Pope Leo XIV receives Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, in the Vatican on Thursday. During the meeting, His Beatitude Shevchuk presented the Holy Father with a list of prisoners and a sculpture dedicated to peace, and expressed gratitude for the solidarity and support shown by the Holy See in the mission to save human lives since the beginning of the war.
By Vatican News
Pope Leo XIV welcomed Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, on Thursday morning in the Vatican.
According to a subsequent statement, the Major Archbishop thanked the Pope for his closeness to the Ukrainian people, for the solidarity and support offered to Ukraine, and for the diplomatic efforts undertaken by the Holy See along the path toward a just and lasting peace.
Gratitude for solidarity amid the harsh winter
In recent days, Pope Leo XIV, through the Apostolic Almoner’s Office, arranged for the delivery of 80 power generators to the war-stricken population enduring severe winter conditions in the country.
During the audience, particular attention was given to the present life of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church and to the global dimension of its mission. Archbishop Shevchuk emphasized that while the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church is a particular Church rooted in the Christian tradition of Kyiv, it is at the same time a global reality, present on every continent.
“Our particular Church of Kyivan Christianity is of Ukrainian origin,” he said, “yet it is not a Church solely for Ukrainians. It is open to proclaiming the Gospel to all peoples precisely because of its full and visible communion with the Successor of the Apostle Peter.”
The Major Archbishop also informed the Holy Father about several initiatives promoted by the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church in collaboration with Ukrainian civil society and the international community. He handed over lists of prisoners, received directly from the families of those detained and those missing.
Once again, he expressed gratitude for the Holy See’s ongoing efforts to save human lives—an undertaking in which it has been systematically engaged since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine.
A dove of peace “wounded but alive”
At the conclusion of the audience, Major Archbishop Shevchuk renewed his invitation to the Pope to visit Ukraine, and presented him with a ceramic sculpture by the Italian artist and cardiologist Luciano Capriotti, entitled The Dove of Peace in Time of War.
The artwork depicts a delicate dove struck by a fragment of metal from a Russian missile launched at Kharkiv. Though wounded and in pain, the bird remains alive.
“It is a powerful symbol of contemporary Ukraine—wounded, yet alive,” the Major Archbishop remarked as he offered the gift to the Holy Father.
The leader of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church asked the Pope to bless the Ukrainian people.
Pope Leo XIV assured Major Archbishop Shevchuk of his constant prayer for Ukraine.
A moment from the encounter (@Vatican Media)
A second private audience
Thursday’s meeting marks the second private audience granted by Pope Leo XIV to the Head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church since his election to the See of Peter. Their first encounter took place on 15 May 2025, also in the Vatican Apostolic Palace.
On that occasion, Major Archbishop Shevchuk presented the Holy Father with a list of 500 Ukrainian prisoners and missing persons and gave him a painting entitled Requiem, dedicated to children who were never born because of the war.
The Pope and the Major Archbishop met again on 28 June in Saint Peter’s Basilica, when Pope Leo XIV received Ukrainian pilgrims who had come to Rome for the Jubilee of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church.
