God's Work in War-Torn Ukraine

Training people being inspiring and carefully welcome to family policy matters in engaging and informative weekly radio show and podcast produced by the North Carolina family policy Council hi this is John Ralston, presidency, family, and were grateful to have you with us for this week's program is our prayer that you will be informed, encouraged and inspired by what you hear on family policy matters and that you will for better equipped to be a voice of persuasion, family values in your community, state and nation, and now here's our house to family policy matters Tracy to Yvette Griggs thanks for joining us this week for family policy matters as news from the war in Ukraine continues to travel around the world. Opinions about what can and ought to be done are wide-ranging, Arielle Dale Turco joins us today to consider how Americans can pray help and the implications for international religious freedom. Del Turco is assistant director for this Center for religious liberty at the family research Council, Arielle Del Turco. Welcome to family policy matters. Thank you for having me start give us a historical background on how and why this even came to be the million dollar client again, why did you engage in dead rabbit from possible anchor when yelp Hussein had an expansionist division for his country that you want to expand on lease territory but had country power, but a key step in teasing a lie and he's blaming NATO NATO for expanding your wrath and his blaming Ukraine for because Ukraine wants to join NATO for being a security threat.

I think that's a little ridiculous because NATO is a defensive alliance. It is not hostile. Ukraine was really posing no threat at all to Russia. Ukraine is a much smaller poor country. The city see this aggression unleashed on Ukraine. I think really surprised the world.

Even though, and hinted that this might be a possibility and was building up trips per week still taking the world by surprise, but the one thing we can't make here and you already alluded to this in your intro that we are anything people are hurting Russia bombing residential areas there on, not always honoring agreement for humanitarian corridors around 100 children had died. Ukraine is not a threat to Russia and nothing can justify the invasion, but the way the military is conducting.

It just so brutal.

Talk about the religious landscape in the Ukraine and Russia see what Russia is a predominantly.majority population is affiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church and in Ukraine at similar that most people are Orthodox Christians in Ukraine. However, there was a split between that many of the Orthodox priest wanted to leave the Russian church and fall under Ukrainian leadership on that kind of like some of the political difficulty and also points to some of the corruption that is occurring in Russia where on the church is gotten very convened with the Russian government and the Russian government has really used the church as a leader like solidified Russian identity. Obviously charges were abused and harassed under the Soviet Union under communism.

For decades, but now that Russia's emerged their own using religion in a beating in a different way which is to force its beliefs and so there are certainly religious undertones here I would not say it's the main reason that this is unfolding Ukraine.

In addition to Orthodox Christians. They also have evangelical minority and small, Jewish and Muslim minorities on in Ukraine.

The fee really a lot of religious freedom is actually recognized as one of the former Soviet states had the best record on religious freedom.

In contrast, Russia on is actually listed by the US government as a country of particular concern on religious freedom. So that means it's one of the few worst countries on the world for religious freedom. It certainly has some potential effects on religious liberty, not just in that part of the world but all over right internationally, yet religious freedom is certainly at stake specially for the people of Ukraine here in 2014, Russia, Crimea, and they have control through proxies over the down this region of the small areas of Ukraine already had some Russian influence in what we saw in those regions. With that religious minorities including evangelicals were how they were arrested on certain evangelical literature was and so, indeed, areas where of Ukraine where Russia is exerting control were seen a lot of abuses there. So for the people of Ukraine. If Russia take more territory in Ukraine they can expect that type of treatment he did some writing on masculinity in what this war says about masculinity in you wrote an article entitled real men don't women and children. Why did you feel the need to write about that in the midst of all of this is an interesting situation could actually for decades. I trained himself as a strong eye stereotypically masculine figure. He posed for photos shoots out riding shortly on horseback and hunting and fishing and doing these manly outdoorsy things but when it comes down to it the way things is certainly not what we would expect out of biblical masculinity. He is bombing residential area of heat harming children. He knows this. Over 3000 3 million. Sorry Ukraine refugees have had to flee in most of those refugees are women and children from the tax. In contrast, we can look at leaders like Ukrainian Pres. Belinsky instead of accounting. He has really sacrificed himself he determined to stay in the capital until the end. Even though he knows that is specifically targeting his life, but he's paying for the good of his people and for his country and even brought bringing Ukrainian society we see a requirement where men Ukraine are expected to stay and fight for their country. While women and children are allowed to leave and is willing to recognize it on the differences that the Bible notes about landing on right for them to sacrifice himself for the safety and preservation of their families and for women and children by allowing them to leave, so there's a lot of good examples here in this situation about what masculinity should and should not look like it was also a weekly radio show and podcast. This is just one of the many ways is educating citizens across Mr. a lot of about policy issues that impact a lot of families. Vision is stated in nation.

God is on religious freedom sources family strong more information about his family and how you can help us to achieve this incredible vision first Nations visitor website and see family.org and see family.org and be sure to sign up to receive our email updates factional works. Of course, our flagship publication family North Carolina magazine would also look for you to follow us on Facebook and Instagram so honestly we should be praying for peace, but what are some other priorities encourage people and for all situations around the world seem a little little too large and we can wonder what we should be praying in the situations just to put yourself in that situation.

If you are living your life in Ukraine right now.

What when you need prayer for and I think that would be certainly physical safety, it would be adequate comfort in the midst of this, certainly very terrifying time that God would be guiding eight individuals Ukraine. So many believers who have to make decisions on what they're getting deal and if their families in a separate only if the month take up accounting fight along with her husband are very real and scary decisions that people have to make under intense time pressure, we can be praying for that we can be praying for world leaders.

While the invasion was to install alone.

World leaders all have the responsibility of how they're going to respond on and they need to be doing this quickly and working life consequences for patient in order for their actions already need to be praying for that even pray in this is a present might not feel good for some people, but for a change of heart and that he would stop, stop this invasion and just turn around and have total change of heart and repent hearing aid. This is something we've been hearing a lot about. Are there certain organizations that you could recommend if people would like to assist in that way.

One organization I think it's a really stellar a Samaritan's purse. They are running toward the situation into Ukraine and setting up field hospitals and 15 people there. In addition to helping people at the border so that is a great place to start, and I know there's other Christian organizations like operation Blessing I'm going to the Polish border to help out, but I really think Americans person a great place to start.

Let's talk about some of Ukraine's neighbors, some have stepped up in dramatic ways to serve the families and individuals who have become refugees due to this war talk a little bit about that, especially in Poland. Being a really good example of a country being extremely generous on taking in and they said around 3 million refugees, about the size of their capital war saw that the huge amount of people are women and children who are defenseless and need a lot of help and really inspiring to see and you see the Polish people rallying around Ukrainian. Her neighbors was also seen, even German citizens. Opening your homes up to Ukrainian refugees soldiers across Europe, there really stellar examples of what it looks like to help your neighbor in Ukraine itself was the response from the Ukrainian people being very inspiring, rallying together to pool resources and care for each other to lean into their communities and rally around their church and help each other to this time we've seen in the Bible instances where the church came under under pressure and and had to scatter in the word of God was actually taken to the far reaches DC potential for the Christians in Ukraine text to influence the many countries around them that are taking the men all absolutely Ukraine trended down the front lines responding to the crisis and I think the crisis people are looking for answers, not only by this happening bite meaning of life. So I think in Ukraine, forcing people to turn toward churches and turn towards God.

We heard reports of that. Also that these Ukraine believers will have an opportunity to share as they spend some time hopefully temporarily go back to their homes that I say spend time throughout Western Europe which is a much more secular environment that will be a really interesting opportunity to share the gospel with the world is certainly watching. So were just about out of time this week before we go.

Arielle Del Turco talk about where listeners can go to follow your response there at FRC on on the war in Ukraine. You can follow some of our international religious freedom efforts@frc.org/I are and you actually are the assistant director of the Center for religious liberty at FRC is that a new organization within FRC our efforts on international religious freedom are fairly new by our expanding every day and excited to engage on this issue right so you been concentrating more on religious liberty issues in our country but now you're you're looking around the world absolutely Arielle Del Turco with the Center for religious liberty at the family research Council.

Thank you so much for being with us today on family policy matters. You been listening to family policy matters. We hope you enjoyed the program employment due to begin next week to listen to the show will want to learn more about NC families work to inform, encourage and inspire families across been through a lot of our website and see family.org that's NC family.org. Thanks again for listening and may God bless you and your family