Resurrection Church of
Slavyansk attacked in Ukraine
-By Pamela Rae Schuffert
presenting investigative journalism from a Biblical Christian perspective-
My heart broke when I read the following article from the Ukraine.
How would you feel if you had been in church last Sunday, only to have bombs or
shelling strike your church? This is exactly what happened to these people. How
very sad.
Please pray that the divine hands of God's mercy will intervene
and retrain the violence and horror of fighting in the Ukraine at this time.
May God bless and protect His beloved people in the midst of this bloody chaos.
The Body of Christ is ONE throughout the world, regardless of
nationality.
-Pamela Rae Schuffert-
Ukrainian government forces have shelled a church in the city of
Slavyansk in eastern Ukraine. An estimated 1,000 people were on the territory
of the church during the shelling, which lasted for 30 minutes; however, none
was killed, nor injured. Moreover, Ukrainian forces shelled the microdistrict
of Artyom and the city's central marketplace, where several people died, the
statement on the eparchy's website says.
Cathedral of St Alexander
Nevsky being shelled
"The
shelling began on Sunday morning at 6 am GMT during a liturgy. People were
praying, when Ukrainian forces produced a first volley from Karachun hill. One woman was nearly beheaded by
an explosion. We've
buried her," archpriest Nikolay Fomenko said.
Ukrainian government forces have launched an attack on the
Cathedral of St. Alexander Nevsky in Slavyansk, according to the local diocese.
"There were several more volleys and one of the shells hit
the Palyanitsa bread kiosk located a few meters from the church, tearing it
apart and burning whatever was left. Having heard the first volley, the
saleswoman ran out - and that saved her life," said Archpriest Nikolay
Fomenko, added.
"After the shooting began, everyone rushed into the church,
people were praying on their knees. The wave of explosion hit the dome and
smashed several stained-glass windows, prompting the people to pray even more.
The volleys lasted for about half an hour," the priest said.
Speaking about the attacks on the Artyom micro-district and the
central market, he said, that "civilians were killed in the Artyom area,
two have already been buried today, Father Tikhon read a service for them. Our
morgue is not working as there is no light in the city, so people have to bury
their relatives in this warm weather straight away.
One woman who was buried
had her head nearly ripped off."
Ukrainian government forces have been firing at Slavyansk
churches for seven days now, he recalled.
Another
church shelled in the region
Why would the Ukrainian government be shelling churches during
this time of internal conflict? What military threat do peaceful unarmed
Christians pose to them? Shouldn't their attacks be aimed more towards
actual military targets instead? What kind of dark hidden agenda is this, that
they are deliberately targeting churches and seeking to murder innocent
Christians?
Please, let us join in prayer for God's children in the Ukraine,
caught unwillingly in the crossfire of such deadly conflicts.
-Pamela
Rae Schuffert-
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