On the three-year mark of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the day Kyiv celebrates its 34th national independence anniversary, Pope Leo has written to President Volodymyr Zelensky. “With a heart wounded by the violence devastating your land, I address you to assure you of my prayers for the Ukrainian people who are suffering because of the war,” the pontiff stated. Pope Prevost specifically addressed the wounded, “those who have lost loved ones, those who have been left without a home,” and “implored God to move the hearts of people of good will” so that “the clamor of arms may cease,” giving way to “dialogue” and opening “the path of peace for the good of all.”
The letter was released by Zelensky as the Pope was approaching the window of the Apostolic Palace to lead the Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s Square. From this very “platform,” Prevost issued a fresh appeal for war-torn Ukraine. “Last Friday, August 22, we accompanied with our prayer and fasting the brothers and sisters who suffer because of wars,” he recalled. “Today we join our Ukrainian brothers and sisters who, with a prayer initiative, ask the Lord to grant peace to their tormented country.”
These sentiments were echoed from Rimini by Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who is participating in the Meeting for Friendship Among Peoples organized by Communion and Liberation. Pope Leo recently confirmed Cardinal Zuppi as a humanitarian mediator for the return of Ukrainian children abducted by Russians and for prisoner exchanges. Commenting on diplomatic attempts initiated from the mid-August summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska, Zuppi observed, “This start of a dialogue may truly bear the fruits that everyone desires. Obviously, it is a journey, an itinerary, but fortunately, there is a path. We hope that everyone will do their part and that we can soon reach the end of the conflict, to all celebrate together the gift of peace.”
“The word to dedicate to the Ukrainian people,” Zuppi added, “is hope. Sometimes, in the face of so much suffering, one loses hope, and instead we must always look to hope, which is precisely about confronting evil.” He concluded, “We truly hope that this start of dialogue can bring, with everyone’s responsibility and contribution, the fruits that everyone in fact desires.”
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