A front-line soldier about provocateurs near Lavra: It hurts me to watch it

A participant in the hostilities came to the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra to stand in prayer. Photo: screenshot of the video of the Telegram channel “Pershy Kozatsky”

A Ukrainian Armed Forces serviceman who participated in a prayer vigil at the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra on November 22, 2023, strongly condemned the actions of anti-church "activists" who were trying to disrupt the prayers of the UOC believers.

In a statement to "Pershy Kozatsky", the soldier shared that he came from Europe after the full-scale invasion by Russia to defend Ukraine. He currently serves as a mechanic-driver of a BMP-2 and is engaged in combat on the Kupyansk direction.

According to the soldier, he has been a parishioner of the UOC since the age of seven. When visiting Kyiv, he always attended the Lavra, and now it pains him to see what provocateurs are doing near the sanctuary.

"They don't think about what is happening on the front line; they hang posters and engage in iniquities," said the serviceman. He said it was heard and painful for him to watch provocations near the Lavra, emphasizing that his fellow soldiers are involved in storming operations while these obscure people are causing disruptions.

The soldier suggested that the provocateurs could better serve by setting up a donation box to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine, especially for collecting funds for drones. He expressed his discomfort and pain about the situation near the Lavra, criticizing the actions of those trying to prove something to someone.

The soldier highlighted the unity among his fellow soldiers on the front lines, emphasizing that there is no division based on religious beliefs or language among them.

"Nobody cares about what faith someone professes or what language they speak. This doesn't prevent anyone from defending our homeland. What is happening here is already a circus," said the frontline soldier.

He underscored that in a free country, there is freedom of religion, and people have the right to choose where to be, what to do, and what to say. The soldier affirmed his commitment to continue supporting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, stating that he grew up in it, and it raised him, and now he stands with it

As the UOJ reported, on the day of remembrance of the righteous Peter Kalnyshevsky, the patron saint of Ukrainian soldiers, participants in the prayer standing at the Kiev Pechersk Lavra offered special prayers in front of the relics of the saint for the defenders of Ukraine.

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