Three years of war have increased the spiritual needs of soldiers in Ukraine. Military chaplains are at their side day after day, helping them to bear their suffering. Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) heard from chaplains about how they share God’s love and presence in the midst of death and destruction. (Photo: A soldier’s funeral celebration. Fr. Witalij Novak is holding the picture of the young man who died in combat.)
By Amélie Berthelin f0r ACN International
“Without daily Mass, daily Rosary, and personal prayer, I can’t imagine how I could hold out here!” Fr. Witalij Novak (photo) is a military chaplain—the only one in his brigade of 3,000 men, divided into five units. Like other Catholic chaplains in the Ukrainian Army, he completed several months of army training and holds the rank of officer.
During a conversation with the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), the priest spoke about how multifaceted his tasks are, especially as battles grow in number and violence. When soldiers go to the front line, they don’t know whether they will still be alive the next day, says the priest. Question about the meaning of life is then posed with an intensity like never before. “The moment when I bless them before they set off for battle has great depth: they are sacrificing their lives to protect others. These moments are very important to me. I want to give them the best and provide them with security. But more than my words, it is the presence of God which I give to them.”
Although officially 84% of people in Ukraine are Christians—mostly Orthodox—because of their Soviet past, many know Jesus only by name, especially in the eastern regions of the country. “When it is possible, therefore, I read them some passages from the Gospels and share a few thoughts with them,” reports Fr. Witalij.
Fr. Witalij Novak also gives them a rosary or a miraculous medal. He explains the meaning to those who do not understand and adds that this is a sign that they are not alone anymore, but that God is with them. “When the soldiers return from the front, they often confide in me, full of thanks: ‘This rosary and this medal were my constant companions. I remember what you said to me and prayed to God with my words. Thank you!’”
The chaplain also sees it as his task to awaken the voice of conscience in the soldiers. This is far from easy, but it is one of the most important services that the Church can provide. When faced with the enemy, is it hatred of the other that guides you, or the desire to protect your family and country? “There is a more humane way of dealing with war,” explains Archbishop Visvaldas Kulbokas, apostolic nuncio to Ukraine. “In 2024, there were more deaths than in 2023, so it is very important to transmit Christian values in the face of uncertainty and fear,” he tells ACN.
It is a fear which the use of drones and new technologies has made omnipresent. On the front line, drones see every movement, night and day, be it of bodies, vehicles, or weapons. “That makes a great difference, because your life can be extinguished any moment,” says Fr. Witalij Novak. Another priest reports that he now has to be careful with his vocabulary. “I no longer say that hope comes from heaven, because my men are now afraid of heaven, since death comes from the heavens. We must use other images.”
Fr. Witalij Novak, who recently received a mobile chapel from ACN to reach the faithful, also uses technology to reach his soldiers via social media, since it is impossible for him to meet his 3,000 men personally. Every day on his Facebook account, he posts words of encouragement, photos, and prayers. In this way, he reaches his soldiers on the front line, transmitting to them his smile and the love of God, and giving them strength and courage.
The priests try to find out how they can help with other basic needs as well. “We don’t just pray with the soldiers; we also talk, and cook something tasty,” says Fr. Ivan Dyakiv, a priest who has been serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Zaporizhzhia region since February 2023.
The service to the soldiers also extends to their families and takes on a central role as soon as a man is wounded or killed. “That is the most difficult,” says Fr. Ivan Dyakiv. The priests are responsible for administering the last rites and taking care of the burial. They also help the family organize the funeral, deciding where it can take place. The trickiest thing is when the soldiers die in occupied regions or near the front line. For families who have sought refuge in another country, this is doubly painful, because they cannot pray at the graves of their husbands and fathers. Far from home, facing the suffocating fear of a dark future, and overwhelmed by grief, they are often overcome by rage.
In the same way, some soldiers who previously practised their faith turn away from a God who seems silent in the face of all the cruelties they have witnessed. And yet, thanks to conversations with the priests, many gradually turn back to Christ. Others rediscover their faith, because the spiritual questions grow more intense as the war continues.
Here too, chaplains play an essential role. “Often you imagine the chaplains only at the front, but their task in the rear is just as important,” says Fr. Taras Ovsianyk, a young priest of the Greek Catholic Church. Their roles in rehabilitation and recovery centres are equally important, as they are present and listen.
Alongside the military chaplains, hundreds more priests in Ukraine have been trained to accompany all those who have been wounded and traumatized by the war and provide them spiritual support. “Half of the clergy have completed this training for the therapeutic rehabilitation program. That is 1,500 out of 3,000 priests,” said Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. He considers the care of people with post-traumatic stress disorder very important, which is why he is very grateful to ACN for its support in this area.
Trying to be a calming influence in an atmosphere of aggression, hate and indignation, and letting the presence of God bloom in the hearts of these deeply wounded men is a daunting task, which can seem impossible from a human perspective, yet the Holy Spirit is at work through the priests.
During the three years since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has approved and financed 977 projects, including 175 requests for Mass intentions, totalling almost $5.25 million. Altogether, more than $37.8 million has been made available to help the Catholic Church of both rites across the whole of Ukraine. Examples of projects in 2024 include the purchase of two vehicles, such as that used by Father Novak, which act as mobile chapels for pastoral care in the besieged areas of the Diocese of Odessa-Simferopol and other parts of eastern Ukraine.
