SW News: The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk early this week revealed videos that showed Orthodox priests hailing the war in Ukraine. The top prelate showed the videos during a conference in Rome on Monday. He was speaking during a meeting with envoys to the Holy See.

Major Archbishop Shevchuk mentioned how the spectre of the Russian world ideology is rising within the Russian Orthodox Church and it is being openly promoted by the patriarchate in Moscow. The prelate played two videos in which a fully vested Orthodox priest is seen handling an artillery item and hailing the war that is targeting NATO. It also depicts a priest instructing soldiers how to pray the formula to bless bullets before being placed in the magazine.

Major Archbishop Shevchuk stressed the need to take steps to secure peace and stability in the country as the Russian onslaught continues. During the conference, he also revealed the blatant violation of human rights and the tragic humanitarian situation in the Eastern European country.

He also slammed the deployment of weapons that are prohibited and how they target civilian targets. The Major Archbishop also bemoaned the forced displacement of Ukrainians and the deportation of a large number of citizens to Russia.

The Major Archbishop said that “there are signs of hope” and peace remains “an open question”. However, it can take place only after the truth has been revealed. He added that it won’t be an easy road.

The conference was held at the Palazzo della Rovere, which is the headquarters of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. As many as 30 envoys took part in the meeting along with the Grand Master of the order, Cardinal Fernando Filoni.