Representatives of Religions and Denominations Pray on Bykivnia Graves

On May 14-15, 2011, in Ukraine, victims of political repression, tortured and killed by the Bolshevik regime, were remembered.  One of the places reminding us of the terrible years of Stalin’s regime is the Bykivnia forest near Kyiv.

In the Bykivnia forest, in 1936-1941, the NKVD organized a mass burial of people executed by the repressive bodies. The first victims, who were mostly transported from Lukianivska Prison, were buried here in the late 1920s. Officially, the development of a special zone for secret burials began only in 1936. According to the experts, at least 130-150 thousand people were buried in Bykivnia.

Each year in May, the memorial in Bykivnia is visited by thousands of people who come to remember those killed, pray for the repose of their souls, meditate on the past and make conclusions for the present. This year, with the blessing of the head of the Kyivan Patriarchate, Patriarch Filaret, the memorial service was led by the head of the Holy Synod, Bishop Yevstratii of Bohuslav, in concelebration with Bishop Epifanii of Pereiaslav-Khmelnytskyi and Boryspil and with the participation of the choir of the Kyiv Orthodox Theological Academy.

Bishop Yosyf (Milian) of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church participated in the joint prayer in the presence of Cardinal Lubomyr (Husar). After the memorial service, Chief Rabbi of the Association of Communities of Progressive Judaism of Ukraine, Oleksandr Dukhovnyi, prayed for the repose of the dead and addressed the participants, the press service of the Kyivan Patriarchate reported.