Ministry Between Sirens

September 17, 2026

On the war’s front lines, K of C chaplains in Ukraine continue their ministry, providing spiritual and material support to their flocks

By Kateryna Kolodii

September 17, 2026

Father Ihor Makar preaches during Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God in Zelenivka, Ukraine, on March 29. — Father Ihor Makar, chaplain of Cardinal Lubomyr Husar Council 18244 in Zelenivka, preaches during Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God in Zelenivka, Ukraine, on March 29. (Photo by Andrii Horb)

On Ukraine’s front lines, Russian drones and missiles move so fast that people may have no more than two minutes to reach shelter following an alert. Since the full-scale war began in 2022, more than 600 religious sites have been destroyed, and more than 65 Ukrainian priests, pastors and religious have been killed or tortured by Russian forces.

Yet many priests and religious remain on the front lines, enduring occupation, captivity and injury while carrying out their ministry. Among the priests serving in high-risk areas are several Knights of Columbus chaplains.

“I am ready to bear this,” said Father Ruslan Ostafiy, chaplain of St. Andrew the First-Called Apostle Council 17258 in Odesa and a military chaplain for the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in the city, which is undergoing frequent drone and missile attacks. “I am ready to be here, ready to stand alongside those who are suffering right now. And this inner resilience helps me endure it more easily.”

A DANGEROUS VINEYARD

Father Ihor Makar serves as a parish priest of Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God Parish and as chaplain of Cardinal Lubomyr Husar Council 18244 in Zelenivka, a rural settlement in the Kherson region.

Father Makar’s journey in southern Ukraine began two decades ago, when he moved there from western Ukraine as a missionary priest with his family. Zelenivka and the surrounding villages became his home. Today, the rural settlement, located about 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the front, is under round-the-clock shelling, making each day a struggle to survive.

“I asked a parishioner: ‘Why did you come to church? Right now there is shooting, shelling, drones flying,’” Father Makar said. “She answered: ‘Father, it was a very hard night. I said [to God] that if I survived, tomorrow I would come to church and thank him that I am alive.’”

Continuing to minister in the parish takes courage, as Russian drones have targeted Father Makar twice.

On the Feast of the Epiphany in January 2025, the priest was driving with seminarians and another Knight when an FPV (first-person view) drone carrying explosives struck his vehicle.

“It fell behind us and exploded, puncturing the fuel tank and damaging the car,” Father Makar said. “But God protected us; the young men were alive and unharmed. I was the only one injured.”

Shrapnel from the blast pierced Father Makar’s leg, and he had to undergo surgery.

Father Ihor Makar, chaplain of Cardinal Lubomyr Husar Council 18244 in Zelenivka, Ukraine, holds the remains of a Russian drone in Zelenivka on March 29. The drone had previously struck his vehicle during an attack in January 2025. Father Makar, who serves a parish about 5 kilometers (3 miles) from an active combat zone in the Kherson region, has survived two separate drone attacks while driving to minister to his community. (Photo by Andrii Horb)

In August of that year, as he was driving to Divine Liturgy, a second Russian drone targeted Father Makar’s vehicle.

“I heard a loud explosion, pressed the gas pedal and drove away in sheer terror,” Father Makar said.

That same day, a drone attack destroyed another parishioner’s van while he was inside the church for confession.

It was under these wartime conditions that local men first rallied around the priest, forming Council 18244 in March 2023.

“Before the war, these men practically never attended church, and only after the de-occupation did they come to feel that God exists,” Father Makar said. “Later, we established a council where today we continue to serve our people here in the liberated communities of the Kherson region.”

A SCATTERED FLOCK

Odesa and the surrounding area are also subject to frequent missile and drone attacks.

“Almost all the time, we are under an air raid alarm; if there is half an hour before the next one, that is already a great blessing,” Father Ostafiy said. “And when a missile [is detected] flying toward our city, it reaches us in nearly two minutes, so we all run to the bomb shelter.”

Following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, parishioners became scarce, putting the existence of many parishes at risk.

“You could count the people on your fingers. Where there used to be over 100, later there were fewer than 20,” Father Ostafiy said. “We were utterly depleted in every way.”

In these circumstances, pastoral work extended beyond the parish, as Father Ostafiy traveled long stretches on dangerous roads to help those who had lost everything.

“Near Odesa, there was a family with eight children whose mother was killed, leaving the children orphaned,” Father Ostafiy recalled. “Together with the Knights of Columbus, I gathered and delivered humanitarian aid to support them at that difficult moment.”

Father Ostafiy also emphasized the strength that comes from trusting in God: “When a person lives with God, they say, ‘Lord, I am ready to stand alongside those who are suffering right now.’ This inner resilience helps them endure anything.”

FAITH UNDER OCCUPATION

For some priests, the war has brought the bitter trial of occupation. When Russian forces occupied the southeastern city of Melitopol in February 2022, acts of mercy and the delivery of humanitarian aid fell to the local Knights of Columbus council, which became a pillar of support for the community.

Father Oleksandr Bohomaz embraces a parishioner outside the Church of St. Volodymyr the Great Equal-to-the-Apostles in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. — Father Oleksandr Bohomaz, chaplain of St. Peter Council 16252, formerly based in Melitopol, embraces a parishioner outside the Church of St. Volodymyr the Great Equal-to-the-Apostles in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, on June 24, 2024. (Photo by Andrii Horb)

“Thanks to these men, we managed to find food and deliver medicines to isolated elderly people in the villages,” said Father Oleksandr Bohomaz, chaplain of St. Peter Council 16252. “Working together with these men for nine months under occupation was a deeply powerful experience.”

On Dec. 1, 2022, Father Bohomaz was arrested by Russian forces and deported from occupied Melitopol. After being taken to the last Russian checkpoint outside the city, he crossed the front toward Ukrainian-controlled territory, navigating minefields with the help of local residents. He subsequently began ministering near Zaporizhzhia, a city about 130 kilometers (80 miles) north of Melitopol.

A Russian decree issued Dec. 26, 2022, banned the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church — along with the Knights of Columbus — from occupied territories, and Council 16252 relocated to Zaporizhzhia.

Father Bohomaz was assigned by his bishop to establish a new parish in a village near the front, and many of his first parishioners had little prior experience of church life.

“Right now in Zaporizhzhia, a true religious revival is taking place. People are extraordinarily open to the Word of God,” Father Bohomaz said.

For Father Bohomaz, the situation provided a missionary opportunity, allowing him to minister among people with little to no previous exposure to the faith.

“People come to us who do not know what the Divine Liturgy is or how to properly cross themselves,” Father Bohomaz said. “Our main mission now is to evangelize people who do not know what the Church is.”

Through it all, these priests continue their ministry with the support of local Knights and a profound trust in God.

“They say that everything is grounded in this: Whoever puts their trust in God will not be put to shame,” Father Ostafiy said. “There is no other way to save oneself or to feel safe than by placing one’s trust in him.”

To learn more about the Order’s work in Ukraine and to support those efforts, visit kofc.org/ukraine.

*****

KATERYNA KOLODII writes from Lviv, Ukraine.

Father Welcome Chipiro, a priest of the Diocese of Mutare, Zimbabwe, joins Knights from other Alaska councils in repairing the pool at Regina Coeli Mission in Madioma, Zimbabwe.

Ministry Between Sirens

A DANGEROUS VINEYARD

A SCATTERED FLOCK

FAITH UNDER OCCUPATION

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