Prime Minister: senseless cruelty and crimes against humanity are incompatible with Christian ethics and values and should have no place in the world
The senseless cruelty and crimes against humanity perpetrated by Russia, which is continuing its war against Ukraine, are incompatible with Christian ethics and should have no place in the world, Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said in her welcoming speech at the international conference: Intercultural and Religious Dialogue.
At the conference, which was also attended by His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, who is visiting Lithuania at the invitation of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Lithuania, Mrs Šimonytė highlighted the importance of intercultural and interreligious dialogue amidst the war, also the incredible capacity for compassion and love, which is evident in the efforts by many people in helping Ukraine.
‘Russia’s war against Ukraine has been ongoing since 2014. However, the brutal, large-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, which began on 24 February of last year, marked a turning point that had a significant impact on the world. We saw Bucha and Mariupol, missiles flying into buildings known to house or serve children, railway platforms crowded with people, also maternity wards, schools, and hospitals, said the Prime Minister at the discussion: Response of Churches and Religious Communities to War and Conflicts.
‘I have often wondered why the suffering and pain of Ukrainians so deeply and almost physically seared into our flesh more than a year ago, and has not as yet subsided. Perhaps it is due to a genuine sense of brotherhood and historical ties, as well as the realisation that if Ukraine does not withstand and prevail, the war could reach our own doorstep. It seems to me that there is a deeper intuition at play: the belief that senseless cruelty and crimes against humanity are fundamentally incompatible with Christian ethics and values.
On the other hand, the war has also brought to light the incredible capacity for compassion and love that exists in human beings. I am so proud of the way in which the people of Lithuania have demonstrated their solidarity and support for the people of Ukraine. I am also very grateful to all the Lithuanian religious communities and organisations who have demonstrated remarkable acts of neighbourly love, caring for not only the Ukrainians that remained in their country oppressed by the war, but also for those who have been forced to flee their homes and seek refuge abroad’, said the Head of Government.
The Prime Minister pointed out the efforts of the Lithuanian Catholic hierarchs and of the representatives of other Christian communities in ensuring that Ukrainians brought up in the Eastern Christian tradition are not left without pastoral care.
‘It is particularly important that the Patriarchate of Constantinople has responded to the needs of the orthodox community in Lithuania who wish to remain in their tradition, and that today they have the opportunity to confess their faith and receive the sacraments without having to choose between their faith and their beliefs’, added Ingrida Šimonytė.
Five Lithuanian clergy have found a religious home in the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which has undoubtedly enriched Lithuania as a whole and has opened up new opportunities for the Mother Church to return to Lithuania and for Eastern Christianity to flourish here.
Christian thinker Saint s Augustine emphasised that peace is not merely the absence of hostilities but the restoration of a just order. That is what the war-torn but unbroken people of Ukraine are seeking today, and that is what I believe all of us gathered here want’, said Prime Minister.