Ukraine hospital chaplain: Under the bombs with faith and resilience

Herald Malaysia

a day ago

The situation in Ukraine remains difficult. Raids continue on the ground. A 10-year-old child was killed and five people were injured during a Russian attack on the city of Kramatorsk. Jul 24, 2025
Father Yaroslav Rokhman serving Ukrainian faithful as hospital chaplain
By Svitlana DukhovychThe situation in Ukraine remains difficult. Raids continue on the ground. A 10-year-old child was killed and five people were injured during a Russian attack on the city of Kramatorsk.
On late Monday night, July 21, a drone attack hit the community of Putyvl, injuring 13 people, including a 5-year-old child. Loud explosions were heard in Odessa.
These latest actions follow the major attack during the night of July 21, when Russia launched 426 drones and 24 missiles, hitting several regions, particularly Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Ivano-Frankivsk. In the capital, at least six districts suffered fires and destruction. Residential buildings, a kindergarten, a supermarket, and warehouses were damaged.
The mayor of Ivano-Frankivsk in western Ukraine, Ruslan Martsinkiv, called it the most intense attack on the region since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
A night of fear
To Vatican media, the Greek-Catholic priest of Ivano-Frankivsk, Father Yaroslav Rokhman, spoke of his concern not only for his family (he is married and has two children), but also for his parishioners and for the patients and doctors at the Regional Perinatal Center, where he serves as chaplain.
'All night we could hear the loud noise of explosions,' he said. 'Naturally, I was very worried for my children, especially my eight-year-old daughter, who was in a panic. We went down to the basement, and it was hard to convince her that we were in a safe place. I thought of all the children in similar or even worse situations. Because at least we live in a private house, but many families live in tall apartment buildings, and for them it's very hard to get to the shelters.'
Father Rokhman recalled that at the start of the war, they too lived in an apartment complex and often had to rush to the basement and sleep there, fully clothed.
Fears of pregnant women
The young priest was also concerned for the patients at the perinatal center, who are taken to the hospital basement during air raids.
'There isn't enough space for everyone. They need proper conditions,' he says, 'not just a basement adapted as a shelter.'
He explains that the feelings during a bombing are intense fear and helplessness.
'The noise is so loud that you realize it's close. You feel defenseless, unable to do anything. You fear for your life, for your children's lives, and for the lives of your loved ones—friends, parishioners, neighbors.
He acknowledged that it's extremely distressing, and today, many Ukrainians are experiencing this. At the same time, he continued, "a new day comes, and we realize we have to leave that fear behind and move forward with courage to face the day and return to our work.'
Mass despite the attacks
After such a difficult night, the priest decided not to cancel the 8 AM service, and while heading to church, he noticed most citizens had done the same.
'I saw a traffic jam,' he recounted, adding, 'I was struck by how many people had gone to work. It made me think about the resilience and strength of our people. Today we're all tired because we were awake all night, and it's very hard to start the day—but despite everything, people are moving, making plans, continuing to live.'
Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, both Greek-Catholic and Roman Catholic priests have constantly stood by the people, tending to physical and spiritual wounds.
'Such a massive bombardment causes stress and naturally brings out a certain aggressiveness,' the chaplain explains. 'What we pastors try to remind people is that it's very important at this moment to halt that inner aggression and understand that resistance to the attacks should be based on love—for the homeland, for family. All the anger I have, all that's built up in me—even from this night—I'm a human being too, I have emotions—I try to channel it into service to others.'
The strength of normalcy
Fr Rokhman recalls that when the war began on February 24, 2022, a friend of his—whose husband is in the military—posted on social media a photo of a cleaner with the caption: 'This man made my day brighter,' because on the first morning of the war, he went out and cleaned the courtyard as if nothing had happened.
'At the beginning of the war," he noted, "we were more inclined to panic or to throw ourselves chaotically into volunteer work," but "today, truly doing one's duty, doing one's job well, is very important for maintaining stability and moving forward.'
This resilient attitude also marked the reaction of the Greek-Catholic faithful in the village of Vasiuchyn when, on June 29, 2025, fragments of a Russian missile damaged the bell tower and windows of their Church of the Protection of the Mother of God.
Father Rokhman noted that the village is not only far from the front line, but also from the regional center of Ivano-Frankivsk.
'It happened," he recalled, "at dawn on a Sunday, and clearly it was impossible to enter the parish area or the church. But the faithful," he marveled, "gathered in the square, a little distance from where the missile fragments fell, and they prayed together, asking God for peace and thanking Him that nothing serious had happened. People didn't panic but managed to come together to pray.'--Vatican News