Displaying items by tag: Responding to Tragedy

Yuriy Kulakevych, a leader in the Ukrainian Pentecostal Church, says Ukraine’s churches were the first to respond when Putin attacked. While the government scrambled to mobilise defences, it was churches that began evacuating civilians from combat zones, offering them shelter in church buildings and members’ homes. Within two weeks, many churches had exhausted their funds buying gas to transport refugees and food to feed them. With trusting relationships already forged, existing financial agreements allowed the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) to transfer money directly to the churches and ministries in Ukraine, while many organisations were still arranging logistics. By the fourth week of the war, the WEA had provided $210,000 to Ukrainian church networks. The WEA is a church-focused alliance with a vision beyond the immediate relief efforts. They want to come alongside and strengthen the Evangelical communities in Ukraine and other countries as they serve people affected by the war.