Ukrainian war, Fr Taras: “In Kiev 10-year-old children make camouflage nets, here all united”

“I am godfather to a ten-year-old girl. Last night she, together with her friends, here in the shelter was helping to build the camouflage nets for our soldiers who go to fight at the front. She was trying to help the defense for her country. is the symbol of the people unite in the defense of the Ukrainian people, all the people have found themselves united in the face of the threats and aggressions of this war, which is an injustice that we did not deserve, and we must only pray and help, never curse “. Telling the detail to Adnkronos, connected from a place a few kilometers from Kiev, is Father Taras Zheplinskyy, a young and very active priest of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, who explains the difficult situation that the country is experiencing and the reaction of the community . “I turn to Russian mothers – says the 28-year-old Ukrainian priest – who, having the power to speak their word, to tell the truth, they can do a lot: take back your children, call them back home, tell them that this war is bad, that it is an injustice and we, the Ukrainian people, did not deserve it. ” Raising awareness among the relatives of Russian soldiers is considered so important that “a telephone line has been set up by the state which tries to contact the relatives of Russian soldiers – explains Father Taras – to persuade them to spread the truth throughout the country”. Father Taras is working a lot with his church to keep the morale of the faithful and the fighters high and resist in this very difficult moment in the country. “Now in Ukraine so many people pray, do penance – says the parish priest – we organized an online marathon in five Ukrainian cities devoted to Our Lady to pray for the conversion of Putin’s heart”. Because, explains Father Taras, “this is not just a war of Russia against Ukraine, but it is a war of the devil against God. We are victims of an unjust aggression, we did not deserve it. There was no reason to. begin this aggression “. A war that poses many questions, some difficult to answer even for an enthusiastic and fervent young priest like Father Taras. “Why does God allow it? I don’t know – he admits frankly – But I know that if a soldier uses a weapon to kill someone who attacks him, and he does it with love to guard his land and protect his loved ones, he commits no crime because he does it for his neighbors, for his family, for his country. Giving his own life for loved ones is what Jesus himself asks of us. I don’t think he will be judged by God, whoever does his duty for the his country “. What would he say to Putin if he found him standing in front of him? “Ukraine is an independent country, it is not the same as the Russian people, Putin has not understood that we are not one people – the young parish priest says heartily – And for this we are now suffering. Nobody can expect to take a human life. , and no one can think that human life is less important than what he thinks “. He therefore prayed, but never without hope. “We are sure, God is with us, he guards us and gives us the strength to win this war against evil which is personified in the person of the president of Russia. It is David’s war against Goliath, but I remind Putin that David won, God cannot be destroyed “, concludes Father Taras. (by Ilaria Floris)