WASHINGTON – Courageous negotiations require boldness to open the door for dialogue, said Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, echoing the words of Pope Francis.
Archbishop Broglio’s reflection for Lent follows:
“As we begin the holy Season of Lent, a time of prayer, penance, and charity, we join our Holy Father, Pope Francis, in his solidarity with the ‘martyred people of Ukraine.’ We pray and hope that the United States, in concert with the wider international community, works with perseverance for a just peace and an end to aggression. As our Holy Father reminded us in 2024, courageous negotiations require ‘boldness’ to ‘open the door’ for dialogue.
“As Catholics, we are acutely aware that every past occupation of Ukraine has resulted in various degrees of repression of the Catholic Church in the country; we must not tolerate the forcing of our brothers and sisters underground again. I echo Pope Francis’ plea for respecting the religious freedom of all Ukrainians, ‘Please, let no Christian church be abolished directly or indirectly. Churches are not to be touched!’
“In addition to offering prayers and sacrifices for a truly just peace in Ukraine, an opportunity for effective solidarity presents itself in the annual USCCB collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, which will be taken up in many dioceses on Ash Wednesday. By contributing to this collection, Catholics in the United States can be assured that their assistance will directly help their struggling brothers and sisters in Ukraine, as well as in over twenty other countries in the region. I invite America’s Catholics, in union with all men and women of good will, to pray for the peace of Ukraine, and to contribute generously to assisting that suffering and courageous nation.”
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