Delegation from Norwegian Council of Churches has arrived in Kyiv on two-day solidarity visit. PHOTOS
The All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations met in Kyiv with a delegation from the Norwegian Council of Churches. The parties discussed support for Ukraine and the activities of churches during the war.
This was reported by the press service of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations, as reported by Censor.NET.
Details
The Norwegian delegation’s visit to Kyiv will last two days.
During the meeting, members of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations expressed their gratitude to the delegation of Norwegian religious leaders for this visit of solidarity in support of the Ukrainian people.
"They emphasised the importance of interfaith dialogue and cooperation, particularly during the war; spoke about the spiritual, humanitarian and social activities of Ukrainian churches and religious organisations in society whilst repelling Russian military aggression against Ukraine; and reported on religious persecution by the occupying authorities in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine," the statement reads.
Representatives of the Norwegian Council of Churches stated that they are ready to provide every possible assistance to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.
They also noted that this year in Norway is a year of preparation for the country’s defence against possible aggression, and that Ukraine’s experience and the work of Ukrainian churches are of great importance to them.
Composition of the delegations
Representing the Norwegian Council of Churches at the meeting were: Rev. Henrik Erhard Hermansen, General Secretary of the Norwegian Council of Churches; Rev. Harald Hegstad, President of the Norwegian Lutheran Church; Rev. Oystein Gjerm, President of the Norwegian Pentecostal Association, Rev. Sten Sørensen, President of the Baptist Church of Norway; Paul André Bratbak, priest and assistant bishop of the Catholic Church in Norway; Rev. Herborg Oline Finnset, Bishop of the Norwegian Lutheran Church; and Rev. Oyvind Haraldsøy, General Secretary of the Norwegian Bible Society.
Representing the Ukrainian side at the meeting were: the Chair of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations, Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Epiphanius; Bishop Serhii Kippa, Auxiliary Bishop of the Kyiv-Zhytomyr Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Ukraine; Senior Bishop Anatoliy Kozachok of the Ukrainian Church of Evangelical Christians; Vasyl Furt, Deputy Chair of the All-Ukrainian Union of Evangelical Christian Baptist Churches; Pastor Stanislav Nosov, representative of the Ukrainian Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventist Churches; Anatoliy Raichynets, Deputy General Secretary of the Ukrainian Bible Society; Metropolitan Yevstratiy of Bila Tserkva of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, and representatives of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the German Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ukraine, the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Ukraine and the Institute for Religious Freedom.
