As war continues to rage in Ukraine, it is especially chilling for believers there. Yaroslav “Slavik” Pyzh, president of Ukrainian Baptist Theological Seminary in Lviv, Ukraine, recently shared a sobering — yet still hopeful — update with Fellowship of Wildwood in Wildwood, Missouri.
In a video interview, Pyzh spoke about his friend, Mykhailo Brytsyn, who led a church in the now occupied city of Melitopol.
“The church was large with a membership of more than 600,” Pyzh said, “but now it is gone. The Russians took the building and told the believers not to get together or they would be jailed.”
RELATED: Check out more stories about the war in Ukraine here.
Hope amid ‘horrific conditions’
Brytsyn described the treatment of congregations and fellow believers in his own words.
“In some religious communities, Russian intelligence operatives started visiting church services, sometimes showing up accompanied by armed soldiers,” Brytsyn wrote in an earlier report released by Mission Eurasia, a non-profit group that ministers to those in the region. “The practice of arbitrary arrests and kidnappings of religious figures, holding them in basements in horrific conditions and inflicting violent torture on them, was widespread in the occupied territories.”
But there is hope.
Providing food, supplies, medical care and more
When Ryan Bowman, pastor of Fellowship of Wildwood, introduced Pyzh, he shared about the 17 humanitarian WeCare Centers set up by the seminary.
“These WeCare centers are providing food aid and other essential daily living supplies,” Bowman said, “as well as medical care, workforce training and spiritual care.”
All the directors of the WeCare centers have been trained through the seminary, Pyzh noted. The WeCare Center leaders receive the training to “help them manage their local WeCare ministries with excellence and integrity,” The Pathway reported in their update. These centers are reportedly ministering to hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian citizens.
Pyzh added that some of the WeCare centers offer schools. “Most of the schools are not in operation,” he said, “unless they have a bomb shelter. One of our centers has a school with 600 students, ages 6–18.”
“People are tired,” he continued, “they are constantly required to go to bomb shelters because of the missiles.”
Holding onto their faith
One missile exploded two miles from his home only three weeks ago, Pyzh shared.
“Yet through these dark times,” Pyzh added, “we see strength. In spite of the hopelessness and darkness, we see a glimmer of light. Churches are being planted because of the need for hope. With bombs and danger in their face, they want to hold onto their faith.”
“We can’t do it alone,” he said. “When you pray for us, don’t look at Ukraine as a place far away. Don’t look at it through the lens of Ukrainian and American, look at us as children of God and your brothers and sisters in Christ. That is our identity.”
More information is available at upfmissions.org.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Vicki Stamps and originally published by The Pathway.
