean, but they were overpowered and outnumbered. During this military endeavor, Pope Pius V encouraged the faithful to pray for the intercession of Mary to aid their soldiers through the recitation of the Rosary. He ordered the churches of Rome to remain open day and night, hoping the faithful would reach out to Mary for her guidance. The Holy League triumphed and thankful for Mary’s intercession, Pope Pius V added October 7th to the Roman Liturgical Calendar to be the feast of Our Lady of Victory. 

Like the Holy League, we all face our own battles in life. Whether big or small, we can turn to Mary for her intercession and guidance. She teaches us every day that good things come out of struggle — and she is here to guide us through them every day.

Growing up in Ukraine, my grandparents had a huge influence on my upbringing. They were the ones who introduced me to my faith and the ones who helped foster and raise it. My grandma taught me my prayers: We would say them together every night. With much patience, she taught me the two fundamental prayers – the Our Father and Hail Mary. What was interesting, is that instead of alternating prayers, she encouraged me to start with an Our Father and always follow up with a Hail Mary. To this day, that is still the way I pray.

The Ukrainian flag.

Now when I look back, she does many things to incorporate Mary into her faith. And, she did many of these things in hopes that my brother and I would also understand how important Mary is. Every time she cleaned out her wallet, she would take out an image of Mary and Jesus. It was very special to her so she would show it to us every time and have us kiss it. Once in a while, she would also show us the beautiful blue rosary she kept in her purse. And when we visited her in the summer, the day before our flight back to the States, we would visit a tiny chapel on the outskirts of a village. It was said that Mary had once appeared in this chapel. 

Rather than visiting the large church just down the road, she made an effort to take us to this tiny chapel. I wondered why. Grandma insisted that we pray both prayers at once. She had a picture of Mary, and not Jesus or another Saint. And again I wondered, why? In reality, the answer was very simple, it stemmed from a story I have heard many times before.

When my grandmother was pregnant with my mother, she had a difficult pregnancy. She recalls being extremely weak and would spend her nights crying out in pain. On one of these nights, in a dream, a woman approached her. She acknowledged my grandmother’s pain and reminded her that she was with her. This woman told my grandma not to cry because she will have a beautiful little girl named Halyna. Because my grandma’s name was also Halyna, she was very hesitant about giving her child the same name. Ultimately, she put her trust in this woman, who she presumed to be Mary, and did as she asked. 

Since this day, Mary played a very important role in my grandmother’s life. During the difficult times my grandma would again turn to Mary for her guidance. She understood the importance of Mary’s intercession and through the little things like going to that chapel or showing me that image in her wallet, she tried to explain it to me as well. 

We each have our own struggles that we must battle everyday. During our battles we might shut down and feel like giving up, but we can remember that Mary is someone we can reach out to. Simply praying even a decade of the Rosary can go a long way. She reminds us, every day, that there is good to come out of struggle. Fighting your battles doesn’t set you back in your faith. If you don’t give up, they are simply a stepping stone that will lead to a much greater outcome. But during these difficult times, just like people from the Holy League or just like my grandma, we can all turn to Mary for guidance as we each navigate our own journey to God.