The Primate of Poland: Ukrainians' struggle meets the requirements of a just war

This was stated by the Primate of Poland, Archbishop Wojciech Polak, during the discussion “What is the path to peace in Ukraine?” organized by the Catholic News Agency on September 12, 2024, CREDO reports.

During the event, the presentation of the latest book of the Head of the UGCC, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, “Message of Peace” was held. The book consists of the texts of His Beatitude's addresses delivered during the first year of Russia's open aggression against Ukraine.

Archbishop Wojciech Polak is a co-author of the introduction to this publication.

He emphasized that in reflecting on the role of the Churches in the pursuit of peace in Ukraine, one should remember that the Churches must be understood as a reality created by people rather than institutions or structures.

He referred to the words of His Beatitude Sviatoslav, who recalled that on the first day of open aggression, the Primate of Poland called him with but one question: “Are you alive?”

“I called not because I am a Primate and he is the Supreme Archbishop. Not because I had something to suggest, wanted to protect, or to say something wise; I called because when we first met, he was a guest of the Gniezno Congress. We were living under the same roof, and the Orthodox Archbishop Jeremiah, who was already ill at the time, was with us. We sat at a common table and listened to each other. Churches are not institutions and structures. Obviously, all this is necessary for activity; but the Church is first and foremost people, you and me,” said the Polish hierarch.

Archbishop Wojciech Polak also raised the issue of a just war in the Church's teaching.

“Ukrainians have the right to defend themselves. The struggle of Ukrainians against the Russian aggressor meets all the requirements of the Church's social teaching,” he emphasized.

In this context, the Primate of Poland mentioned the “Message on War and Just Peace in the Context of New Ideologies” published by the Synod of Bishops of the UGCC on the second anniversary of Russia's open invasion of Ukraine.

This document, according to the Archbishop of Gniezno, is a unique reflection on the topic of just war and peace since the Second Vatican Council.

“Today, we say that the world listens to teachers as much as they are witnesses, so in this matter, it is a competent teaching, far-reaching and deep, modeling our consciousness. It is so because witnesses speak about it. This is not something learned from books; it is obviously scientifically prepared, but it is something more - it is a testimony,” Archbishop Poliak emphasized.

The church must remember that there are tangible actions aimed at ensuring a just peace.

“On our part, ecumenism, ecumenical dialogue, being together, which we feel in the Ukrainian realities, is also an essential issue for preparing the path of peace,” the Primate said.

He called the activities of the Moscow Patriarch, who since the beginning of the aggression has openly supported the attack of Russian troops on Ukraine and even blessed Russian soldiers, gorszącą - a hard-to-translate concept that simultaneously includes the meaning of “deterioration, temptation” and “scandal.”

“This is all the more difficult for me because I once sat at the same table with Patriarch Kirill, too,” said the Primate of Poland, ”and this [Kirill's activities] is a case that cries out for revenge to Heaven. Justifying and blessing the barbarians who destroy and exterminate the Ukrainian people? How can this be justified by faith? This is blasphemy! I am glad that the majority of churches and religious communities clearly express their position and disagree with this.”

According to the Primate of Poland, “the task of the Church is to clearly admonish those who have gone astray and to create a space free from revenge and the temptation to administer justice within the framework of collective responsibility, and to clearly state that this [blessing soldiers for an aggressive war] is immoral.”

His Beatitude Sviatoslav explained that the book has no formal ending because the war is still ongoing. “However, we hope that it will end and that everything will have a final outcome in the hands of the Risen Lord,” he concluded.

In addition to the Ukrainian and Polish editions, the book of His Beatitude Sviatoslav's addresses will also be published in English, German, Italian, French, Spanish and Portuguese.