A group of people huddled together on their knees, praying for their city in Kharkiv’s central square, Ukraine. COURTESY PHOTO.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022 has not limited the spread of the Gospel in the eastern Europe country. A new report by YouVersion, an online and mobile Bible platform, indicates that despite the unrest, Bible engagement in Ukraine rose by 55% this year.
According to the findings, searches for scripture in the Ukrainian language doubled at the beginning of the Russian invasion of the country.
Bobby Gruenewald, founder and CEO of YouVersion, told CBN News that while initial search terms were “war,” “fear,” and “anxiety,” the word “love” became the top searched verse as the war progressed.
“These families are going through something most of us can’t imagine. In the middle of what’s likely the most difficult time of their lives, they’re turning to the Bible for comfort, peace, and hope,” Gruenewald said. “It’s an honor that we get to be a part of making God’s Word available to His people in their greatest moments of need.”
As of 24 June, The Art Newspaper reported that religious sites including Churches accounted for 144 of the 396 places categorised as damaged by the war on the Ukrainian government’s Culture Crimes list.
Kateryna Goncharova, a specialist in Ukrainian heritage from the World Monuments Fund (WMF), told media reporters about “two churches were damaged each day” in the early period of the war after Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February.
In the middle of the war, Ukrainian Bible Society earlier this year made a global appeal, saying “they’ve run out of Bibles.”
