A Russian airstrike on Palm Sunday killed at least 34 people in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy in the deadliest attack of the conflict so far this year.
Merritt Johnston, executive director of Baptist World Alliance (BWA) Women, said she received a video from a BWA Women leader showing a church service in Sumy interrupted by a bomb blast and shattering glass.
“We are heartbroken by this violence and continue to pray for just peace,” said Johnston, director of communications for BWA.
“On this Holy Week, when we turn our hearts to the peace we have through Christ’s resurrection, we grieve for those who live daily with the tyranny of violence, even in places that should be sanctuaries.
“We call upon our global Baptist family to stand in prayer with our sisters and brothers who are suffering as they continue to serve their communities with a faith that bombs cannot destroy.”
Your tax-deductible gift supports our mission of reporting the truth and restoring the church. Donate $50 or more to The Roys Report this month, and you can elect to receive “Days of Fire and Glory: The Rise and Fall of a Charismatic Community” by Julia Duin, haga clic aquí.
The Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations issued una declaración condemning the attack at the beginning of the seasons when Jews observe Passover and Christians celebrate Easter.
“Such actions demonstrate that nothing is sacred for the state that declares itself to be ‘Holy Rus.’ Basic respect for the value of human life is absent, not to mention respect for the holidays of Christianity and Judaism,” the council statement reads.
The statement notes Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant Christians all are observing Easter on the same day this year.
“We, heads of Ukrainian Churches and Religious Organizations, strongly condemn the terrorist attacks by the Russian Federation on Ukrainian cities and villages and call on the world’s leading nations to take all possible measures to stop Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine and to strengthen Ukraine’s capabilities to defend itself and protect life,” the council statement reads.
“We call on all people of goodwill to pray for the victory of truth and a just peace for Ukraine.
“Our condolences go to the victims of Russian state terror and we beseech the Almighty for just retribution against the perpetrators of this and all other acts of Russian terror against the people of Ukraine.”
Similarly, Daniel Darling, a longtime Southern Baptist lay leader and director of the Land Center for Faith and Culture at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, posted a video from a contact in the region.
“This Baptist church is 100 yards from the missile location,” wrote Darling. “A husband, wife, and child on their way to Palm Sunday services was killed. Pray for our brothers and sisters in peril.”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the attack “horrifying.”
“The United States extends our deepest condolences to the victims of today’s horrifying Russian missile attack on Sumy,” a statement Rubio issued from the U.S. Department of State reads.
“This is a tragic reminder of why President Trump and his Administration are putting so much time and effort into trying to end this war and achieve a just and durable peace.”
Josh Shepherd contributed to his article, which originally appeared at The Baptist Standard y ha sido reimpreso con permiso.
Ken Camp, based in the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex, is the managing editor of The Baptist Standard.
Spanish 
English 
8 Responses
Very sad that people die like this in war zones. However, at least one person is calling for both sides to end the killing and the war. It’s Donald J. Trump.
I’m pretty sure that if the aggressor state, Russia in this case, ceased attacks and withdrew its invasion force, that Ukraine would also stop fighting defensively.
The only way to end this war would be for Russia to withdraw its troops from all Ukrainian territory including the Donbas region and Crimea)
But that will never happen as long as Putin is in power. So I am sure Trump will pull a Neville Chamberlain and try to let Russia keep the Sudetenland (aka Donbas region and the Crimea) in exchange for “peace” with his buddy Putin.
Let’s be clear, there is one side committing war crimes and one side defending their sovereignty and the lives of their citizens. Yes, 47 is calling for both sides to end the war, but that is a patently ridiculous position. Ukraine bears no responsibility for the evil that continues to be done to them.
please explain to me why you are covering this and other war conflicts that kill christians but Ive not seen a single story about israel killing christians by blowing up every church and christian hospital in gaza and starving to death tens of thousands by cutting off water, food, and medicine to 2 million palestinians??
TRR doesn’t have correspondents in countries other than the U.S., so stories like these are reprints from other media outlets. If we found a similar story about an attack on a church in Gaza, and could get permission to publish, we would.
The attack on Sumy was a war crime. This is just one more instance of thousands of war crimes carried out by the Russians and Putin. Oh yea Trump called it a….. “mistake”.
I do not look much any longer to the U.S Evangelical church on guidance when it comes to ethics as 80%-90% support a thug like Trump.
That is because Trump is Putin’s buddy (or minion). After all, American Evangelicals are drawn to strongmen, who will uphold “Christian” values and morals. After all, there is no gay marriage in Russia or Hungary or post-Weimar Germany for that matter, as Putin, Orban, and another guy want(ed) to make Russia, Hungary, or Germany Great Again. After all, they fight.