Equipping Ukrainian Christians for a time of war
It’s been four years since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. In that time, any sense of normal life has been upended. The sound of air-raid sirens is part of the fabric of everyday life. Thousands have lost their lives. Hundreds of thousands have been forced to leave their homes and their country.
According to experts, trauma like this impacts a society for at least a generation — 30 or 40 years. As the initial crisis morphed into a long-term reality, church leaders began to ask, “How can we equip believers to live biblically in the midst of war? How can we help them grieve and prepare for the challenges they’re facing?”
Oleksandr Geychenko is one of those leaders.
Equipping Ukrainian Christians for the unthinkable
“We started seeing the way our expertise could help the churches … and we started addressing the issues which are really and very relevant,” says Oleksandr Geychenko.
Oleksandr is the head of Odessa Theological Seminary. Through Langham, he and other key leaders wrote and published two books last year that speak to Ukrainian believers during wartime.
One, Light in the Valley of the Shadow of Death shares the stories of 12 Ukrainian Christians living and serving during war. It tackles the struggles that Christians face during times of war and how war shapes a new spiritual experience of prayer, Bible reading and ministry.
In the second, Beatitudes and Terror, Ukrainian theologians explore the Beatitudes as a source of spiritual and ethical guidance in the context of revolution, war, and natural disaster. “We cannot make ethical decisions just based upon the situation. There is a wider framework, and scripture is that framework,” Oleksandr says.
Chaplains ministering in the Ukrainian army already have copies of Beatitudes and Terror, providing them with a key ministry tool as they care for soldiers enduring extreme challenges.
How Langham works with the Majority World church
Langham works with local theologians, authors and editors like Oleksandr so that the church is able to have resources exactly like this — relevant, urgent and practical, addressing questions believers in a country and community are grappling with.
Last year, Langham published 39 books by authors from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. Regional editors help identify resources the church needs in their area, then mentor and work with authors to develop books that meet those needs. Together, the church becomes stronger.
“For us, doing theology is not an academic exercise. For us, doing theology is making sense of our life,” Oleksandr says.
As the war continues to drag on, Oleksandr asks that we pray for resilience and energy. At his seminary, “Some of our faculty were conscripted; some left the countries; others are exhausted. Finding people who are ready to jump in, so to speak, is very important. And of course, for those who continue their work, we need resilience.”