Suffering

In early March I led a retreat on “Theologies of Risk and Suffering” with seven Ukrainian pastors outside Kyiv. From remarkably different backgrounds, Alexander Nikolaeev and Robert Shpontak described their work in a free-flowing conversation. Alexander lived for nearly 40 years in Ukraine as part of the U.S.S.R. Robert, a boy when Ukraine declared independence, remembers little of that time. Currently Robert serves as a pastor and teacher in peaceful western Ukraine, while Alexander is a lay pastor near the eastern conflict zone. Thanks to Rev. George de Vuyst for translating.