{"id":5226,"date":"2015-03-24T00:06:27","date_gmt":"2015-03-23T22:06:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/?p=5226"},"modified":"2015-03-24T00:15:14","modified_gmt":"2015-03-23T22:15:14","slug":"donetsk-war-on-protestant-churches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/donetsk-war-on-protestant-churches\/","title":{"rendered":"Donetsk&#8217; War on Protestant Churches"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Is there a targeted effort to take out Protestant Churches in the Eastern Ukraine war-zone?<\/p>\n<p>In this <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/mhEe2PSaEW0\" target=\"_blank\">video<\/a> reporter <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SimonOstrovsky\" target=\"_blank\">Simon Ostrovsky<\/a>\u00a0recently traveled to Donetsk and visited several Protestant church buildings that are now under the control of Donetsk People&#8217;s Republic soldiers.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/mhEe2PSaEW0?rel=0\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>One pastor describes how armed men came to their church building and said,<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;If you gather here again we will shoot you!<\/p>\n<p>We only support the Orthodox Church, your Protestant churches shouldn&#8217;t be here.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Later Simon interviews a soldier who is guarding a Baptist church building that is now being used by the soldiers for a military base.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"5228\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/donetsk-war-on-protestant-churches\/propoganda\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"640,348\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;Caleb Suko&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1427154483&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"propoganda\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda.jpg\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5228\" src=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda.jpg\" alt=\"propoganda\" width=\"640\" height=\"348\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda.jpg 640w, https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda-300x163.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda-600x326.jpg 600w, https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda-573x312.jpg 573w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When asked about the building the soldier replies:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;This building used to be a Baptist sect. I don&#8217;t know, when the war started they disappeared. There is only one faith, Orthodoxy. I am Orthodox. It was left to us by our ancestors and the Baptist are schismatics. It&#8217;s American propaganda. Which fills the heads of our people, Russian, Slavic, which results in what you see now, the war.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>It&#8217;s a little hard to imagine his logic, blaming Baptists who are historically pacifists for the war!<\/p>\n<p>Simon asked the soldier if he would allow the Baptists to return and this is his answer:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;Personally I wouldn&#8217;t let them come back.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Because I took up arms so that we could have an Orthodox state.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Officially the representatives of Donetsk People&#8217;s Republic condemn the seizing of Protestant Churches, yet they know it is going on and they don&#8217;t often seem to do anything about it.<\/p>\n<p>They also claim that Donetsk People&#8217;s Republic guarantees the freedom of religion, however, their constitution is very heavily weighted toward the Russian Orthodox Church.<\/p>\n<p>This is what their constitution says about the Orthodox Church.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;The normative form of spiritual and religious education will be belong to the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, which allows for freedom of religion, with the exception of religions that are foreign to Russian cultural and civilization.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Yes, you read that correctly! They include the words &#8220;freedom of religion&#8221; but it&#8217;s kind of like saying,<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;You&#8217;re free to worship however you want as long as you choose to worship in the Russian Orthodox Church!&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>On a positive note you may remember that just a couple of weeks ago I reported about the <a href=\"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/church-in-eastern-ukraine-seized-by-militants-for-a-2nd-time\/\" target=\"_blank\">seizing of the church building in Antratsit<\/a> for the second time! Once again God miraculously responded and returned the building to the Church!<\/p>\n<h3>Please pray for these churches whose building have been seized\u00a0and for these believers who are boldly continuing to serve and worship God despite the danger.<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Is there a targeted effort to take out Protestant Churches in the Eastern Ukraine war-zone?<\/p>\n<p>In this <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/mhEe2PSaEW0\" target=\"_blank\">video<\/a> reporter <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SimonOstrovsky\" target=\"_blank\">Simon Ostrovsky<\/a>\u00a0recently traveled to Donetsk and visited several Protestant church buildings that are now under the control of Donetsk People&#8217;s Republic soldiers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5228,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[370,193],"tags":[338],"class_list":["post-5226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-new","category-ukraine-2","tag-ukraine-war"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/propoganda.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3izZc-1mi","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4471,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/is-there-a-war-against-the-protestant-church-by-radical-orthodox\/","url_meta":{"origin":5226,"position":0},"title":"Is There a War Against the Protestant Church by Radical Orthodox?","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"October 2, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Back in June I wrote about how Peter Dudnik's church in Slavyansk was seized by separatists and then used as a military base and as a firing position on Ukrainian forces. Thankfully in August Ukrainian troops regained control of Slavyansk and Dudnik's church building was returned to the congregation. Recently\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ukraine&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ukraine","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ukraine-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/orthodox-war.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/orthodox-war.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/orthodox-war.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6238,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/rising-propaganda-against-sects-in-eastern-ukraine\/","url_meta":{"origin":5226,"position":1},"title":"Rising Propaganda Against Sects in Eastern Ukraine","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"February 1, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\"Get them out of our republic, they are just turning people into zombies\" One woman says in the video below as she talks about how terrible \"sects\" are and how they should be kicked out of Donetsk People's Republic. (\"Sect\" is a general term used mainly by Russian Orthodox that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;New&quot;","block_context":{"text":"New","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/new\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Screen-Shot-2016-02-01-at-4.39.05-PM-e1454337649209.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Screen-Shot-2016-02-01-at-4.39.05-PM-e1454337649209.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Screen-Shot-2016-02-01-at-4.39.05-PM-e1454337649209.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4381,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/fighting-kills-elderly-church-member-during-ceasefire-in-donetsk-ukraine\/","url_meta":{"origin":5226,"position":2},"title":"Fighting Kills Elderly Church Member During Ceasefire in Donetsk Ukraine","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"September 13, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday I received heart wrenching news from a friend whose church is in Donetsk. A piece of shrapnel killed one of their church members right in her own yard! This is the brutal truth of the supposed ceasefire in Ukraine. People are still dying! Officially the war has killed around\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ministry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ministry","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/donetsk-dead.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/donetsk-dead.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/donetsk-dead.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7252,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/announcement-about-the-dangers-of-protestant-churches-in-eastern-ukraine\/","url_meta":{"origin":5226,"position":3},"title":"Announcement About the Dangers of Protestant Churches in Eastern Ukraine","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"December 12, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The Lugansk People's Republic seems to be declaring war on the destructive religious activities of protestants in Eastern Ukraine! Recently the department of State Security of Lugansk People's Republic made a disturbing announcement describing what they called: \"The destructive activities of non-traditional religious organizations, which present a threat to safety\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ukraine&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ukraine","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ukraine-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Screen-Shot-2016-12-12-at-2.57.06-PM.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Screen-Shot-2016-12-12-at-2.57.06-PM.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Screen-Shot-2016-12-12-at-2.57.06-PM.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4276,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/this-is-what-a-pastor-from-donetsk-told-me-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":5226,"position":4},"title":"This Is What A Pastor From Donetsk Told Me Today","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"August 20, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Today I sat down with a pastor friend (name withheld for safety reasons) from Donetsk. He and his family fled the city over a month ago with hopes that they would soon be able to return. However, the situation has only deteriorated in the past few weeks and along with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ministry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ministry","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/AP-Photo-Sergei-Grits.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/AP-Photo-Sergei-Grits.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/AP-Photo-Sergei-Grits.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9286,"url":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/whats-going-on-in-ukraine\/","url_meta":{"origin":5226,"position":5},"title":"What&#8217;s Going on in Ukraine","author":"Caleb Suko","date":"April 10, 2018","format":"video","excerpt":"Here are a few news items about Ukraine and about our ministry here. I hope you'll take a few moments to read through them and pray for Ukraine. If you'd like to get regular updates via email, you can do that here. Things are getting more difficult for Churches in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ministry&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ministry","link":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/category\/ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30415279_2236715976342283_8986102757635129344_o.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30415279_2236715976342283_8986102757635129344_o.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30415279_2236715976342283_8986102757635129344_o.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30415279_2236715976342283_8986102757635129344_o.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30415279_2236715976342283_8986102757635129344_o.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sukofamily.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30415279_2236715976342283_8986102757635129344_o.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5226","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5226"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5226\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5231,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5226\/revisions\/5231"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5228"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sukofamily.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}