'FACE OF EVIL'

WASHINGTON -- Saying “we are again seeing the face of evil,” Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger of the Diocese of Albany - and his fellow bishops in the United States -  joined Pope Francis in calling for prayers and peace in Ukraine as war broke out in Europe on Feb. 24, with Russia's early morning attacks on various parts of the East European nation.

“Appallingly, we are again seeing the face of evil as Russian troops have launched an unprovoked attack on the people of Ukraine,” said Bishop Scharfenberger in a statement the day of the attack. “We fervently pray through the intercession of Mary Immaculate, to whom our Diocese is consecrated, that this military action quickly ends, that casualties are limited, and we pray for the repose of the souls of those who have been killed and those who will no doubt lose their lives in the coming days.

The day before the invasion, Pope Francis called on people to pray and fast for peace in Ukraine on Ash Wednesday. Before concluding his general audience Feb. 23, the pope called on believers and nonbelievers to combat the "diabolical insistence, the diabolical senselessness of violence" with prayer and fasting.

"I invite everyone to make March 2, Ash Wednesday, a day of fasting for peace," he said. "I encourage believers in a special way to devote themselves intensely to prayer and fasting on that day. May the Queen of Peace protect the world from the folly of war."

Bishop Scharfenberger echoed Pope Francis’ call.

“In the book, "Peace on Earth: Fraternity is Possible," a collection of Pope Francis' words and speeches on the importance of praying and working for peace, The Holy Father said people should pray to promote peace: ‘To pray is to protest war in front of God. Never stop asking the Lord with faith and insistence for the end of conflict,’ ” Bishop Scharfenberger said.

“In that spirit, I ask everyone in the 14 counties of our Diocese to join me in praying for the fighting to stop and for lasting peace in Ukraine.”

Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, also called for peace.

“On behalf of my brother bishops, I echo the Holy Father’s call for prayer and fasting to end the war in Ukraine. In times of trouble, we call on the tender mercy of God … to guide our feet to the way of peace (Lk 1:78-79). May our prayers, joined with those of people around the world, help guide those waging war to end the meaningless suffering and restore peace. Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us.”

News reports showed bombarded apartment buildings and towns and abandoned cities.

Some reported at least 40 casualties, others said they numbered in the hundreds early Feb. 24. The only thing for certain, said NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, is that "peace in our continent has been shattered."

Coadjutor Bishop Louis Tylka of Peoria, Ill., like many in the U.S., seemed to be ending Feb. 23 with news of the initial attacks on Ukraine, which took place early Feb. 24 local time in that country.

"Friends as we go to bed in central Illinois tonight, the people in Ukraine awake to war," Bishop Tylka tweeted around 11:30 p.m. "Let us pray for peace! Let us pray for an end to war! Let us pray that conflict can be resolved by dialogue -- not violence! Lord we pray -- bring peace to our troubled world."

Holy Cross Father John I. Jenkins, president of the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, in a Feb. 24 statement recalled a 2019 visit to Lviv, Ukraine, to present an award to Archbishop Borys Gudziak, now head of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, for his "leadership of the first Catholic university established in the territory of the former Soviet Union."

Father Jenkins said that during the presentation of the award, he "spoke of the innumerable challenges in a society traumatized by war, genocide and political oppression and of the efforts of Archbishop Gudziak and his colleagues to bring to Ukraine healing and hope."

Ukraine, once part of the Soviet Union, under whose rule it suffered a famine that led to millions of deaths, voted for independence in 1991.

In a Feb. 23 interview with Relevant Radio, Archbishop Gudziak explained how Russia's Vladimir Putin sees Ukraine as part of its territory, fomenting separatist movements in the country as he sought to absorb it.

But the archbishop called it a "ridiculous distortion of history and a negation of the human dignity of Ukrainians. Basically saying 'you don't exist, you didn't exist ... we're going to use force and subdue you.'"

He also spoke of what he sees as the consequences for people of faith.

"The sad story for Ukrainian Catholics is that every time Russia takes over some part of Ukraine where the Ukrainian Catholic Church exists, sooner or later, whether it's within a month or a year or 10 years or 20, the Ukrainian Catholic Church is simply obliterated," he told Relevant Radio.

"And this will be the case for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which also endured great persecution, and for other people of goodwill who want to express their spiritual lives, their culture, use their language," Archbishop Gudziak said. "It's really devastating."

Notre Dame's Father Jenkins said the former oppressors of Ukraine were now known by another name "and are waging war under a different flag, but the trauma is no less today than in the past in this nation that has suffered far too much."

"Our friends in Ukraine are in need of healing and hope," he said in his statement. "We at Notre Dame stand in solidarity with all peace-loving people worldwide in demanding an end to this invasion of a sovereign nation. This unprovoked war is an international abomination and must stop now."

"Until it does," he said, "may God keep safe all of the innocent men, women and children who are currently in harm's way. The prayers of the Notre Dame family are with them."

The Catholic organization Pax Christi USA in a statement condemned the invasion and urged "influential voices within the U.S. Catholic community to refuse to beat the drums of war."

Pax Christi also urged the international community to look to dialogue to solve the conflict and refrain from a military response.

"It should not be lost that in addition to Russian aggression, the expansion of NATO with the proliferation of bases, the continued manufacturing of weapons of war, and the reliance on security upheld by military power has played a significant role in the events building up to this current crisis," Pax Christi said.

"This war is additional evidence of the failure of policies predicated on the threat of violence to deliver the peace and dignity the human family deserves," it added.