Since the onset of Russia’s full-scale aggression, thousands of people from around the world have heeded the call of their hearts to provide whatever assistance they can to Ukraine in its righteous struggle for the right to live among the family of free nations. Some of them have come to Ukraine and enlisted in the Armed Forces; some are collecting various humanitarian aid desperately needed to sustain the country’s resilience amid Russia’s criminal attacks on civilian infrastructure; and some are contributing to Ukraine’s defense capabilities or assisting internally displaced persons from regions affected by hostilities. In other words, each of these benefactors has their own inner motivation to help our country, rooted in the timeless principles of morality and justice. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
One such benefactor is the Primate of the Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (BAOC), Metropolitan Seraphim (Igor Chikita) of Vilnius and New York. A difficult fate took His Eminence across the ocean. A Belarusian by birth, he devoted most of his pastoral ministry to the revival and establishment of the Local Ukrainian Church. As the head of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) in Sevastopol, he rallied not only lay believers around the idea of a Ukrainian church but was also appointed by the UAOC as chaplain to the Ukrainian Navy and other military units stationed on the Crimean Peninsula. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Севастополь, 05.04.2006 року. Святкування Дня створення ВМС ЗС України. Отець Серафим в центрі.
His boundless loyalty to God and Ukraine made the Bishop a well-known figure in Sevastopol, embodying the Ukrainian spiritual revival in a region that had been forcibly Russified during the Soviet era. Naturally, his active religious and educational work provoked discontent and outrage among anti-Ukrainian forces. Thus, with the assistance of Russian special services, numerous provocations and acts of intimidation were repeatedly carried out against the Bishop, ranging from physical attacks to the arson of the church, which was located on the grounds of the Central Naval Hospital.
After Yanukovych’s clique came to power in Ukraine in 2010, the situation became even more dangerous for Father Seraphim. This was because the church belonging to the UAOC community in Sevastopol was forcibly seized and illegally transferred to the Moscow Patriarchate. Under pressure from circumstances, and taking into account the decision of the UAOC hierarchy, Bishop Seraphim left for the United States, where in 2011 he was consecrated as Bishop of Vilnius and New York of the OCA.
Жовтень 2022. м. Клівленд, США. Святкування 100-ліття відродження БАПЦ
Since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, Bishop Seraphim, together with his congregation, has been doing everything in his power to support Ukrainian refugees who have been forced to seek asylum in the United States. In addition, the church community he leads raised funds and purchased a drone for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which was delivered to Ukraine by the NGO “League of Officers ”Help breaks down barriers).
For its part, the team at the “League of Officers” NGO is grateful to His Eminence for his support of Ukraine and his clear pro-Ukrainian stance amid efforts to repel and contain the armed aggression of the Russian Federation (“A VISITOR FROM HELL – BACK TO HELL!”: Metropolitan Seraphim of Vilnius and New York).
16.02.2023