Archbishop Bernard Hebda and three other bishops in the Twin Cities are inviting everyone of goodwill to join them in prayers for peace 7 p.m. March 6 at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis. COURTESY ECLA ST. PAUL AREA SYNOD

Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and three other bishops in the Twin Cities are inviting everyone of goodwill to join them for an evening of prayer for peace in Ukraine and Russia March 6 at the archdiocese’s Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis.

The four bishops will lead the 7 p.m. ecumenical Christian service, “a visible sign of our shared commitment to walk together in faith and solidarity with those who suffer,” a flyer publicizing the event said.

Joining the archbishop will be Bishop Patricia Lull of the St. Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Bishop Ann Svennungsen of the Minneapolis Area Synod of the ELCA, and Episcopal Church of Minnesota Bishop Craig Loya. Hosts are the archdiocese and the ECLA of St. Paul.

They announced the prayer service Feb. 27, as Russian President Vladimir Putin announced he was putting his nuclear forces on high alert and the European Union said it will close its airspace to Russian airlines and other Russian aircraft. The EU also said it would fund a weapons purchase to assist Ukraine, marking the first time the block would finance military equipment for a country under attack.

President Joe Biden, who with U.S. allies has been implementing increasingly severe economic sanctions against Russia and its leaders since that country’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, was receiving regular updates on the situation.

In the Twin Cities, the bishops’ prayer service will follow a Feb. 27 vespers service for peace at the Basilica. Pope Francis, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and other religious leaders have appealed for peace in Ukraine. As tensions rose on the Ukrainian border Feb. 23, Pope Francis, during his general audience at the Vatican, prayed, “May the Queen of Peace preserve the world from the madness of war.”

On the evening of Feb. 24, about 100 people gathered in support of Ukraine at St. Constantine Ukrainian Catholic Church in Minneapolis. Father Ivan Shkumbatyuk, the pastor, said a prayer for Ukraine. He was joined by pastors of two local Ukrainian Orthodox churches, who also shared remarks. St. Constantine is the only Ukranian-rite Catholic Church in the archdiocese.