Pope Leo XIV Receives List of Prisoners at Meeting with the Head of Ukraine's Greek-Catholic Church at the Vatican

The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Major Archbishop Shevchuk, receives an audience with the Pope.The Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halič was received in the Vatican Apostolic Palace. He presented Leo XIV with a list of the names of prisoners and a sculpture dedicated to peace. He then thanked the Pontiff for the Holy See's solidarity and support for the mission of saving human lives since the beginning of the war.

"Welcome." "I am happy to be able to come and see you." This morning, February 12, Pope Leo XIV's audience with the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, began with a kiss on the hand and a brief exchange of greetings in the Vatican Apostolic Palace. The Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halich, a statement said, thanked the Pope for his solidarity and support for Ukraine, as well as for the Holy See's diplomatic efforts on the path to a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.
Pope Leo XIV, through the Office of Apostolic Charities, delivered 80 electricity generators to the Eastern country for the population hardened by the war and the cold.
Thanks for solidarity and support for Ukraine
Particular attention was paid to the current life of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the global dimension of its service. Shevchuk emphasized that the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is a particular Church, yet at the same time a global one, present on every continent of the world: "Our particular Church of Kyiv Christianity is of Ukrainian origin, but it is not a Church only for Ukrainians, but rather open to the proclamation of the Gospel to all peoples precisely thanks to full visible communion with the Successor of the Apostle Peter," he told the Pontiff.

The archbishop also reported to the pope on several initiatives by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church to collaborate with Ukrainian civil society and the international community, and also presented the prisoner lists, received directly from the families of prisoners and missing persons. Finally, he thanked the Pope again for the important mission of saving human lives, in which the Holy See has systematically participated since the beginning of the large-scale war in Ukraine.

A dove of peace as a gift

At the end of the audience, Shevchuk renewed his invitation to Leo XIV to visit Ukraine. As a gift, he presented him with a sculpture by the Italian sculptor and cardiologist Luciano Capriotti, entitled " The Dove of Peace in Time of War. " The ceramic artwork depicts a delicate and fragile dove struck by a fragment of metal from a Russian missile launched at Kharkiv. This wound causes "great pain" to the bird, but it remains alive: "It is a beautiful symbol of contemporary Ukraine, wounded but alive," the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church commented as he presented the gift to the Pope. Before leaving, he asked Leo's blessing for the Ukrainian people. The Pontiff, for his part, assured him of his constant prayers for Ukraine.

Second audience

Today's audience is the second private audience between the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Leo XIV since his election to the papacy. The first meeting took place on May 15, 2025, again in the Apostolic Palace. During that audience, Archbishop Shevchuk presented a list of the names of 500 Ukrainian prisoners and missing persons and presented him with a painting entitled Requiem , dedicated to the children unborn due to the war. The Pope and Shevchuk met again on June 28, in St. Peter's Basilica, when Leo met with Ukrainian pilgrims who had come to Rome for the Jubilee of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

Source: Vatican News