27.02.2026
Moving Service Marks Fourth Anniversary of War in Ukraine
The fourth anniversary of the full scale invasion of Ukraine was marked on Tuesday evening (February 24) with a service organised by the Ukrainian Orthodox Parish in Dublin. ‘A Prayer for Ukraine’ took place in St John the Baptist Church in Drumcondra where the parish currently meets.
Fr Serhii Danilov led the moving service which included prayers for peace and a memorial litany for the departed. He was joined in solidarity by representatives of other Christian Churches including Archbishop Michael Jackson, Auxiliary Bishop of Dublin Bishop Paul Dempsey and Bishop Sarah Groves of the Moravian Church and President of the Irish Council of Churches. Rector of Howth and Rural Dean, the Revd Philip Heak, led prayers for peace and healing in English.
At the end of the service Fr Danilov spoke directly to those who “know the war, not from the news but from their own lives, to those who left their homes in the night and to those who do not know if they have homes to return to and to those who have been living in Ireland for years”.
He told them they had not betrayed their homeland but they were forced to leave. He said they were not alone even when they felt no one fully understood them. He said that the Lord sees every tear, every sleepless night and hears every prayer. “The Church here is for you, a place where you do not have to pretend to be strong, a place where you can simply be, pray, remain silent, to weep and to find hope again. I do not know when the war will end but we know that the light of peace is stronger than any darkness… As long as we pray together we do not lose what matters most – faith, love and hope,” he added.
Archbishop Michael Jackson said it was an honour to be invited to join the service “in solidarity with your suffering and in hope of your freedom and your continuation of that hope for freedom with justice and integrity. Those values and those principles matter to each of us and you are standing for them on behalf of us all”.
Bishop Paul Dempsey also spoke of the importance of hope. “Sometimes in the face of suffering, in the face of war, we can feel helpless, we don’t know what to do. But on this night, the fourth anniversary of the beginning of the war I pray that each candle that is lit here tonight might bring a little bit of light and love and peace to somebody back home in Ukraine who is struggling, who is worried, who has grief in their heart. We send that light of Christ, that light of hope, that light of love,” he said.
Bishop Sarah Groves brought the prayers and solidary of the Irish Council of Churches. “Today we remember, children, the women and men, those fighting the war, those attempting to farm the land. I learned today that it is now the most mined country in the world – what a terrible thing, not only trouble for today but trouble for years to come… As Christians we believe in a God who defends the needs of the poor and the needy and is the God of justice and it is to that God that we pray today, in sorrow, in anger, in grief and in worry. But always in hope that that God hears our prayers,” she said.
There were also contributions from Irish Supporters of Ukraine and people from Ukraine who are living in Ireland. They thanked those present for their solidarity and the people of Ireland for their support.
