Voice of Ukraine

From Ira Kapitonova in Kyiv (Day 338):

Do not forsake me, O Lord! O my God, be not far from me!
Psalm 38:21

January 27 is the International Holocaust Memorial Day. It is vital for us, the human race, to know and remember, no matter how sensitive matters may be. If we remember the horrors of the past, if we don’t disregard them as distant history, if our hearts remain sensitive to the pain of those who went through the unspeakable, perhaps that would prevent us from repeating such crimes.

Holocaust is a mournful page of Ukraine’s history. At the start of the war between Nazi Germany and the USSR, Ukraine had the largest Jewish population in Europe – 2.7 million people. According to historians’ estimations, Ukraine lost over 1.5 million of the Jewish population.

As I read stories about the Holocaust, the Nazi occupation of Ukraine, and the accounts of ordinary people who did extraordinary things to prevent this genocide, even if for just one person or one family, I need to remind myself that I’m not reading current news. It’s shocking to think that so many aspects of those cruel days could be taking place in the heart of Europe today.

Genocide becomes possible when ordinary people, perhaps even kind-hearted and well-meaning people, allow propaganda to corrupt their thinking, when they choose to turn a blind eye and become passive bystanders, or even find justification and rejoice in the crimes committed.

May the Lord have mercy. May He help us remember. May He stop the genocide in Ukraine and other nations suffering today. May the words “never again” become our reality on this side of eternity.

Today’s picture is from Babyn Yar, a place in Kyiv where 33 771 people were killed in a matter of two days on September 29-30, 1941. The inscription on the picture says, “Your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground” (Gen. 4:10). In memory of Holocaust victims, the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Armed Forces of Ukraine recorded a beautiful song https://youtu.be/o5-KFBeMS0E