The monument to “Heroes of the Faith, ”the Christians who perished for the faith during the Soviet repressions" in Odessa

On 11 September, in Odesa, the monument to “Heroes of the Faith, ”the Christians who perished for the faith during the Soviet repressions of the 20^th c. was officially opened as part of the celebration of the 90^th anniversary of the Pentecostal revival in the countries of the former USSR and the 20^th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence.

The erection of the monument was initiated by the Association of Churches of Christians of Evangelical Faith of Odesa which was established in the beginning of the last century by the missionary, Ivan Voronaiev, with the assistance of Christian Churches of Odesa and Ukraine. The project was financed by the Kyivan Church Emanuel (Bishop Vitalii Vozniuk).

The Monument was designed in the shape of a 2.5 meters high  rock with a bust of Ivan Voronaiev carved in the middle who founded one of the most numerous Protestant movements in Ukraine and the countries of USSR, the Church of the Christians of Evangelical Faith, the Pentecostals. The ceremony of the opening of the monument was held within the framework of the international conference “Revival,” which was held in Odesa during the week on occasion of the 90^th anniversary of the Pentecostal or Voronaiev’s Revival. It was attended by Odesa residents, faithful of various Churches of Odesa and a few hundred delegates of the conference from various regions of Ukraine and countries of Asia, Europe, America and Australia including pastors and bishops of evangelical Churches.

“The personality of Ivan Voronaiev is symbolic for Evangelical Christians and is a reflection of an entire era of zealots of the evangelical faith, the beginning of work and courageous death for the Word of God in exile and camps,” stressed Bishop Petro Serdychenko, the head of the Spiritual Center Revival of the Churches of Christians of Evangelical Faith.

According to him, the monument is to remind modern Christians about the price paid by the generations of our fathers persecuted for the faith in the Soviet times.

“This is not a only a monument to Voronaiev but we also would like to honour the memory of all the people who perished for the faith, who did not turn from God during the Soviet repressions and were repressed, tortured and shot just for that. I want my children and the future generation of Christians to remember that we have tragic but glorious history,” noted the pastor of the Central Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith in Odesa, Denys Serdychenko.

“Symbolically, Odesa residents celebrate the 20^th anniversary of the state independence with opening of a monument to Christians repressed under the Soviet rule. The advantages of independence of Ukraine can be fully felt only by those who lived under the communist regime. In USSR, erection of a monument to “Brothers and sisters who perished for the faith” would be impossible. Today, after twenty years of independence, we would like to restore justice remembering thousand of our brothers and sisters of many Christian denominations who perished in exiles and were tortured to death in camps,” stressed Serdychenko in a commentary to RISU.