Interfaith service offers prayers for people of war-torn Ukraine

LEWISTON — An interfaith service Sunday afternoon at the Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul offered prayers for the people of war-torn Ukraine.

The service offered prayers for peace in Ukraine and for those who are suffering, according to a statement from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland.

The Rev. Daniel Greenleaf, pastor of the Prince of Peace Parish in Lewiston, led the service, and was joined by the Rev. Annie Baker-Streevy, pastor of Calvary United Methodist Church in Lewiston, Brittney Longsdorf, multifaith chaplain at Bates College in Lewiston and others who spoke of the Russian invasion and those whose lives have been ravaged by it.

The Rev. Daniel Greenleaf, rector of the Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul, rear, follows the procession of spiritual leaders from several denominations and Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline, front right. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Greenleaf said parishioners had initially approached him about a prayer service for Ukraine.

“It grew from there,” he said. “Why not invite as many people as possible, because of the basilica being in the middle of Lewiston? Then, we can invite all the different religious communities in Lewiston and Auburn, so we can all come together and pray.”

At the beginning of the service, before introducing Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline, Greenleaf said, “We gather here on this day to pray most especially for peace in Ukraine and for world peace.”

Sister Marie May of the Sisters of the Presentation of Mary listens Sunday afternoon to a poem during the ecumenical and interfaith prayer service for the Ukrainian People, at the Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul in Lewiston. “The people of Ukraine are on our hearts and in our prayers. It’s the least we can do,” she said after the service. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Sheline, who described the violence in Ukraine as “senselessness,” said, “While many of you worshiped separately in different congregations this morning, we are seated in unison this afternoon because we believe we are called to be together in these hard times.”

Baker-Streevy later read Psalm 46 from the Book of Psalms, citing its “variety of human emotion” and repeating the phrase, “God is in that city,” while the Rev. Patrick Finn told a story of Pope John Paul II’s 2001 trip to Ukraine and his awe with its people’s resilience.

At the entrance to the basilica, Catholic Relief Services and the Knights of Columbus, on behalf of the Ukraine Solidarity Fund, collected donations that attendees gave in cash or through a QR code on their cellphones.

The Rev. Annie Baker-Streevy of Calvary United Methodist Church in Lewiston reads a psalm Sunday afternoon during the ecumenical and interfaith prayer service for the Ukrainian people, at the Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul in Lewiston. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Attendees were also able to tune in via livestream. Those still wishing to donate can visit www.portlanddiocese.org/content/support-people-ukraine.

“I’ve been following the news like everybody else, and it’s heartrending what’s going in that country. It’s beyond belief,” said Paul Baribault of Lewiston. “There’s pain all over the the world. In the 21st century, it’s hard to believe that something like this is going on, but I’m so heartened to know that people are responding locally to something that’s happening across the world. It shows the good-heartedness of people in general.”

Pat, left, and Manen Clements of Yarmouth speak Sunday afternoon with the Rev. Daniel Greenleaf following the ecumenical and interfaith prayer service for the Ukrainian people, at the Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul in Lewiston. Pat’s mother was from Ukraine, and the couple still have family and friends living there. They say they are especially worried about their nephew, from whom they have not heard and fear he is fighting the Russians. Pat told Greenleaf how she has spent the past week traveling to area communities while wearing and waving the Ukrainian flag she and Manen are holding, a gift from her Ukrainian cousin. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

Added Mark Prevost of Auburn, who attended the service with his wife, Lisa: “I can’t believe what’s happening, and we’re stunned by it. We donated, but we wanted to try and do more by praying. In this day and age, it’s unfathomable to us that this can happen, unprovoked.

“I would say (to the people of Ukraine), ‘Don’t give up the faith, keep going and hopefully somebody will listen and somebody will stop,’ and I pray for Vladimir Putin to have a change of heart and to see the horrors of what he’s reigning on them, those good people.”

A woman watches Sunday afternoon as others file into the ecumenical and interfaith prayer service for the Ukrainian people, at the Basilica of Saints Peter & Paul in Lewiston. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal