Due to the different warlike confrontations that are currently taking place in different parts of the planet, Pope Francis has affirmed on several occasions that we are living through a "World War III in pieces". Last February 24, the war in Ukraine was two years old, while on October 7, 2023, another conflict broke out in the Holy Land between Israel and Palestine, which seems to be just the beginning of another long war.
Loving one's enemies
How can Christians involved in such situations act? Father Mateusz Adamski, a Polish priest who is currently the parish priest of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Kiev (Ukraine) and vice-rector of the seminary of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Kiev (Ukraine) and vice-rector of the seminary of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Kiev (Ukraine). Redemptoris MaterHe is clear that these last two years, although full of suffering, have also been "...a time of great hope".a time of grace"in which "we have been able to really touch the living God".
Despite the fear that "people are psychologically tired" and that "there are several parishioners we have in the military"The parish of the Assumption in Kiev has launched an important initiative: praying in community for the enemies. In the context of war, according to Father Mateusz, "it is important to pray in community for the enemies.calls for reflection on the commandment to love one's enemy"and this "is especially manifested in the common prayers with God's people for our enemies".
As Father Mateusz explains, "the commandment of the Sermon on the Mount"has caused parishioners to experience a purification".in their faith journey, even if it means going against themselves."and this "is strengthening them in the faith through common prayer.".
Imitating Christ's forgiveness
The same indicates to Omnes the father Pedro ZafraHe is the parochial vicar of the same parish in Kiev, who has been in Ukraine for more than ten years. This priest from Cordoba explains that "theontinuous prayer for our enemies in our parish community is the order of the day."and points out in particular that on a daily basis, "in every Eucharist, especially in the prayer of the faithful, we pray for all those who have lost their lives in this conflict, for the combatants, for peace in Ukraine and in the world.". He underlines that the community prays that ".the Lord change the hearts of our enemies and, in the first place, change our hearts as well.".
In addition, every Sunday they hold an adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in which they pray for peace, while every Friday, on the Way of the Cross, they commend their persecutors. "We ask the Lord to help us to enter into this suffering, into this cross. Just as He Himself, while we were His enemies, interceded before the Father for us, saying 'Forgive them, for they know not what they do', so must we do the same. This is the mission of every Christian and it is also our mission, and we see that it is something fundamental, above all to give meaning to suffering, because many times we concentrate more on what is human justice. However, the justice of Jesus Christ is that which prays for its enemies, that which is capable of responding to evil with good, of responding to evil with prayer.", he says.
As an example of forgiveness, Father Pedro Zafra gives a close testimony, when an older married couple, with six children, lost one of them who was fighting on the front. "At the funeral, both his parents and his brothers said publicly: 'We forgive our enemies, we forgive those who killed our son and our brother'. It is also a testimony of how the Lord acts in the heart of each person, that, despite the hatred that is the order of the day, there are also these miracles, in which we experience that God is good and that God is present and does not leave us alone, but manifests his presence and love through this difficult situation in which we feel supported, we feel comforted by Jesus Christ. Moreover, through the sacraments, the Eucharist and Confession, we can access this forgiveness, we can see how the Lord also changes our hearts.".
Proposals for prayer for peace have also been promoted in Russia. In May 2022, a community prayer of the Rosary for peace was held in Moscow in direct connection with Pope Francis from the Vatican. In the Russian capital, the ceremony was presided over by Monsignor Paolo Pezzi, Metropolitan Archbishop of the Mother of God in Moscow since 2007, and was attended by more than a hundred people.
"We must also pray for the guilty."
Prayers for peace are not limited to the war in Ukraine. Friar Emmanuel belongs to the Custody of the Holy Land, the order, founded by St. Francis of Assisi, which was entrusted by the Holy See to guard the places that witnessed the Incarnation of Christ, and explains that "At my sanctuary in Bethphage, which has a Christian quarter built by the Custody, and which is located in a rather radical Arab area, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays we gather to pray the rosary for peace. It is moving to see Christians, mostly Palestinians, coming together convinced that peace is possible if we are able to remain united in the God of peace and that Mary, Queen of Peace, is our strength.".
In addition, several days of prayer for peace and enemies have been held in the Holy Land.
In the early days of the conflict, on October 17, 2023, the Benedictine monks residing on Mount Zion organized a day of prayer in the Basilica of the Dormition, with the slogan. The Church under the cross. The basilica remained open for twenty-four hours, starting at midnight on October 17. During the day, a Eucharist was celebrated at 7:30 a.m. and all the psalms in the Bible were read (one hundred and fifty in all), while the young people prayed a prayer inspired by the Taizé prayers.
In this initiative, there was no lack of prayer for the enemies, since, according to Benedictine Abbot Father Nikodemus Schnabel, "We believe that every human being is created in the image of God. Even a murderer, even a person who has terrible sins is still a human being, a person created in the image of God. We all pray for the victims, but we must also pray for the guilty! Let us pray for people who have committed unspeakable crimes, who have killed, so that they may realize what they have done, repent and ask for forgiveness, and may find God's mercy.".
