Interfaith Prayer of Remembrance at Babyn Yar

On September 29, marking the 84th anniversary of the Babyn Yar tragedy, an interfaith prayer of remembrance took place at the Menorah Memorial — on the very ground where mass executions occurred. Despite rain and an air raid alert, representatives of different faiths and traditions came together to honor the memory of the innocent victims and to pray for peace.

Participants included Archbishop Ahapyt (Humeniuk) of Vyshhorod; Father Oleksa Petriv; Father Vitalii Kvapish (Roman Catholic Church); Pastors Volodymyr Kondor and Valerii Verner; Serhii Lutskiy (Seventh-Day Adventists); Islam Tokhlu, Advisor to the Chief Mufti of Crimea; Bishop Markos Ohanesian; Ihor Rudzik (Ukrainian Lutheran Church); Chief Rabbi of Kyiv and Ukraine Yaakov Dov Bleich and Avraham Elimelekh Bleich; Oleksandr (Adam) Didenko; Oleksandr Zaiets and Ihor Lukianov (Institute for Religious Freedom); and Diliavar Saidakhmetov (Muslim Religious Administration “Umma”).

Also present were Oleksandr Alforov, Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance; Viktor Yelenskyi, Head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience; Viktoriia Riasna, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports of Ukraine for European Integration; Andriy Shevchenko, Head of the Ukrainian World Congress Mission in Ukraine; and Roza Tapanova, Director of the National Historical and Memorial Reserve “Babyn Yar.”

“Babyn Yar is a shared grief for all who lost their loved ones here. It is a grief for the entire world. But this shared memory is also a source of strength. It unites people of different nationalities and faiths. It reminds us that when societies forget, when words of hatred go unanswered, new evil emerges,” said Roza Tapanova, Director of the Babyn Yar National Historical and Memorial Reserve.

The commemoration was organized by the Babyn Yar National Historical and Memorial Reserve in cooperation with the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance, the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, and civic leaders.

🙏 This prayer became a sign of unity. Together, we remember those who perished at Babyn Yar.

We also remind visitors that the international exhibition “State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda” is now on view at the “Living Memory” Exhibition Center on the grounds of the Reserve, presented in partnership with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

The exhibition explores how words and images — from headlines and posters to large-scale installations — prepared the ground for the Holocaust and justified the Nazis’ war of annihilation.

📍 Venue: “Living Memory” Exhibition Center, 46A Yurii Illienko St., Kyiv
🗓 Dates: September 28 – December 31, 2025
⏰ Hours: Mon–Fri 10:00–19:00 | Sat–Sun 11:00–18:00
🎟 Free admission

📷 Photo credit: Ruslan Synhaievskyi