In war-torn Ukraine, Bible Society continues its ministry, spreading the word of God. In early September, they reported, “There are so many tears and so much pain among us,” as attacks affect all regions, resulting in many lives lost. 

Conflict driven displacement continues, with thousands of people forced to leave their homes. Bible Society staff share, “People are brought to the west of Ukraine every day—people who are scared, who have lost their homes, who don’t see any future for themselves.” 

Amidst the suffering, the distribution of Scriptures is greater than ever as people search for light and hope. In the first six months of this year, 50,993 Scriptures were distributed, including: 

• 10,571 full Bibles,  

• 30,959 New Testaments 

• 9,463 children’s Bibles 

Here are some more testimonies of how the Bible is impacting lives in Ukraine:

Bible class for children at Kharkiv church

Rostyslav shares, ‘Our team attended a Bible class for children at one of the churches in Kharkiv. Oleh, our courageous team member who takes all photos and videos from Eastern Ukraine shared the following after that visit: “As the Bible says in Revelation 22:11, ‘the evildoers still do evil … and the righteous still do right’: that’s what I realized as I watched these kids: rockets are being sent to our land, yet His righteous keep serving and the children keep growing in His love.”’

Bible study group at Orthodox church in Kharkiv

“The city, 2nd largest city in Ukraine, is being constantly targeted every day and night with ballistic rockets and kamikaze drones,” says Rostyslav. “The power system has been seriously damaged. It is a common thing to see smoke of explosions on the horizon while local keep doing their business amidst of power outages, vailing of sirens and explosions.”

Humanitarian Assistance and Bible Distribution in Kharkiv

“Our church partners in Kharkiv continue serving the local people, with food, clothes and Bibles – every Tuesday, the church of Viacheslav Khramov (the one who held weekly prayers in the central square for years), welcomes those in need. They always ask for more Bibles – for adults, elderly and children – since they quickly run out of them,” shares Rostyslav.

“Along with visitors from a sister Bible Society, we visited Kharkiv province including the capital city itself and towns and villages that were under occupation. We attended a church gathering in the town of Izium.”

President Zelenskyy visits the Bible House in Kyiv