HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg hosted an evening of prayer for Ukraine on June 8.
Community members came out to show their support and participate in an evening of personal stories, heartfelt prayers and open discussion on the continuing crisis in Ukraine. Attendees also had the chance to learn more about the conflict during an open Q&A session at the end of the event.
The Very Reverend Mykola Ivanov, pastor of Transfiguration of Our Lord Ukrainian Catholic Church in Shamokin, Reverend Taras Lovska, pastor of Saint Ann Byzantine Catholic Church in Harrisburg and Matthew Kenenitz, a current professor of English at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv spoke at the event. They provided first-hand accounts of the continued conflict and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and suggestions on how to help.
"I'm angry because when I ask some people how they are, they respond it's a beautiful day and they want to enjoy it, but they know they can't because there's no telling when a missile will come from the sky, or the next air raid siren will go off," Kenenitz said during his remarks. "People make shirts, they wave flags, or they have Ukrainian flags flying outside their homes, but this is all passive support."
A free-will offering was taken at the event to help support continuing humanitarian efforts.
The Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg covers 15 counties in south and central Pennsylvania and is home to 89 parishes and 35 Catholic schools.
The livestream of the event can be seen below.