Faith Under Fire

In the early hours of another sleepless night in Kyiv, air raid sirens echoed through the city as missiles and drones struck residential neighborhoods. One apartment building collapsed into a mountain of concrete and smoke. Rescue workers clawed through the rubble searching for survivors. For many Ukrainians, this has become a grim rhythm of life. Yet even amid war, the gospel continues to shine.

Recently, Caleb interviewed Ukrainian pastor, professor, and volunteer chaplain Andrii Murzin in Kyiv to discuss how the war has affected the church, the preaching of the gospel, and the spiritual challenges facing Christians in Ukraine today.

A Ministry Shaped by War

Andrii Murzin serves at Kyiv Theological Seminary as the director of the Master’s program in biblical counseling. His ministry focuses on discipleship, counseling, and helping Christians understand how to minister effectively within Eastern Orthodox culture. But since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, his ministry has expanded beyond classrooms and lecture halls. Andrii also serves as a volunteer chaplain to soldiers affected by the war.

When the war became much closer and much more intense and much more obvious that it is our war not somebody else's war. I realized that as a Christian I have to be active. I cannot ignore that it's the area of one of the biggest needs.

For Andrii, chaplain ministry is not political theater. It is obedience to Christ. He pointed to Matthew 25 and reflected that if Jesus were physically walking through Ukraine today, He might say:

He could have said I was in prison, I was in the hospital, l and I was in the trenches and you did not visit me.

When War Comes to Your Doorstep

The interview itself took place only hours after one of the largest attacks on Kyiv in recent months. Andrii and his wife had chosen to sleep at the seminary that night rather than remain in their high-rise apartment on the 15th floor. Throughout the night they heard explosions nearby as drones and missiles struck the city. By morning, an entire section of a residential building had collapsed. Caleb described watching rescue workers pull bodies from the rubble only a short distance away from where they were filming.

For Ukrainian believers, war is no longer distant news. It is outside their windows, above their rooftops, and sometimes directly over their heads.

“We Are Fighting for Survival”

One of the strongest themes Andrii emphasized was that Ukrainians do not see this war primarily as a battle over territory.

I think it's important for the western audience to understand that Ukrainians are fighting for our survival.

He explained that many Western narratives oversimplify the conflict as a political dispute over borders. But Ukrainians view it differently. They believe Russia seeks to erase Ukraine as a nation and suppress its identity, language, and freedom. This fear is not rooted merely in speculation, but in history. Andrii referenced the long history of Soviet oppression, mass killings, and persecution that Ukrainians endured under the Russian Empire and later the Soviet Union. Because of this history, many Ukrainians believe surrender would not end suffering, but instead deepen it.

Religious Freedom

Murzin challenged a common misconception heard in some Western Christian circles; that Ukraine and Russia are spiritually or morally equivalent. According to him, the difference in religious freedom is enormous. In Ukraine, evangelical churches have enjoyed broad freedom to preach the gospel since the fall of the Soviet Union. Churches openly evangelize, serve in schools, minister to soldiers, and conduct outreach across society.

By contrast, he described Russia as increasingly authoritarian, where churches are expected to support state ideology and where religious groups with Western ties are often treated with suspicion or hostility. Many reports have also surged from occupied Ukrainian territories where priests and pastors from multiple denominations have been killed or persecuted

The Church in a Time of Testing

War has created both opportunities and pressures for the Ukrainian church. On one hand, churches are serving refugees, supporting soldiers, and ministering to grieving families. Thousands of Ukrainians who previously showed little spiritual interest are now suddenly confronting questions about death, eternity, and hope.

[War] makes all people think about eternity, about your soul, about God, and spiritual issues.

Chaplain ministry, especially among men in the military, has opened doors many churches struggled to reach before the invasion.

Yet the war has also exposed fear within the church itself. Ukraine’s military mobilization affects nearly every congregation. Some men avoid traveling across cities out of fear of being drafted. Others wrestle with anxiety about serving near the front lines. Andrii spoke carefully and compassionately about this reality, acknowledging the fear many experience. He himself was once detained and taken to a draft center. Still, he believes the gospel directly confronts humanity’s deepest fear - death. He referenced Hebrews 2 and explained that Christ frees believers from slavery to the fear of death through His victory on the cross.

...So that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. - Hebrews 2:14-15

Murzin emphases on the fact that this is a time when our actions have to prove that we really believe what we preach.

The Gospel Still Advances

Even in the middle of war, many churches in Ukraine have become places of refuge and hope for people who have lost homes, family members, or any sense of stability. Christians across the country continue sharing the gospel, serving their communities, and pointing people to Christ while daily life is still marked by uncertainty and air raid sirens. The war has turned Ukraine into both a battlefield and a mission field. And through the smoke, sorrow, and uncertainty, many Christians there continue proclaiming the same message the church has carried for centuries - Christ remains Lord, even in wartime.

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