Representatives of the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (UCCRO) told the Danish delegation of religious leaders about the spiritual and humanitarian activities of Ukrainian denominations during the war and the impact of Russian aggression on religious communities in Ukraine.
The meeting of UCCRO with the delegation of the Council on Foreign Relations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark took place on June 3, 2023 in Kyiv under the chairmanship of Vyacheslav Horpynchuk, Bishop of the Ukrainian Lutheran Church.
The Danish delegation was led by the Rev. Dr. Niels Nymann Eriksen, Diocese of Copenhagen, Vesterbro Parish, member of the National Council for International Relations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark (People's Church).
The Danish guests heard first-hand about the massive destruction of the religious infrastructure of Ukraine as a result of Russia's massive rocket and artillery attacks on civilian sites, including sacred sites, and the efforts taken by the Ukrainian churches to counter Russian propaganda and spreading of the genocidal ideology of "Russkiy mir” (Russian world).
The UCCRO representatives also told the Danish delegates about interfaith cooperation and the high level of religious freedom in Ukraine, despite the conditions of martial law.
Ukrainian religious leaders considered areas of cooperation with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark in the context of support for Ukraine during the war. In particular, they discussed preparations for high-level meetings to establish better cooperation in the humanitarian sphere.
Representatives of the Danish Church expressed their full support and solidarity with the Ukrainian people in their struggle for the independence of the Ukrainian state and democratic values.
The UCCRO Chairman, Bishop Vyacheslav Horpynchuk, on behalf of the religious community of Ukraine, thanked the Danish people for their help and called for continued prayers for the Ukrainian people and practical assistance to Ukraine in its struggle for its independence, sovereignty, and statehood.
The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ukrainian Lutheran Church, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the Roman Catholic Church in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Church of Evangelical Faith, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the Ukrainian Christian Evangelical Church, the German Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Bible Society, and the Institute for Religious Freedom.