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Unfaltering faith: Community sends up prayers for Ukraine at Faxon-Kenmar United Methodist Church

"We see that the war raged by Russia against Ukraine worries concerned people all over the world. Today we can hear about the various causes of this war, but the Lord knows the true reason. May His will be done to end this war." -Volodoymyr, a citizen of Ukraine.

The text message, from a "brother in Christ" in Ukraine, was read by the Rev. Ron Doan, a retired Methodist minister, during a special service for peace at Faxon-Kenmar United Methodist Church recently.

"They're doing their best to survive. Those people were so happy when they became independent and were determined to become a democracy. Their faith hasn't faltered -- their courage, their strength, it's still there," Doan told the group of people gathered on a Sunday evening to pray for peace and to sing songs of peace for Ukraine.

Organized by David Koskey, musical director at Faxon-Kenmar, and the Rev. Susan Halverstadt, pastor, the service opened with a scripture passage from Ecclesiastes 3:28: "(There is...) A time to love, and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace."

Members of the community joined together to provide musical selections such as "A Prayer for Peace in Ukraine'' (Mariupol) performed by Scott Schell and "I Speak Peace" sung by the Community Choir. Everyone listened as Janet Hurlbert played the national anthem of Ukraine on the organ.

"Music speaks to somebody, some people in a way that nothing else does," Koskey said of the service. "I just thought the atmosphere and the different types of music spoke to that."

The idea to have the service, titled "A Time for Peace," was planted a couple of months before, according to Halverstadt.

"The brokenness of how so many people have been affected by the war in Ukraine has really brought me to a point of looking at how important coming together to pray together is," said Halverstadt.

"The leadership of people in Ukraine a couple of months ago ... really inspired me because of them standing so firmly against evil," she stated.

"So, for those of us who are Christian here in the United States that can somehow lift up God's love and light and peace … for us to be able to come together in our mourning and grieving for what's happening over there and also still hold onto hope and share that, is really what it's all about," Halverstadt said.

The stories Doan shared about Volodoymyr and his family helped those at the service see not only the work that the church had done in Ukraine, but also to capture the human spirit of Ukrainian people in the midst of war.

"I have been in Ukraine six times since 1991, when they celebrated their independence, representing the United Methodist Church," Doan said.

He shared how, on one of his earlier trips, he had heard the national anthem played in Ukraine with people "celebrating their independence and their determination to be a nation, a great nation, and now we see what's happened."

Doan was part of an initiative in the church aimed at establishing churches in Ukraine.

"I was invited to go on a mission trip there and it changed my life. I stayed with a family -- Volodoymyr and his wife and two sons, Eugene and Sasha who had cerebral palsy," Doan said. Each time he returned to Ukraine, he stayed with the same family.

"Volodoymyr became my brother in Christ in many ways. He was instrumental in establishing a cerebral palsy center with the help of the United Methodists," Doan said.

In the town where he lived, children with disabilities were unable to attend school because it was located in a building with many floors and there was no way to get to the rooms in the upper stories. Volodoymyr's determination to see that his son got an education was the impetus for the center. His son has since graduated and now works in the computer technology field.

Volodoymyr has also visited this area and has remained in touch with Doan, as in the text message he received earlier in the day of the service.

At the end of the service those in the sanctuary raised candles lit against the darkness and joined in singing "Let There Be Peace on Earth."