Apostolic Nuncio to Ukraine: Church stands as a bulwark of hope against despair

By Daniele Piccini

Being present and giving hope are two of the main – and crucial – tasks the Catholic Church fulfils in a war zone, according to the Apostolic Nuncio to Ukraine.

Speaking on October 15 at an online conference organised by an Italian online university, on the theme The Church in Ukraine Today: Geopolitics, Diplomacy and Cooperation, Archbishop Visvaldas Kulbokas elaborated on the concept.

“Being present, because geographical distance always entails emotional distance. And then giving hope, because the Church’s primary mission is always to make eternal life present in people’s lives. Without this, the psychological consequences of war would be far worse,” he said.

Archbishop Kulbokas in Ukraine

The work of some 100 military chaplains

Archbishop Kulbokas, who is Lithuanian by birth, said the Church’s twofold mission is similar to that of the approximately 100 military chaplains serving at the front, where around one million people are deployed.

They, too, he explained, “must be present” wherever people are suffering and, above all, bring hope “so that people do not succumb to despair.”

Being there, he added, may not seem like much, but it is often all that can be done.

“Let me give an example. A few weeks ago, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organisations, was in Moscow. He obviously went there to address diplomatic matters. One may ask, Archbishop Kulbokas said, “From a diplomatic point of view, what can the Holy See do?”

Its presence, he explained, can be understood as an implicit declaration of willingness to engage: “We are here. If you need us, perhaps in a year or two, we will still be here. We are open to any contact with all parties, including the aggressor. We are open to contact with everyone.”

A small but deeply rooted Church

The Apostolic Nuncio, who was appointed by Pope Francis on June 15, 2021, outlined the diverse landscape of Churches in Ukraine, noting that “The Catholic Church is not the majority here, but it is a well-established presence. The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church accounts for around 12% of the population. Then there are Catholics of the Latin rite, although it is difficult to establish their exact numbers because part of the population has emigrated. Nevertheless, we should be close to 1%.”

Then, he said there is also the Eparchy of Mukachevo, in the western part of the country, which follows the Byzantine rite and accounts for approximately another 1%.

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Finally, he concluded, of the estimated 27–28 million people remaining in the unoccupied part of Ukraine, around four million are Catholic; that’s approximately 14% of the population.

“It is not an exceptionally high figure, but the Churches and faith communities in Ukraine are very active: Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox Churches,” he said.

More than one billion euros in humanitarian aid

Thanks to its links with the universal Church, including the Church in Italy, the nuncio explained that the Catholic Church in Ukraine can provide humanitarian assistance to people affected by the conflict. This includes food, water, shelter, support for displaced people and psychological rehabilitation.

He describes this network of solidarity and love as the “greatness of the Church,” explaining that “Thanks to this assistance, Catholics in Ukraine do not feel alone.”

“Through the presence of many international Church organisations, a substantial amount of aid is delivered. In terms of its overall value, we can say that it has certainly exceeded one billion euros by a considerable margin,” he said.

Archbishop Kulbokas in Ternopil

Peace from the ground up

The Apostolic Nuncio also examined the consequences of what he called “sporadic diplomacy.” Beyond statements made on particular occasions, he observed, “no one in the international community seems truly interested in peace.”

Peace, he explained, citing Pope Leo XIV, must emerge from human efforts that never lose confidence: “If presidents and heads of state are not interested in the question of peace, then we must start from the ground up, through human cooperation among ourselves. If the solution does not come from politicians, there are two other options. Either we leave everything in the hands of the military, and the world will then be governed by whoever is stronger, whoever has more missiles and more tanks. ”

Otherwise, he concluded, “we must all take responsibility.”