A Ukrainian delegation to the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington will make the case that Russia threatens the religious freedom of Christians who don’t follow the Russian Orthodox Church.
Andrew E. Kramer and Lara Jakes
Andrew E. Kramer reported from Kyiv and Lara Jakes from Rome.
Ukraine is sending its largest-ever delegation to a gathering of politically influential Christian leaders in Washington this week, seeking to lay out an argument that protecting religious freedom is a strong reason for continuing U.S. aid to resist Russian aggression.
The Ukrainian pastors, members of Parliament and military chaplains who will be attending the National Prayer Breakfast say they hope the message of combating religious persecution will resonate with the Trump administration officials and members of Congress who are sure to also be there.
The prayer breakfast, a major event on Washington’s social calendar since 1953, presents an opportunity for business executives, religious leaders and diplomats to jockey for access to influential coreligionists in government to sway policies. While the meeting is open to all faiths, its purpose, according to its website, is ”gathering together in the Spirit of Jesus of Nazareth.”
The Ukrainians will argue to those gathered that further Russian advances would expand a zone of repression of several Christian denominations, as well as the destruction and looting of churches and the arrests of pastors and priests — actions that rights groups have documented in areas already under Russian occupation.
“Russia doesn’t just kill people, doesn’t just destroy our cities — Russia also destroys and bans religious communities” in areas under its control, said Roman Lozynskyi, a member of Parliament with the opposition Holos Party.
Mr. Lozynskyi is a member of the Greek Catholic Church, part of a branch known as Eastern Rite Catholicism that follows the Vatican, that is persecuted in Russian-held parts of Ukraine. He recalled the deportation of a friend and Greek Catholic priest in the Russian-held city of Melitopol as an example of the suppression of Catholic congregations under occupation.
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