U.S. Adventist chaplains discuss religious freedom in Ukraine with DESS
Adventist chaplains prayed together over lunch at the Refectory Church of the Lavra and held a meeting with employees of the Ukrainian Ombudsman’s Office.
From December 3 to 6, 2024, Adventist chaplains from the USA, Ivan Omana and Andrew Harewood, visited Ukraine, reports the Adventist website in Ukraine.
The visit was organized by the General Conference of the Adventist Church with the support of local leadership. The chaplains held meetings with representatives of government bodies, including the State Service for Ethnopolitics (a meeting with Deputy Head of the DESS Viktor Voynalovych), the Ombudsman’s Office, and the Military Institute.
The U.S. Adventists also attended the "military breakfast" with Zelensky at the Refectory Church of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.
The meetings focused on issues of religious freedom, the role of chaplains in Ukraine's recovery, support for prisoners of war, and spiritual aid for the military. The chaplains also visited wounded soldiers in a military hospital, where they discussed the importance of spiritual support for seriously injured soldiers.
As reported by the UOJ, an OCU chaplain called for providing priests with weapons for self-defense.
