The leadership of the Reformed Church in Sub-Carpathia has issued a statement of peace, protesting any form of violence and war, and striving instead for the peaceful co-existence of all nations living in Ukraine. The statement is sent to each congregation of RCSC, to the leaders of Ukraine and Hungary, as well as European decision-makers.
Statement of Peace
Sub-Carpathia, August 2014
We, Ukrainians, Rusyns, Russians, Hungarians, Romanians, Slovaks, Germans and people of other nationalities living in Sub-Carpathia, who by signature have endorsed the present document, deeply condemn senseless violence and war.
We firmly believe that the general crisis, which has evolved in the 21st century in Ukraine, can only be resolved in a democratic way, in line with the will of the nationalities living side by side in the country (based on the principles that President Wilson laid down in 1919), without sacrificing human lives.
We declare that those living in Sub-Carpathia not only constitute a geographical and territorial unity, but they also fight for the peaceful co-existence of all the nations of Ukraine. We wish to undertake this fight not with deadly weapons but with the help of the Gospel of Peace, prayer, love and forgiveness, as well as the expression of opinions without fear.
Consequently, we strongly oppose the idea that the population of Sub-Carpathia (especially husbands, fathers and children) are trained and forced to carry out acts of war and violence.
We plead with the elected President of Ukraine, the Supreme Council, the European Parliament, the European Council and all civilized states of Europe to join us in this fight.
We ask Eastern and Western powers alike as well as the leaders of Ukraine to do everything they can to ensure that decisions are not primarily guided by economic factors and self-interest, but by an effort to preserve human life.
We condemn all actions that create and increase tensions, disrupting the peaceful co-existence of the people living in Ukraine. Furthermore we condemn the use of degrading, discriminating and offensive terms such as Banderovcö (derogatory term for Ukrainians), Maszkalj ("friend of Moscow"), Hety mágyárám (Hungarians, get out), Szmerty Maszkaljám (death to the "friends of Russia"), etc.
Because the glory is God’s alone and he will not yield his glory to another (Isaiah 48:11), we therefore would warn every person and nation against self-glorification (evident in the use of expressions such as ‘Glory to the nation’, ‘Glory to the heroes’, ‘Glory to Ukraine’, ‘Glory to Carpathia-Ukraine’, ‘Glory to Málarasiji (Russian term for Ukraine; means little Russia)’, etc.) and also against questioning the humanity of one’s fellow human beings (fascism considers the enemy a nuisance, while communism says that the enemy is the scum of history).
We also condemn any efforts of major powers that result in our society being used as a tool for destruction.
When women protest against military mobilization, they are not guided by separatism as it has been claimed by propaganda; they are motivated by the fear they have for the lives of their families, especially their husbands and sons.
The community of Sub-Carpathia condemns all forms of senseless war and wishes to have peace.
*Ukrainian terms spelled with Hungarian pronunciation
Translated by Erzsébet Bölcskei