Prayer for Ukraine
Here we have some information about Ukraine that gives some background to the conflict.
This is followed by some prayers written by Christian Aid
Click here for a prayer by Pete Grieg of 24/7 prayer.
Why does Ukraine matter?
For those who ask: “Why does Ukraine matter?" This is why Ukraine matters: 
It is the second largest country in Europe by area and has a population of over 43 million persons - more than Poland by about 6 million.
Ukraine ranks:
1st in Europe in proven recoverable reserves of uranium ores;
2nd place in Europe and 10th place in the world in terms of titanium ore reserves;
2nd place in the world in terms of explored reserves of manganese ores (2.3 billion tons, or 12% of the world's reserves);
2nd largest iron ore reserves in the world (30 billion tons);
2nd place in Europe in terms of mercury ore reserves;
3rd place in Europe (13th place in the world) in shale gas reserves (22 trillion cubic meters)
4th in the world by the total value of natural resources;
7th place in the world in coal reserves (33.9 billion tons)
Ukraine is an important agricultural country:
1st in Europe in terms of arable land area;
3rd place in the world by the area of black soil (25% of world's volume);
1st place in the world in exports of sunflower and sunflower oil;
2nd place in the world in barley production and 4th place in barley exports;
3rd largest producer and 4th largest exporter of corn in the world;
4th largest producer of potatoes in the world;
5th largest rye producer in the world;
5th place in the world in bee production (75,000 tons);
8th place in the world in wheat exports;
9th place in the world in the production of chicken eggs;
16th place in the world in cheese exports.
Ukraine can meet the food needs of 600 million people.
Ukraine is an important industrialised country:
1st in Europe in ammonia production;
Europe's 2nd’s and the world’s 4th largest natural gas pipeline system;
3rd largest in Europe and 8th largest in the world in terms of installed capacity of nuclear power plants;
3rd place in Europe and 11th in the world in terms of rail network length (21,700 km);
3rd place in the world (after the U.S. and France) in production of locators and locating equipment;
3rd largest iron exporter in the world
4th largest exporter of turbines for nuclear power plants in the world;
4th world's largest manufacturer of rocket launchers;
4th place in the world in clay exports
4th place in the world in titanium exports
8th place in the world in exports of ores and concentrates;
9th place in the world in exports of defence industry products;
10th largest steel producer in the world (32.4 million tons).
Ukraine matters. That is why its independence is important to the rest of the world.
Holodomor
At the entrance to the Kiev Memorial Park there is a sculpture of a very thin girl with an extremely sad look holding several classes of wheat in her hands. Behind her back is the Candle of Remembrance, a monument with details reminiscent of authentic embroidery that can be found on traditional Ukrainian costumes. This is a monument that marks the historical event known as Holodomor (Hladomor). But what is Holodomor and what crime does this monument even symbolize?
At the end of World War I Ukraine was an independent state, but it was governed by the Soviet Union in 1919. "sucked" into the community of Soviet states. Ukrainians, who then considered themselves a Central European nation like Poland, not an Eastern European like the Russians, were trying to restore Ukraine's independence.
Not wanting to lose control of Europe's main grain, Stalin in 1932. resorted to one of the most heinous forms of terror against a nation. In the process of nationalization, he took the grainy land from Ukrainian peasants, and all its yields, creating artificial hunger. The goal was to "teach Ukrainians" so that they would no longer oppose official Moscow. Thus, the nation that produced the most wheat in Europe was left without a crumb of bread. The peak of the Holodomor was in the spring of 1933. In Ukraine, 17 people starved to death every minute, over 1000 every hour, and almost 24500 every day! People were literally starving to death on the streets.
In the emptied Ukrainian villages Stalin settled the Russian population. During the next census, there was a large population shortage. Therefore, the Soviet government abolished the census, destroyed the census documentation, and the censusers were shot or sent to gulag, to completely hide the truth.
It was in Holodomor during 1932-1933. hunger killed between seven and ten million people, more than Jews in World War II. Their toxic gas was hunger. Their Hitler was Stalin. Their holocaust was Gladomor. For them fascist Berlin was Soviet Moscow, and their concentration camp was the Soviet Union. Today, 28 countries of the world classify the Holodomor as a genocide, and you could not teach about it in school because almost all evidence has been destroyed, and the victim was silenced for decades and had no say until recently.
The Holodomor may have temporarily broken the Ukrainian resistance, but it made the desire for Ukraine's independence from Russia eternal.
Prayers
Prayers from Christian Aid
Dr Justin Thacker, our Just Scripture Advisor, leads us in a prayer for Ukraine.
A prayer for Ukraine by Sally Foster-Fulton, Head of Nations and Church Relations
Borders, barricades, bewilderment…
When the bargaining begins,
God please protect peace.
Sanctions, security measured in minutes and it’s scary…
When safety scatters,
God please protect peace.
War dresses up in peace-keeper’s clothes,
Troops amass, the ground trembles and so do people…
When the future feels fragile,
God please protect peace.
The littlest, the least likely to have a say,
Those whose lives are sanctioned and bargained over –
Violence always finds them first.
And the ‘oh-so-important’ political manoeuvres mean nothing to them.
They just want to live.
When the winners want to wipe them out of the way,
God please protect peace.
We will not turn away. We will stand together –
God give us the strength to protect peace.
Amen
A prayer for Ukraine by David Thomas, Ireland's Church and Community Manager
Lord of all people and all nations,
We lift before you the people of Ukraine and the people of Russia,
Each girl and boy, each woman and man living in fear of what tomorrow might bring,
We long for a time you spoke of through your prophet Isaiah,
When weapons of war would be beaten into ploughshares,
When nation will no longer lift up sword against nation,
We cry out to you for peace,
Protect those who only desire and deserve to live in security and safety,
Comfort those who fear for their lives and the lives of their loved ones,
Change the hearts of those set on violence and aggression,
Fill earthly leaders with great wisdom to find paths to peace,
Please Lord come and have your way in your world,
May your will be done here, on earth as it is in heaven,
May your peace reign. Now and always,
We lift this prayer to you, our God who is able to do
more than we can ever ask or imagine,
In the name of Christ our saviour,
Amen