Photo: Orthodox Church of Ukraine
Press Release No: 12/25
14 October 2025
Brussels
A visit by Nordic bishops to Ukraine brought moments of solidarity amid war and crises. The bishops were reconnecting with Ukrainians—including ecclesial as well as state representatives.
Dr Jonas Adelin Jørgensen, who is a member of Conference of European Churches (CEC) Pathways to Peace Steering Group, was among the delegation that travelled to Ukraine.
"Meeting with Ukrainian colleagues – pastors, relief workers, and community mobilizers – and simply seeing them again in real life was a joy and very meaningful,” said Jørgensen, who is Academic Secretary for the Council on International Relations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark, a Member Church of CEC.
The visit held from 29 September to 3 October, carried forth the vision of CEC’s Pathways to Peace initiative which, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, promotes justice, reconciliation and peace. Pathways to Peace develops cooperation between church leaders, intellectuals, and academics in preparation for peace in Ukraine.
“When you eat together, travel together and worship together, you are co-journeying for a short time,” said Jørgensen, describing how the Pathways to Peace vision works on a local level. “For a short moment, we are able to walk beside Ukrainian Christians in a time of war and crises.”
Statement urges return of Ukrainian children
After the visit, the delegation published a Joint Statement of the Nordic Bishops on the Return of Forcibly Transferred Ukrainian Children. The statement reflects that the forcible transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia represents not merely a political or humanitarian crisis, but a deep wound inflicted upon the image of God.
“Christian faith and human rights agree in acknowledging each person’s infinite and inherent dignity,” reads the statement. "The Russian Federation must immediately cease all strikes and stop forced transfers of Ukrainian children and collaborate with the Red Cross in facilitating reunification with families and return to territories of origin.”
CEC General Secretary Rev. Frank-Dieter Fischbach expressed his appreciation for the delegation’s visit as well as their compassion and concern for vulnerable and innocent people deeply traumatized by the war in Ukraine.
“Confronted with ongoing violence and seemingly never-ending violations of human rights and human dignity in Ukraine, we find hope in the strong connections nurtured by this delegation of Nordic bishops,” he said. “Let us continue to ensure that the voices of churches are heard, their witness is realized, and that Pathways to Peace continue to be forged.”
Standing with Ukraine
During the visit, the delegation met with Parliament Chair Ruslan Stefanchuk (Servant of People Party) who also represented Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and with Viktor Yelenskiy, Director of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Affairs and Freedom of Conscience.
"Both thanked the Nordic countries for standing with Ukraine, and Mr Stefanchuk mentioned the warm relations with chairs of parliament in the Nordic countries,” said Jørgensen. “Mr Yelenskiy mentioned the need for de-mining efforts in the coming years, and we discussed the newly introduced law banning religious organisations with ties to the Russian Orthodox Church, and how to balance the questions concerning security with freedom of religion or belief.”
The delegation also joined Ukrainians in observing the national Ukrainian holiday “Defenders Day” on 1 October.
Archbishop Elia of the Orthodox Church of Finland was invited to be co-celebrant with Metropolitan Epiphany of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine, for the liturgy in St Michael’s Church in Kyiv.
Archbishop Elia delivered a message underscoring that Ukrainians have defended their freedom, not fighting merely for physical freedom, but for the right to be God’s free children in their own land. The archbishop cited the Apostle Paul: “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption” (Romans 8:15).
Sustainable peace
“The war has been a humanitarian catastrophe, a financial catastrophe, and a spiritual catastrophe,” acknowledged Jørgensen. “But it has also brought together churches across traditions in Ukraine, bringing about the realisation of the big Orthodox churches that even if they are big in numbers they still need friends outside of Ukraine.”
Everyone the delegation met has lost friends and family members at the front in the battle against Russia. “Everyone is traumatized by the losses,” said Jørgensen. "Everyone wants the war to stop and the violence to end.”
But he believes that, for peace to be just and sustainable, more needs to happen than the war and violence to stop. “Therefore, Ukrainians are still fighting – for the success of their impossible cause,” he said.
Statement of the Nordic Bishops on the Return of Forcibly Transferred Ukrainian Children
The Call to Peace by Finnish churches
Learn more about Pathways to Peace
For more information or an interview, please contact:
Naveen Qayyum
Communications Coordinator
Conference of European Churches
Rue Joseph II, 174 B-1000 Brussels
Tel. +32 486 75 82 36
E-mail: naveen@cec-kek.be
Website: www.ceceurope.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ceceurope
Twitter: @ceceurope
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