"Is Christ divided?" – at the UCU were praying for Christian unity and peace in the country
On January 21, at the UCU chapel an Ecumenical prayer service was held for peace in Ukraine and the unity of Christians. Under the theme "Is Christ divided?" (Corinthians 1:1-17), it brought together the faithful people of Lviv, representatives of Christian youth organizations and movements. The event took place within the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which annually takes place from 18 to 25 January – during the time when Christians around the world unite in prayer for the gift of unity.
This year's Ecumenical Prayer was special because people prayed in two intentions - for Christian unity and peace and God’s blessing to Ukrainians. "This initiative brought together representatives of different churches, so we could ask Lord to come up with a pure heart to one another. Today we are witnessing a great tension in our country. Thank God, the Churches united not for once to attest their position on important issues. It's wonderful that they were able to stand together to defend the dignity in our lives. Today we pray that we do not fight against each other, but with a pure heart begin the joint prayer at altar "- addressed the faithful Fr. Dr. Bohdan Prakh.
"The whole life of the Church – it is the unity that is special God's value. Today we pray for the moral values that Maidan and all the Ukrainian people defend. Because at Maidan people are not standing for individuals, but for certain values. I call all to pray for peace and the peaceful resolution of problems in the country", - said to the prayer participants fr. Vasyl Sahan, Zolochiv Dean of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church.
In prayer participated the representatives of the Roman Catholic Church (RCC), Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC), Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) and the Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith.
After the Prayer students with the Christmas Nativity play about Yevromaidan visited the chapel of the UCU. Singing and treating ourselves, people were building up the trust between Christians of different denominations. We have to remember a determinant call of Fr. Dr. Bohdan Prakh to pray today as much as possible both for Christian unity and for peace and calmness in the country. With sincere hope for God's help we must be strong to survive this difficult for Ukraine time.
The Prayer was organized by the Institute of Ecumenical Studies, Ukrainian Catholic University together with the Student Council of Lviv.
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