Ukraine people — do they know it’s Christmas?

What does Christmas look like for you this year? A big dinner with your loved ones by a warm fire? Perhaps a candlelit service at your local church. Maybe it’s giving gifts to your friends and family while your favorite holiday tune plays softly.

But there is no doubt that the people of Ukraine are living this holiday season very differently than Westerners this year.

Instead of parties and shopping, many will face plunging temperatures with no heat.  Separation from their loved ones. Power outages. Children missing their parents and friends, misplaced by the war that rages on for the 10th month.

Russian attacks have plunged the country into indefinite darkness, and while citizens light their candles to celebrate the season however they choose, hope will still shine amongst the shadow of anguish war has brought.

It was less than two weeks ago when I asked our dear friend, Bishop Paul Francis Lanier, Chairman of The Fellowship board of directors, to travel to Ukraine. The truth is it wasn’t exactly fair of me to ask. He just got back from a successful Fellowship mission to South Korea and was rightfully committed to being present for his beloved church who needed him. Yet this is Bishop Lanier: after just a moment of thought, he came up with an idea. "I can be at church on Sunday, leave immediately to Ukraine, distribute aid for two days, and fly back in time for church the next day."

Just a few days later, he was on a plane to Ukraine.

In just two short days, our Fellowship team on the ground in Odesa, Ukraine, made such a huge impact. They distributed hundreds of food boxes, water bottles, and blankets to elderly Holocaust survivors who are living out this torturous winter, without electricity, due to war. They comforted the lonely, suffering old ladies, and children. And maybe most important, by going into the war zone to distribute lifesaving aid, they showed these suffering Jews that they are not alone.

Bishop Lanier said the most devastating part was as hundreds were waiting in line for winter survival boxes, an alarm sounded, meaning a drone attack was imminent. The crowds scattered, reminded yet again the war is still present in every aspect of their lives.

The war raging in Ukraine doesn’t take a break for celebrations of Hanukkah and Christmas. The devastation and hardship in the country continue despite what the calendar says. Many Ukrainians are living in dire conditions, including no power, no clean water, no roof over their heads, and with food sources running out. Most are focused on survival, not celebration.

The truth is, this holiday season, as many of us are enjoying meals with our families around candlelit tables, many Ukrainians will be cold, hungry, and displaced, including the large Jewish Ukrainian community. Among that community are Holocaust survivors who, for the third time in their life, are being uprooted and moved due to conditions in the region. The Jerusalem Post reports that 73% of Jews in Ukraine will have to choose between food and heat this winter.

It’s precisely during this season of light that we should recognize that mankind is united by what we have in common, not divided by our differences.

As Jews remember the miracle of the oil lamp that did not burn out, Christians are thinking of the birth of Jesus. Let us contribute to this season of miracles by pursuing peace not only in Ukraine but worldwide among all men. The Fellowship, with our over 600,000 Jewish and Christian donors, has helped Jewish people across the FSU with close to $30 million in aid in 2022 alone. But there is so much more to be done.  Let us keep in our hearts and minds those who are suffering in war-torn Ukraine without the basic comforts we enjoy in our cozy homes far from the conflict.

As people of faith, our hope is greater than our fear.  And light is stronger than darkness. The darker the room, the more the candle illuminates the space. During this holiday season, we are called to BE the light.

Tonight, across a dark and freezing Ukraine, where there is no electricity or heat — and in many cities, no running water — the Jewish people continued to spread God’s light, as they lit the menorah on Hanukkah.

How symbolic. The festival of light — in a country overcome by darkness.

Whether you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah — and, whenever and however you observe it — consider lighting a candle for Ukraine. Also, if you’re able, consider donating to the work being done to assist those in the Ukraine who are fighting for survival — and peace — in the midst of extraordinary circumstances.