Boris Johnson has said the war in Ukraine reinforces Jesus Christ’s message that good triumphs over evil, with the nation’s independence dominating Sunday’s political and religious Easter messages.
In his speech on Twitter, the prime minister paid tribute to “the Christians of Ukraine, whether they celebrate Easter today or the Orthodox equivalent later this month, for whom Christ’s message of hope, the triumph of life over death and good over evil, this year will perhaps resonate more than any other.”
He also spoke in Ukrainian and referred to Psalm 31:24, telling viewers, “Be strong and have courage in your hearts, all you who trust in the Lord.”
He added, “Easter tells us that there is light beyond darkness, that beyond suffering lies salvation.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and Pope Francis also referred to the Ukraine conflict on Sunday.
In his Easter address from Canterbury Cathedral, Welby said: “Ukrainians woke up to the end of the world as they knew it.
“Now they are being woken up by the noise of war and the sickening reality of terror. You wake up scared to death.”
He added: “Let this be a time for Russia’s ceasefire, disengagement and a commitment to talks. This is a time for restoring the ways of peace, not what Bismarck called blood and iron. Let Christ triumph. Let the darkness of war be banished.”
The Pope spoke to about 100,000 people in the Vatican and shared his fear of the conflict.
He said: “Our eyes, too, look in disbelief at this Easter of war. We’ve seen way too much blood, way too much violence. Our hearts are also filled with fear and anguish as so many of our brothers and sisters have had to shut themselves up to be safe from bombing raids.
“May there be peace for war-torn Ukraine, so tried by the violence and destruction of the cruel and senseless war into which it has been drawn.”
The pope addressed a crowd on Easter Sunday for the first time since the pandemic began, and applause erupted from the crowd in St. Peter’s Square when he mentioned Ukraine.
He denounced “flexing muscles while people suffer” and appealed to the world, “please, please, let’s not get used to war”.
“Let us all commit ourselves to pleading for peace from our balconies and on our streets,” he said. “May the leaders of nations hear the people’s plea for peace.”
Labor leader Keir Starmer also released a video telling Christians around the world: “I know you are inspired by the life of Jesus and the Easter story which is a message of overcoming adversity and of hope. Of the light that overcomes the darkness.”