This training had commenced two months earlier with the online modules and was facilitated by the Centre<\/span>\u00a0for Conflict Resolution (La Sierra University<\/span>, USA<\/span>) and the Centre for Conflict Resolution Europe (British Union Conference). <\/span>The programme was <\/span>offered free of charge<\/span> to Ukrainian pastors in support of their ministry within the difficult context of war. Dr Maksym <\/span>Krupski<\/span> (Public Affairs and Religious Liberty <\/span>d<\/span>irector for the Ukrainian Union and <\/span>d<\/span>irector of the Ukrainian Hope Channel) was superbly efficient in handling all logistical matters regarding the training, which ended up being a most enriching event for all <\/span>participants<\/span>. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Three Days of Training\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Twenty-one pastors and administrators took part in the three days of training. J-R and Tony were impressed by the level of class participation and the <\/span>jovial<\/span> atmosphere during the classes. The students were <\/span>immersed in the case studies <\/span>and mediation roleplaying <\/span>they were required to <\/span>undertake and, and the end of the <\/span>training<\/span>, expressed appreciation for the useful <\/span>skills<\/span> acquired during the course. The trainers also found the experience rewarding and <\/span>appreciated the openness and candid manner in which the participants engaged with the <\/span>material presented. <\/span>\u00a0They also expressed hope that the knowledge imparted would be put to good use in bringing healing to a <\/span>c<\/span>hurch<\/span> community<\/span> and society drastically affected by tragedy.<\/span><\/p>\n From time to time, <\/span>a<\/span> pastor would <\/span>leave the room, with a look of anxiety on their face, and, upon their return, I would see them sit somehow wavering in their resolve to see the class through. “They got news from home”, I would be told\u2026 Thankfully, during the training there was no bad news, just the day-to-day worry of an attack that could happened at any time while they were away. We were relatively safe in <\/span>Polyana<\/span>, but this did not take away the uneasiness some of us felt. Wh<\/span>en<\/span> speaking to <\/span>the pastors<\/span>, I saw some <\/span>of them<\/span> check their phones while waiting for translation. Again, they were not scrolling<\/span> on<\/span> Facebook or Instagram, but simply checking their messages or airstrike warning apps\u2026 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n After the training on Wednesday, I took the overnight train to <\/span>Kyiv<\/span> were I was welcomed by Oleksandr (Sasha) and Volodymyr (<\/span>an English professor and<\/span> my translator for the weekend). From the train station we went to the Adventist Institute in <\/span>Bucha<\/span> and, after<\/span> freshening up and enjoying a traditional Ukrainian breakfast, <\/span>we <\/span>began our journey<\/span> to <\/span>Borodianka<\/span>. <\/span>While driving through <\/span>Bucha<\/span> I was impressed to see that the city had been rebuilt almost in its entirety. When I asked how that was possible, Sasha, a pastor and Hope Channel Ukraine employee, began to <\/span>share<\/span> how the people of <\/span>Bucha<\/span> had decided to move on from the tragic destruction they had suffered.<\/span><\/p>\n Mines Among the Berries<\/strong><\/p>\n He told me <\/span>that<\/span> the resolve and resiliency of the people were derived from a deep sense of historical necessity and faith in <\/span>being victorious<\/span> against oppression. \u201cLoo<\/span>k!<\/span>\u201d he said. \u201c<\/span>Do y<\/span>ou see that forest? It\u2019s full of dangerous mines. But it <\/span>wa<\/span>s also full of berries. <\/span>When the berries were <\/span>ripened<\/span>, the people went into the forest and <\/span>harvested them<\/span>. \u2018<\/span>These <\/span>are <\/span>our berries,\u2019 they said, \u2018and we\u2019re going to get our berries as we<\/span>\u2019ve<\/span> always done. We won\u2019t let <\/span>their<\/span> mines <\/span>stop<\/span> us from getting <\/span>our<\/span> berries.\u2019\u201d Sasha laughed<\/span> with pride, almost <\/span>revering the stubborn resolve of people to put berries <\/span>before <\/span>life. An example perhaps <\/span>of how far <\/span>they<\/span> will go and how much they are willing to sacrifice to honour the land they call home.<\/span><\/p>\n Borodianka<\/strong><\/p>\n Borodianka still carries the ugly <\/span>consequences<\/span> of war<\/span>: bombarded <\/span>homes<\/span>, monuments shredded by bullets<\/span>,<\/span> and deep craters <\/span>left <\/span>behind <\/span>by <\/span>rockets. It is being rebuilt <\/span>and<\/span> people are<\/span> everywhere,\u00a0<\/span>working tirelessly to remove rubble, install sewage and water pipes, and rebuild dwellings. <\/span>Borodianka<\/span> is <\/span>also <\/span>a clear example of how important symbols are in spurring on a nation to rebuild itself. <\/span>Sasha and Volodymyr k<\/span>e<\/span>p<\/span>t <\/span>reminding me how important these symbols are. For example, <\/span>the red and black flag <\/span>flying high next to the yellow and blue. Sasha explain<\/span>ed,<\/span>\u00a0\u201cThis<\/span> symbolises <\/span>and is a reminder of <\/span>the shed blood of victims and soldiers<\/span>; the blood changed the colours of our flag.<\/span>\u201d Or the<\/span> mural <\/span>of the<\/span> \u201cSmiling <\/span>S<\/span>ervicewoman\u201d whose<\/span>\u00a0smil<\/span>e<\/span> stares danger in the face, unafraid, almost welcoming death in exchange for peace<\/span>. This mural<\/span> also <\/span>shows<\/span> that women are as much part of both <\/span>the <\/span>battle<\/span> for liberation<\/span> and <\/span>the <\/span>rebuilding<\/span> of the <\/span>country<\/span> (<\/span>which <\/span>I later saw mirrored in<\/span> a sculpture <\/span>found<\/span> in the World War II Museum in Kyiv<\/span>)<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n For me, the statue of national poet <\/span>Taras <\/span>Shevchenko in the centre of the town <\/span>wa<\/span>s most poignant; the poet\u2019s bust <\/span>wa<\/span>s maimed <\/span>by missile shrapnel and it <\/span>displayed <\/span>bullet holes, but it <\/span>stood erect still,<\/span> defiant and majestic. <\/span><\/p>\n Behind it, <\/span>the mural of <\/span>Lesya<\/span> Ukrainka<\/span>, another icon of Ukrainian literature, rescued from the ruins of a fallen building. <\/span>While standing in front of Shevchenko\u2019s statue, with reverence almost, I thought of <\/span>the immeasurable power of the word <\/span>which<\/span>, in times <\/span>of crisis<\/span>, <\/span>through <\/span>verse and song<\/span>, <\/span>reaffirm<\/span>s<\/span> identity and stir<\/span>s<\/span> a people\u2019s resolve to survive.<\/span><\/p>\n Bucha<\/strong><\/p>\n While walking back to the car, my companions suggest<\/span>ed<\/span> we go back to the city of <\/span>Bucha<\/span>. We pass<\/span>ed<\/span> a few military checkpoints and f<\/span>ound<\/span>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/ukraine_02.jpg\")