Prayers for Ukraine
Thank you for joining us in prayer for our brothers and sisters in Christ who are suffering in Ukraine.
Your prayers for peace in Ukraine will offer immeasurable support to those in desperate need of our kindness, compassion and generosity of spirit.
Here you will find a selection of prayers for use in private prayer or communal worship, at home, in your parish or in a classroom.
An ACN Prayer for Ukraine
Psalm 67: 1 RSV-CE
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us.
Everlasting, Merciful God,
Hear the cries of your people!
We ask you to comfort those fleeing the deafening and frightening sounds of violence
Be their refuge!
Strengthen and encircle them in your love and guide all refugees to safety, security and a warm, welcoming reception.
Through the power of the Holy Spirit
Transform the hearts of politicians, diplomats, leaders of armed forces and those under their command
To bring an end to the violence, so that
your perfect peace will take root and flourish both in Ukraine and in Russia.
Holy Mary, the Mother of our Lord, the Eternal Word,
Lead us to your Son and the truth of His death on the cross to love God and to love our neighbour as ourselves.
We ask you to protect under your mantle all who are assisting and providing sanctuary for families fleeing the conflict.
O Morning Star! Queen of Peace!
Faithful handmaid of our Lord
Pray for all, who are affected by the bloodshed in Ukraine and
Intercede for us to your Son our Redeemer.
Amen.
Heavenly Father,
Your will for your people is peace, not war.
Pour out on our world, especially in Eastern Europe, your Spirit of compassion and solidarity.
Grant all those who believe in you the strength to be close to those who suffer
and the courage to resolve their differences and conflicts in truth and without resort to arms.
Be with the widow, the orphan, the refugee and the peacemaker.
Bind us all into the peace of your Kingdom.
Through Christ our Lord,
Amen.
By Fr Damian Howard SJ,
Provincial for the Jesuits in Britain
A prayer from Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski, Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy, UK
God of peace, your prophet Isaiah promised swords would be turned into ploughshares,
and your Son’s mother, Mary, proclaimed the mighty would be put down and the humble exalted:
visit the people of Ukraine; deliver them from fear, violence, attack, injury, destruction, death;
and give them courage, solidarity and allies in their hour of vulnerability and sorrow.
Turn the hearts of those bent on war and invasion.
Strengthen the hand of all seeking to halt conflict, restore order, and pursue justice.
And make this moment of peril an occasion for your Holy Spirit to show your world the cost of conflict and our dependence on one another.
In Christ our Lord, who went to his death because of our hatred, and rose again because our hatred is never stronger than your indomitable love.
Amen.
St George, the patron saint of England, has a long history of veneration in Ukraine and remains very popular among Ukrainian Christians. The short prayer below is part of the liturgy for the Feast of St George in the Ukrainian Catholic Church.
“You fought the good fight with faith,
O Martyr of Christ, George;
you exposed the perversion of the persecutors
and offered an acceptable sacrifice to God. Therefore, you also received a crown of victory and through your prayers, O Holy One,
obtained the forgiveness of sins for all.”
Tropar of the Feast of St. George – Prayer here
St George, defender and protector of the Church and beloved of the Ukrainian people, please pray for us and for all those suffering in Ukraine today.
Prayer for Peace – Pope John Paul II
Hear my voice, for it is the voice of the victims of all wars and violence among individuals and nations.
Hear my voice, for it is the voice of all children who suffer and will suffer when people put their faith in weapons and war.
Hear my voice when I beg You to install into the hearts of all human beings the wisdom of peace, the strength of justice, and the joy of fellowship.
Hear my voice, for I speak for the multitudes in every country and in every period of history who do not want war and are ready to walk the road of peace.
Hear my voice and grant insight and strength so that we may always respond to hatred with love, to injustice with total dedication to justice, to need with the sharing of self, to war with peace.
O God, hear my voice and grant unto the world Your everlasting peace.
Amen.
O Sacred Heart of Jesus, hear us all as we pray together watching helplessly upon the fate of the Ukrainian people as they flee for their lives.
With the help of all our prayers and the power of your Divine Intervention, that the suffering will end and the people can return to rebuild their homes in safety.
Amen
By Kerry Currall
May the people of Ukraine experience your protection and may you inspire all those in power or authority to work for a peaceful settlement to the conflict.
By Lois Farrington
Prayer for Ukraine
For those who are fleeing – Sanctuary
For those who are staying – Safety
For those who are fighting – Peace
For those whose heart are breaking – Comfort
For those who see no future – Hope
By Barbara Johnson
Praying for a speedy end to this conflict and protection of the people of Ukraine from any further harm.
May all Christians beg the mercy of God for our brothers and sisters who are so deeply affected by this war.
By Conor Quinn
Please God, end the war in Ukraine; restore peace in Ukraine. Holy Archangel Michael, defend Ukraine. Mother Mary, hold Ukraine in your bossom.
St Daniel Comboni Parish, Uganda
By Fr Ocanda
Almighty God you know and see all things, look with pity on your people in Ukraine and bring an end to their suffering.
By Joe Harrington
We pray that the people of Russia and Ukraine may be at peace and reconciled once more. We hope and pray for an end to hostility and restoration of freedom and peace, rebuilding of the homes, hospitals and churches and lives, so that the people can return. We pray that hearts and minds may be healed in your name, Jesus Christ the Lord, Amen.
By Renata Clayton
I am praying every day for Ukraine and it’s people especially during this Lent with fasting. I ask in Jesus’s name to help all the women and children to be safe and no more blood shed of their men. Please Lord hear our prayers.
We praise you Lord. Be with us all. Let all the neighbouring countries be good Samaritans to the Ukrainian people. We pray in your Holy name. Hallelujah Amen.
By Mary Connor
Holy Mary Mother of God we ask for your intervention and intersession in the war against Ukraine. We pray for Russia as we prepare for the Consecration to Mother Mary. We ask this in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Lord hear us.
By Alphonce Siguda
May Our Lady of Fatima intervene to stop the WAR in Ukraine. We ask this through our Lord, Jesus Christ, her Son. Amen.
Anonymous
With our combined efforts, may Mother Mary Queen of peace intercede for these two countries.
Mother Mary pray for us and with us for God’s intervention!
Mary Queen of peace pray for us and whole world.
By Magy Noeli
Blessed Mother, we place your children in Ukraine and Russia into your hands.
We ask you to embrace, and protect them from all evil.
Anonymous
I pray with all my heart for the people of Ukraine, and send my love out to everyone. We are not separate and I empathise with you and feel your pain – my pain cannot be anything near your pain, but from one human being to another there is an understanding of what you are going through. We, all over the world, are with you in spirit and we’ll just keep praying and doing all we can to help. With love and may God listen to our prayers.
By Pamela Winters
PRAYER TO MOTHER OF PERPETUAL HELP
Mother of Perpetual Help, with the greatest confidence we beseech your intercession. Mother of Sorrows, pray for Ukraine in this time of trial. Help them not to lose heart. Intercede for peace in Ukraine. Comfort the Ukrainian people who are vulnerable, anxious, and suffering. Protect the refugees and those who are left behind putting their lives at risk. Inspire world leaders to make good decisions. Teach us to trust in God’s love and mercy and to share with you the joy of having courageously faced up to all the challenges of life. Amen.
By Barbara Johnson
MY PRAYER FOR PEACE
Most compassionate Jesus, You are the Light of the whole world. Receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the people of Ukraine that peace may reign. Let the rays of Your grace enlighten the Ukrainians and the Russians that they, too, together with us, may extol Your wonderful mercy; and do not let them escape from the abode which is Your Most Compassionate Heart.
Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the people of Ukraine who are suffering greatly and who are enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. I beg You, by the sorrowful Passion of Jesus Your Son, and by all the bitterness with which His most sacred Soul was flooded: Manifest Your mercy to the people of Ukraine that justice and peace may prevail. Look upon them in no other way but only through the Wounds of Jesus, Your dearly beloved Son; for we firmly believe that there is no limit to Your goodness and compassion and mercy. Amen.
By Barbara Johnson
Therese from FirstSaturday.co.uk has kindly given us permission to share her Praying for Peace design. There is a ready-made printout, which you could display at home, school, work or place of worship, and also a black and white design, which could be coloured in.