‘I can’t get it out of my head’: Local pastor witnesses impact of war in Ukraine

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This article was published 13/11/2022 (1082 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The one thing Gerry Michalski remembers from his time in Bucha, Ukraine — scene of massacre by Russian forces — is the “smell of death.”

“I can’t get it out of my head,” he said.

Michalski, lead pastor with his wife, Sharon, of Soul Sanctuary Church in Winnipeg, was in Ukraine the last two weeks of October to see how donations from the church were being used in that country.

To date, about $300,000 has been raised by the congregation, located in the southwest part of the city, to help Ukrainians displaced by the war.

The money was sent to local churches that are part of the Ukrainian Assemblies of God, churches Soul Sanctuary has been involved with for many years. It has been used to provide food and other support for Ukrainians impacted by the war.

Bucha was one of four places in Ukraine he visited one day that had experienced “murder, torture and abuse by the Russian army,” he said.

When he stopped to talk to survivors, they told him stories of “rape, horrible atrocities, torture, genocide,” he said.

“I listened to story upon story,” Michalski said. “They showed me videos of dead bodies in the streets. It is unbelievable, in this day and age, that this is going on.”

When he asked people what he should tell Canadians when he got home, they told him they appreciate the support they receive from the West, but “they increasingly feel they are doing this on their own,” he said.

“They said not to forget them, and also to tell Canadians about the butchery of the Russians,” he said.

What troubled him, as a Christian and a pastor, is the support being given to the war by the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church. “It is very un-Christlike,” he said.

But what also broke his heart was learning some leaders of his own Pentecostal denomination in Russia support the war — and they are talking about planting new churches in parts of Ukraine annexed by Russia.

“Are you kidding me?” he said of their plans. “There is craziness in the church there.”

While impressed by the Ukrainian people — “they want peace but they fight like tigers,” he said — he said they are also hurting.

“The pain is very deep,” he shared, adding he prays for an end to the war, and for the “massive healing” that will be needed when it is over.

As for any immediate hopes for peace, Michalski doesn’t think it will happen soon. “The war won’t stop until they drive out the Russians,” he said.

On a personal level, he is reeling from the visit. “I think I am experiencing second-hand trauma,” he said, adding he is seeing a therapist. “I need to talk to someone about the things I heard and saw.”

Michalski will share about his visit to Ukraine on Wednesday, November 16, 9:30 p.m. at an online call-in show titled “Nine months in: Are there still nonviolent options for Ukraine?”

The show is sponsored by Menno Simons College (MSC), which is part of Canadian Mennonite University. It will be hosted by Wendy Kroeker of CMU and Karen Ridd of MSC and will also include Emily Welty, Director of Peace and Justice Studies at Pace University in New York City.

“It’s hard to talk about nonviolence after the things people like Gerry have seen,” said Kroeker, who teaches peace and conflict transformation studies at CMU.

“That doesn’t mean we should lose hope. The stories Gerry will tell will challenge us about how to respond. But just because something is hard doesn’t mean we should lose our convictions or who we are,” she said.

For Kroeker, the presentation will be about hearing stories from Ukraine and about “what it means to keep the faith, what actions can we take to promote peace.”

For more information, and a Zoom link to the presentation, visit the CMU website.

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