For about four years now, before the outbreak of the large-scale war in Ukraine, we have been meeting online every Thursday evening to pray together for peace; we are from different cultures and nations in Eastern and Western Europe. And for the past few months, representatives from the Holy Land have also joined in.
There are only a hundred of us, but it is always a sacred moment that makes us feel like one family praying and asking God for peace together. For us here in Ukraine it is a great gift to pray together because it gives us the strength to go on, making us feel the closeness of so many people. And this gives us hope for the future.
Ljubljana: every day for three years
Marjana and Pavel Snoj had this to say: That 22 February 2022 we were surprised and distressed with Russia’s aggression in Ukraine: – we just didn’t expect it! We in Slovenia know what a war is; we experienced it even after the break-up of the former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s and we still bear the wounds. That is why we asked ourselves what we could do against this war, which is always a source of pain, destruction and death. One possibility was immediately obvious to us: prayer! Because we are certain that prayer can obtain everything from God.
We therefore decided to start praying online. We are approx. 60 people from various Movements and Communities, praying together every day for 30′ since February 2022, and we have never stopped doing so, for any reason. At the end of the prayer, we still remain briefly connected for about 5 – 10 minutes to exchange the latest news about the war, the sorrows and joys we experience. Indeed, a true family spirit is created between us, because we live for each other. We believe in peace and that it will soon be possible.
Esslingen: perception, closeness, prayer
Judith Kaiser writes: ‘Be joyful in hope, strong in tribulation, persevering in prayer’ – thus the appeal from Romans 12:12. Perhaps it is this call that brings us together every Tuesday evening as Christians from different Movements and Communities – German-speaking area – for the ecumenical prayer for peace in Ukraine on Zoom.
In our prayer for a just peace, we place our trust in the Lord’s help in all the needs we are aware of. We, about 10-20 people, have been constantly praying since November 2023. Thanks to the participation of Miroslav from Uzhhorod and sometimes Viktor from Lviv, Ukraine is always present in the prayer on Zoom. Their perceptions, stories, greetings and requests help us to pray in a concrete way and to recognise God’s action. Our connection in prayer often makes us feel a deep closeness that refreshes the heart. After a short lead-in, we pray aloud or silently, interceding, blessing, professing the Word of God… each in our own way. In the end, we also turn our prayer specifically to the situation in Israel. Once a month, Hans-Joachim Scholz leads us in prayer of reconciliation. We often experience that we ourselves are blessed and strengthened in faith through this appointment. And God always acts again – let us give thanks to Him for this!’
Bringing the beating heart of current affairs to God
We like to conclude with a thought by Pope Francis (1): ‘Perhaps force of habit or a certain daily ritual has led us to think that prayer does not change individuals or history. Yet to pray is to change reality. Prayer is an active mission, a constant intercession. It is not distant from the world, but changes the world. To pray is to bring the beating heart of current affairs into God’s presence, so that his gaze will shine out upon history. (…) If prayer is living … continually prompts us to allow ourselves to be troubled by the plea of all those who suffer in our world.’
Those interested in participating in one of these moments of prayer can contact us via the website.
The international secretariat of Together for Europe
(1) Homily in the Gesù Church in Rome, 12 March 2022
The prophet Jeremiah had a clear idea of what it means to seek good in the environment in which we live and dwell. He knew that God’s people prosper when they do not shut themselves off, but put themselves at the service of society. In this way it creates space for life and hope for future generations.
We have been experiencing for years that God wants to gather his people. We are aware that the gift-charism that He has given to each Movement and Community is destined to be ‘light and salt’ in the society in which we live. In the midst of the profound crisis that we are experiencing today, let us seek together ‘the Good’ in the challenges and possibilities of our time.
The initiative in Munich is meant to be an experience of friendship and inspiration. Together we want to celebrate God and live in unity and reconciliation. TOGETHER FOR EUROPE.
On Friday 27 June, the idea of ‘TOGETHER’ will be further explored: there will be a guided tour of the city, followed by a snack and an evening programme.
Saturday 28 June it is the turn to have a closer look at ‘FOR’: An in-depth study of the text of Jeremiah 29:7 will be followed by moments of exchange. In the afternoon there will be thematic groups: prayer for the city, social initiatives, youth, marriage and family, spreading the Gospel, migration and others. The evening will come to an end with a moment of praise.
Sunday, 29 June will be dedicated to ‘EUROPE’ with an ecumenical celebration.
For more information and booking see the national website: www.miteinander-wie-sonst.org. The event will be in German, and no translations shall be provided.
Deeply rooted in his faith, Bishop Christian Krause was a pioneer and staunch supporter of Christian unity. After years of consultation with the Catholic Church, he was able to sign – for the Lutheran World Federation – the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification on 31 October 1999. On that historic day he met Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare Movement. ‘She and Card Miloslav Vlk suddenly found themselves in front of me and a very special relationship began. I got to know the charism of unity, Jesus in the midst…,’ he recounted in a telephone conversation a few days before his death.
In 2004, together with 55 bishops from various Churches, he took part in the first big event organised by the ecumenical network Together for Europe in Stuttgart. The previous evening – towards the end of the Collaborators’ Congress – he took the stage with the curial Cardinal Walter Kasper and looking at the hall, crowded with 2,000 people, said: ’I was overwhelmed with emotion. My heart was filled with gratitude as I looked into the hall and knew: these people are all my sisters and brothers!’ (cf. Neue Stadt, 6/2004)
From then on, Bishop Christian accompanied the journey of our network with great fidelity. For him it was a ‘new ecumenical restart’ on the path to Christian unity. On the occasion of Cardinal Kasper’s 85th birthday, he said in a speech at the German Embassy to the Holy See in Rome: ‘In the meantime, the path from conflict to communion has continued on many levels. One of these levels is the spiritual Movements and Communities which, with reference to the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, are increasingly coming together across national and confessional boundaries to develop new ecumenical community actions, such as, for example, Together for Europe.’ (cf. Rammler, Christian Krause: Weite Wagen, p. 302).
His encouraging speeches, which he repeatedly addressed to the Friends of the network, remain unforgettable. They were innovative, often prophetic. At the recent meeting in Graz-Seggauberg, his audio message was one of the highlights for many of the 200 participants. Among other things, he said: ‘When the meeting takes place in Graz, there will be an even stronger desire for unity among the younger generations than before. This desire is not only expressed within the Church, but in general. We are disintegrating, Europe is disintegrating in a shocking way. But so are the new partnerships and groupings of a political and economic nature and so on, the new wars going on… That is why it is once again extremely important for Christians to realise that unity is their mandate. It is their gift. So: the charisma of unity, Jesus in the midst. This is enough, these are the pillars. Therefore, Christians, forward please. This is Graz, this is my hope!
One young participant commented: ‘I’m taking over this baton!’ And like her, many others took up the legacy of Bishop Christian Krause.
We are aware that in his passing away, we lost a man who experienced in his life the boundless love of God. His message of Christian unity as a response to the needs of our time remains alive among us. It is painful to lose such a beloved and wise friend, but we are grateful for such a blessed life he shared with so many.
Dear brother Bishop Christian, we treasure in our hearts your last appeal: ‘Go forward, you are on the right path!’ We remain united with you in believing that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.
Mukacevo: I had never even heard of that town in western Ukraine when I arrived there in September 2024. It borders Hungary, Slovakia and Poland. I arrived there one fine September day, with the intention of supporting the small focolare community in this country tormented by war. Ukrainian friends had told me: ‘When the bombing of Kyiev started in 2022, the whole world was following us. Now the interest has waned and we are beginning to feel abandoned.’ This realisation – not without bitterness – set something in motion within me: Yes, I too want to give a sign of solidarity. As Pope Francis puts it: I want to make myself close to an experience that seems so far away from my life. My choice is facilitated by the fact, that I speak Russian – a language with which one can understand Ukrainians. I have decided, therefore, to make myself available for a certain period of time.
The airspace over Ukraine is closed. It took me two days to travel from Holland, where I live, to Mukacevo. When I arrived there, I had a totally new experience: air-raid warnings followed y bombardments, e.g. on the power station of Mukacevo. With each warning, people – consciously or unconsciously – fall into a ‘state of shock’. A friend came up with a drastic comparison to explain what happens on a psychological and spiritual level: ‘It is like unplugging a switched-on computer several times in a row. When you plug it back in, the system suffers. Our physical and mental health are severely rattled. In Ukraine we have been living like this for three years.’
I was strongly impressed by the women, many of whom nurture a solid faith in God. War meant that many men were at the front, wounded or dead. Others have fled and are hiding somewhere. The focolarine explained to me: “We stayed in Ukraine to share with the people an experience of God among us. He gives us the strength to resist”.
It is said that Ukrainians are very tenacious, and do not give up easily. I felt I can learn a lot from them. Oleksandra runs a family furniture business. Before the war it was a flourishing business; now, however, the men who used to work there have all been called for military service. This means that the income to support her family was no longer available. I was impressed by Oleksandra’s faith in God that helps her to face such a precarious situation with courage and creativity every day.
Irina is a woman like many others in Ukraine: her husband is at the front in the Donbass region. They often communicated by phone and he tells her many horrible things; nevertheless, he also tells her about the solidarity and hope among the soldiers. Although he does not identify with a specific religiosnl he too started to pray. “At the front”, he says, “there are no atheists. There are moments when everyone is praying”.
Tanja fled from an occupied city with her two daughters, aged 10 and 12, She hid them in the car among her suitcases. While queuing at a checkpoint, someone got out of the car and got shot, dying instantly. Tanja was terrified, but at that moment she was only thinking about pressing the accelerator in case she was hit so as to get her daughters to safety.
I only stayed a few months with these people. When I returned home to the Netherlands, I realised that something inside me had changed profoundly. The months spent in Ukraine taught me a ‘life lesson’: an unshakeable faith in God and the dignity of always being able to persevere, without any complaints. Indeed, it was Ukrainian women like Tanja, Irina and Oleksandra, who taught me with their lives that it is worth believing in a God who never abandons his people.
For their annual meeting under the auspicious title ‘Called to Hope’ the Friends of Together for Europe were hosted in Seggau Castle near Graz.
Christians from Eastern and Western Europe express hope even in times of war and crisis. One participant summed up his experience as follows: ‘Given the current situation in Europe, I arrived here discouraged and depressed. But these days fill me with new courage and hope’. And a lady who lives in Ukraine: ‘To be ambassadors of reconciliation – this I take away from the Together for Europe meeting. I live in a country at war, where one cannot yet speak of reconciliation. But I feel that being an ambassador is possible, because an ambassador is by definition a diplomat, he doesn’t impose, he delivers and prepares… This is the mission I feel I have to take there where I live. And I will try to do it by trying to be what Jesus Moran says in his speech, ‘an artisan of a new culture’’.
The participants
The participants came from political and ecclesial backgrounds (Orthodox Christians, Catholics, Protestants, Reformed and members of the Free Churches), spiritual leaders and lay people. Among them were Bishop Wilhelm Krautwaschl of the Graz-Seckau Diocese, Bishop Joszef Pàl of the Timisoara Diocese (Romania), Co-President of the International Focolare Movement Jesus Moran (Italy), Reinhardt Schink head of the German Evangelical Alliance, Markus Marosch of the Round Table (Austria), Márk Aurél Erszegi of the Hungarian Foreign Ministry, the former Prime Minister of Slovenia Alojz Peterle and the former Prime Minister of Slovakia Eduard Heger. A delegation from the IAO (Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy) with Secretary General Maximos Charakopoulos (Greece) and Advisor Kostantinos Mygdalis also attended the conference.
The programme
Talks, testimonies and working groups were central at the conference in Graz-Seggau. After the 2023 experience in Timisoara with the title ‘Called to unity’, the participants in Graz felt in a completely new way that the combination of their charisms and their Churches contains many graces and a hope for our tormented Europe.
Precisely on 31 October 2024 Together for Europe celebrated its 25th anniversary. And Gerhard Pross (YMCA Esslingen), who witnessed the beginning, highlighted in his opening speech the many moments of grace experienced during these years. Another witness of the time, the former bishopChristian Krause, president of the Lutheran World Federation in 1999 and at that time co-signatory of the ‘Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification’, emphasised the importance of Together for Europe in a touching audio message that sounded almost like a testament. ‘Together with others, I want to pick up the baton,’ a younger participant of the Steering Committee promised afterwards.
Three speeches took centre stage on Friday morning. Thomas Römer (YMCA Munich): ‘We want to make ourselves available so that Jesus can also bless Europe through us, to us Christians He puts the key to reconciliation in our hands. We want to aim for the love to which Jesus calls us and not for power’. Jesús Moran (Focolare Movement) explained: ‘‘Things don’t change overnight, what is important are the artisans, the cultivators of a new culture, who patiently work and sow, who hope… The whole we are talking about is not a whole in the sense of a union. Unlike union, unity considers subjects as persons. Its goal is communion… While in union diversity is a source of conflict, in unity it is a source of richness. Unity ultimately refers to something that is beyond the participants, that transcends them and is therefore not made but received as a gift’. P. Raffael Rieger (Schönstatt Movement) said: ‘We need various communities so that people in variety can find their home and grow. Collaboration between the various communities to realise the 7 Yeses (YES to family, to creation, to solidarity with the poor, to peace, to a fair economy, to peace, to commitment in society) is a sign of unity and hope for society and the world.
At the conclusion of the second day, the participants solemnly renewed the Pact of Mutual Love, the basis of their common commitment. ‘We continue on the path we have taken together, trusting that the Holy Spirit will guide us also in the future; we follow Him wherever He leads us,’ said one conference participant.
On the last day, the meeting was open to the inhabitants of the region, among them Siegfried Nagl (former mayor of Graz from 2003 to 2021), who actively supported the work of Together for Europe during his term of office.
How do we get out of the current polarisation and into Togetherness? This was the question for the panel discussion with Bishop Krautwaschl, Alojz Peterle, Eduard Heger and Vienna University Professor Ingeborg Gerda Gabriel. Christians should show more their identity with respect, but with conviction and competence. ‘Even words are actions’, the professor argued. At the same time, it is necessary to ‘disarm’ words and listen. Given the empty rhetoric and fake news, it takes strength to stay focused on essential issues like God, justice… and it is important to be able to withstand the resistance of others. In this way it is possible to move from polarisation to Togetherness.
The network is planning a major event for 2027 with the aim of sending together a powerful signal of unity and hope to Europe.
It’s October 16 in the morning and we are in one of the meeting rooms at the European Parliament. “It’s very clear that something is happening when people of peace are talking”, comments Catarina Martins, Portuguese MEP, beginning her concluding presentation of the DialogUE Project, in which Together for Europe is participating. “This is precisely this kind of moment”, Ms Martins continues, “Dialogue is a powerful instrument of peace”
Present are 50 representatives of the Project’s partners: people involved in European institutions, religious leaders, and also from civil society. The purpose of the meeting is to present recommendations to the European Union, which are summarised in the brochure “DialogUE Kit” >>
During the two year project, four dialogue groups have collaborated in three main areas: communication, ecology and social policy.
The groups were the following:
Christians of various Churches, through the Together for Europe network
Catholics and Muslims, through the Focolare Movement’s Centre for Interreligious Dialogue
Catholics and people with no formal faith, through the DIALOP platform for transversal dialogue
Citizens from Western and Eastern Europe, through the Multipolar Dialogue group
The project aimed to transmit the importance of, and the methodologies needed for, fruitful dialogue. It brought together international expertise in these three key areas, helping the participants to understand the main documents of the UE on these topics, and to explore their various dimensions. About 10,000 people from 23 European countries took part.
Its full title: “DialogUE: Diverse Identities Allied, Open to generate a United Europe”. The final discussion showed how necessary it is to be close to the institutions, in order to share ideas and projects which promote more inclusive and sustainable policies.
In the afternoon of the same day, a discussion was held at the KU Leuven (University of Louvain) in Brussels, where the participants analysed some of the good practices that emerged from the project and spoke about how these practices could be spread through the “DialogUE Kit”. The event was streamed lived and is available on Youtube>>
