Pope Leo XIV meets Ukrainian bishop, promises help to end war horrors

Pope Leo XIV held a meeting at the Vatican with Bishop Vitalii Kryvytskyi of the Kyiv-Zhytomyr Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Ukraine and member of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (AUCCRO). The head of the Catholic Church assured that he will continue to pray for Ukraine and do everything within his power to help end the horrors of the war as soon as possible.

According to Ukrinform, Bishop Kryvytskyi reported this on Facebook.

“It was a very warm and inspiring meeting with the Holy Father Leo XIV. We had half an hour to speak about Ukraine, the war, and the path toward a just peace. The Pope is well aware of our situation, deeply concerned about it, and is actively seeking ways to resolve it,” the post states.

During the audience, Bishop Kryvytskyi reminded the Pope of the invitation sent to him by the AUCCRO to visit Ukraine.

“I thanked the Pope for his prayers, both personal and those he encourages the entire Church to offer. I asked him to continue praying for Ukraine and urging others to do so as we approach another difficult winter,” the bishop said.

As a token of gratitude, he presented the Pope with an icon created by Ukrainian children from the St. Martin de Porres Center in Fastiv: the daughter of a Ukrainian defender and a boy from eastern Ukraine. “The Pope gladly accepted this gift, and with it all the invitations,” Kryvytskyi noted.

The Pope assured that he would continue praying and doing everything possible to make the horrors of the war end as quickly as possible, the bishop wrote.

As reported by Ukrinform, Pope Leo XIV acknowledged that the Vatican’s mediating role in negotiations to stop Russia’s war against Ukraine is limited. According to him, “peace is the only answer,” an alternative to the “senseless killing of people on both sides.”

The Holy See has been making significant efforts since the start of the war “to maintain a position that, no matter how difficult, is not on one side or the other, but is truly neutral,” the Pontiff emphasized.

Photo: Vitalii Kryvytskyi, Facebook