Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, said on July 7 that “Ukraine is flowing with blood.”

“The epicenters of the confrontation were once again the cities of Slavyansk, Kramatorsk, and Bakhmut.” he continued. “The city of Kharkiv was again hit by a heavy rocket attack. Our Odesa region was also attacked with rocket strikes. There, warehouses which stored bread and grain, with the potential to feed millions of needy people, were deliberately destroyed.”

Reflecting on repentance, Major Archbishop Shevchuk said that “from time immemorial, when Ukrainian soldiers went to defend the homeland, before taking up arms, they went to confession, they repented of their sins, they received Holy Communion, and then, in the fullness of God’s grace, they were ready to give their lives for the homeland.”

“O God, bless Ukraine,” he added. “O God, bless the Ukrainian army.”