Spirit in this Season

It's always hard to be away from home and loved ones at Christmas.  We are grateful for computer communication that allows us to reach across miles and share love.  This is the small manger scene on the front walkway of the Kyiv temple.  We are glad that we have snow that is always part of Christmas for us, and also a warm comfortable apartment close by our lovely new temple where the environment is always warm and peaceful in every possible way.  We are blessed to be able to be serving here.

I recently listened to Elder Holland in an interview with Sheri Dew for "Conversations" on the Mormon Channel online.  They were talking about how most often in his addresses Elder Holland is pleading with us to not give up.  He said: "We were meant to have help, to be encouraged, to succeed.  We don’t talk enough about hope.  There is one commandment that we may unwittingly violate almost more than any other commandment: “be of good cheer”.   "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace.  In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33  He went on to say, "We are supposed to hope, to know it will get better.  It will get better; it does get better....  This is a contest in which the victory has already been won.  We already know who wins.  The irony is that we are still trying to figure out which team we are going to play for!  Which seems to me crazy.  You play for the winner.  The Savior has already won all of this, has overcome all of the world.  He’ll answer your prayers….  The world has tried every other formula, and none of them work.  The only one that works is the gospel."  I'm grateful for Hope.

I also liked Pres. Uchtdorf's invitation to us all his message during the 2010 First Presidency Christmas Devotional:  "Look steadfastly for His coming  This is a time for preparation and growth to prepare for His return, a time for looking forward, preparing for the blessed day, to watch as the wise men did.  “He saith... Surely I come quickly.  Amen.  Even so, come, Lord Jesus” said John at the end of his Revelation"  

I have been listening to Christmas music since October and have lots of albums from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on our computer.  I have noticed that the choir has usually ended their annual Christmas music specials with the carol, Angels from the Realms of Glory.  I have paid particular attention to the closing verse that says something like:

Saints before the altar bending

Watching long in hope and fear

Suddenly the Lord descending

In his temple shall appear

Glorious--- now we view Him

He shall fill his father’s throne

Gather all the nations to him

Every knee shall then bow down

And so every day in this Kyiv temple we help the saints here and ourselves to prepare to meet the Lord.  We are trying to live closer to Him, to be more like Him.  And He is helping us.  

We are grateful for the hope that is only possible because of the birth, life and death of our dear Savior.  We are grateful for the restoration of His gospel and the priesthood keys and ordinances which make it possible to make covenants with Him.  We send our love to all of you.  We appreciate hearing from you, your support, and your patience when we don't have much time to reply to emails quickly.

Churches, Calendars and Holidays

To understand the holidays in Ukraine, you need a historical background. Since holidays were originally holy days, we start with the Christian Church.  After the death of the apostles there were still active church groups in many areas presided over by bishops.  Congregations in those cities which had been missionary sites of the apostles claimed to have precedence over other areas and their bishops, even as the priesthood was passed on down others, had more importance.  Over time the bishop in Rome, because both Peter and Paul had personally preached and lived there, presumed more importance.  Christianity was recognized as the "state" church by Constantine in 320 and the capital of the Roman empire was moved to Constantinople.  Many church councils of bishops were held to unify Christian doctrines since the various churches acted independently.  This was the orthodox catholic church that existed when Vladimir, head of the Kievan Rus state adopted Christianity as his state religion in 988.  There continued to be disagreements and eventually in 1054 the bishop in Rome and some of his followers broke from those in the east.  From then on those in the East continued to use the designation "Orthodox" meaning right believer and those in the West continued to use "Catholic" meaning universal.  Eventually Rome's bishop (father, pope) assumed divine authority above all others, the only heir to Peter and Paul.  The orthodox churches continued to allow each important bishop (patriarch) and church group to act independently and treated each other as equals.

Julius Caesar adopted a calendar for his Roman empire in 46 BC.  It was used by the Christian Church as they adopted holy days and feasts commemorating Christ's birth, death and resurrection, saints' days, the new year, etc.  In 1582 Pope Gregory XIII of the Roman Catholic church adopted a calendar that corrected the lack of a few minutes in each year's time, which over centuries amounted to many days.  The Eastern Orthodox churches continued with the earlier Julian Calendar.  It wasn't until 1918 that  the USSR adopted the Gregorian calendar and by that time the discrepancy between the two calendars was 13 days!


In countries of the USSR where religion was denounced, the New Year celebration became the important holiday.  They adapted the decorated evergreen tree, and a red-robed grandfather frost (Ded Moroz) and his helper snow maiden, who bring presents in a 3-horse-drawn sleigh.  A festive family dinner is held along with fun and perhaps fireworks.  Even children are allowed to stay up until midnight.  This is held Jan 1 (or Jan 14 if you use the old calendar).

Those who believe in Christ celebrate Christmas on either Dec 25 or Jan 7 depending on which church they belong to.  Most Latter-day Saints celebrate on Dec. 25, but if relatives (like grandparents) are members of the Orthodox church the children may get a small gift at home on one day and at the relatives 13 days later!

St. Nicholas, an orphan whose rich parents died, lived in what was then Greece and is now Turkey, and was known for his generosity, his love for children and for sailors.  He became a bishop and was later recognized as a saint.  He died on Dec 6, 346 and that day became a feast day in his honor.  St Nicholas Day is still celebrated with a small gift for children.  In Ukraine that day is now Dec 19.


Thus if you are a child here in Ukraine, you may expect gifts, small or large, from Dec 19 through Jan 14!  And as adults you can expect holiday parties and days off work at various intervals during the cold short days of winter!  The Kyiv temple will be closed the afternoon of Dec. 24 and all day on Dec. 25, 31 and Jan 1.  We will find ways to celebrate here too.

The Way To Cherkasy

On a beautiful Sunday, Nov. 14, we traveled with Brother Poddubnyy, a temple worker, counselor in the mission presidency, and CES supervisor, to visit the LDS branch in Cherkasy.  Traveling east and south we passed through farm fields, many very green with growing winter wheat since we had been having unusually mild temperatures all week long.  Sugar beets are also a main crop in this area of Ukraine

This area of Ukraine was the home of Sholem Aleichem (1859-1916), author of the story from which "Fiddler on the Roof" was created.  Until he was 13 he lived in a small Jewish settlement (which probably doesn't exist anymore--60,000 villages were destroyed on the Eastern Front during the fighting in WWII) and then the family moved to a town in this area.  As we travel through the rural Ukrainian villages we often think of fictional Anatevka  

The Cherkasy Branch meets in this building constructed by the Church and attached to the adjoining apartment building.  Just a block off of the main street, the corner is landscaped for pedestrians.  It is spacious with a large meeting area, many classrooms and offices and well suited to the small congregation.  There are 200 members and about 60 were in attendance.  We see many in the temple often.  They are wonderful people.

Cherkasy sits at the end of the largest reservoir on the Dneiper River.  It was founded in the 14th century and home to Ukrainian Cossaks who ruled the area.  This was our view as we traveled back across the causeway in the evening after passing some time walking in the city while Bro. P. took care of his church business.  It was a 3 1/2 hour drive from Kyiv. 

Ukraine Map for Your Reference

Where in the World is Ulan-Ude?

This week at the temple we had members from the Novosibirsk mission area.  The group included some from Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, and Ulan Ude as well as Novosibirsk. FYI: The Novosibirsk area is 6 time zones away from Kyiv!
 Some flew from Novosibirsk to Moscow and then took an overnight train to Kyiv.  Those from further east took trains to Krasnoyarsk, then a plane to St. Petersburg and one to Kyiv (this was the cheapest way)!  In the past the temple trips were to Sweden and later to Finland.  The reason they now come to Kyiv is not just distance, but that no visas are needed to exit Russia or enter another country and that was often a major obstacle.  It is also only a 3 hour plane trip to Kyiv and was an 8 hour bus ride to Helsinki.  Besides, they are in the Kyiv temple district (and probably for all of those reasons).  

So where is Ulan-Ude?  It is on the south east side of Lake Baikal.  One family who joined the church there in 2006 after attending English classes offered by the missionaries, was sealed together this week.  The daughter served a mission in Vladivostok, the son in Samara.  They all came and the two returned missionaries were delightful temple workers with us.  Their mother was endowed and along with the deceased father all were sealed.  This family looks oriental/mongolian.  They are the nicest people.  They said their church branch had about 70 active members.  We will miss them and hope for the best.  

The Ukraine Famine of 1932-33

Also along the Pechersky Hills is a memorial to the Ukrainian "Holodomor  "Encyclopædia Britannica. Quote: "The Great Famine (Holodomor) of 1932–33—a man-made demographic catastrophe unprecedented in peacetime. Of the estimated six to eight million people who died in the Soviet Union, about four to five million were Ukrainians... Its deliberate nature is underscored by the fact that no physical basis for famine existed in Ukraine... Soviet authorities set requisition quotas for Ukraine at an impossibly high level. Brigades of special agents were dispatched to Ukraine to assist in procurement, and homes were routinely searched and foodstuffs confiscated... The rural population was left with insufficient food to feed itself."  One walks down the stairs (invisible in the black area) to a display underground of those who lost their lives. 

This statue tells the story best.  The little starving girl has 5 stalks of wheat in her hand.  Anyone who had even scavenged 5 food items was considered an enemy of the state and could be exterminated.   The Ukrainian population could not openly talk about this event until after they became a free country. 

These storks rising seem a fitting representation of the modern Ukrainian people and nation who are rising with strength and vigor from past oppression.

Kyiv's Motherland Statue

As well known and visible in Ukraine as the Statue of Liberty (46 meters high) in the USA, the Motherland Statue (62 meters high) stands on a hill overlooking the Dneiper River and not far from the Lavre Monastery we visited on another day.  It was a gift from Russia (the Soviet symbol is on the shield) in tribute to Ukrainians who fought against the invading Nazis. It was dedicated by Brezhnev (also a Ukrainian) in 1981.  The plaza surrounding the statue has war machines and memorials depicting courageous civilians and soldiers.  In the base of the statue is the Ukrainian State Museum of the Great Patriotic War with very impressive displays about the Eastern Front of World War II.  The damage inflicted by invading Nazis with the battles for cities and lands throughout the former Soviet Union, and in particular the Ukraine, is very well presented and sobering. The last display is a large long table set on one side for military personnel with displays behind of many soldiers who lost their lives, on the other side for civilians with displays of families' losses.  It is estimated that more than 60 million people lost their lives because of WWII.

Faith Reborn: the Saints in Ukraine

For those of you who didn't get to see this program about the Kyiv saints and the temple, shown on BYU TV and in stake centers between the October 2010 General Conference sessions, here is a link to it that you can use.  It is very interesting and we love it because we know many of those who are interviewed or shown.
http://www.byutv.org/watch/2037-100

Shopping at the Market/Reenok

 Outdoor markets are found everywhere.  People just set themselves up anywhere there is traffic to sell their wares.  We are told that there is no necessity for a license or permission of any kind as long as the selling place s not permanent.

Some markets are semi-permanent with such booths that probably are rented.  We frequent these open booths where produce is sold  We also like to just walk around and see what is for sale, how the wares change as the seasons do. 

The Sad and the Glad Tidings

This is a lovely natural wooded ravine in Kyiv called Babi Yar referring to a babushka who sold the property hundreds of years ago.  In September of 1941 it became the burial ground of over 33,000 Jews

This memorializes these people who the Nazi's decided to kill within 10 days of their occupation of Kiev.  As in other instances, Jews were told to report to the area to be deported and then, before they could even understand what was happening, were stripped, herded to the ravine and shot.  This was the largest single massacre of Jews committed by the Nazis.  You can read more about it on Wikipedia or other sources.  

Many others were executed here too.  This memorializes two Orthodox priests who were killed because they preached against the killings.   The Nazis killed anyone who opposed them or was beneath their Aryan ideal such as communists, Soviet POW's, Ukrainians, and gypsies.  It is estimated that 100,000 -- 150,000 people were murdered here!

But the glad tidings are that from this wooded area in Kiev, near the statue of Vladimir who made Christianity the state religion in 988,  Ukraine was dedicated for the preaching of the restored Gospel about 1000 years later.  Now there are many who can help even those who long ago lost their lives in such a cruel manner to receive all of the blessings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  We are so grateful for temple ordinances that can bless the living and the dead. 

Kyiv Monastery of the Caves

This photo of the tourist map of this area gives a good overview of this site.  We entered through the gate on the upper left and wandered on through taking pictures, not knowing exactly what all of this was.  It was evident that it was a monastery and we kept following the signs until we went through the long covered walkway shown winding in the upper right of the map down to the the beginning of the lower caves.  It was good that we followed some believing babushkas through the cave past the sarcophaguses of Orthodox saints which they reverently kissed.  The mummies were all covered with holy clothes and some date back to 1114.  Many of these orthodox buildings are very old; some have been restored.   This area is jointly held by the state and Ukrainian Orthodox Church.  You can get more information on this area on the internet Wikipedia site at "Kiev Perchersk Lavra" which is what we did when we returned home afterwards.  It is a place we will return to when it is warmer; it was overcast and drizzled a bit as we were there but the gold domes shone anyway!  This is only a sample of many of them.  You see them from many points in the city dotting the hillside overlooking the Dnieper River. 

A Nearby Cemetery

We have noticed a cemetery that we walk near as we go to shop at the street market so we decided to go there.  It was a cool Autumn day.  We don't know why there were benches and tables near the graves.  Some were new graves and some were quite old.  But most were cared for with flowers,  either real or fake.  Some had been carefully prepared for Winter.

Many had pictures

Some graves were just simple mounds but most plots were enclosed by metal fences that had been painted black or silver.  The  metal crosses were also kept painted.

Most of the newer graves were marked with this kind of shiny black stone and engraved pictures.  We were impressed with the belief in immortality and Christ that was evident in the sayings and the pictures on the gravestones.  Somehow faith and religion survived in Ukraine in spite of Soviet communism.

A Walk in the Neighborhood

Today on our afternoon off we took another walk around the neighborhood near the temple.   We love to see the great variety of homes.  This is by no means the average living standard in Kyiv.  Most people live in concrete multilevel apartment buildings with only a balcony as their outside living space.  We have seen very modest single dwellings in other suburban and village areas.  For some reason the people living here by the temple are much more affluent.  Here are some of the homes in the area.

We keep wondering who these people are and what they do to have so much money available for their houses and yards.

Most yards are securely fenced.  Many people build their own fences and take a lot of pride in the distinctive look.

This gate and large yard plus the house with satellite dishes gives you a clue about the wealth of this family

Note the mauve and purple paint with the orange-red brick!

This is my personal favorite.  Note that the vines have had a lot of time to grow up to the balcony and the landscape is otherwise full grown.

Don't you just love the nice car in the driveway and the windmill to the left?  And the construction scaffolding?  They do have fruit trees!  Many yards have large gardens.  

After supper when I was taking out the garbage I saw the rising full moon in the east with the the waning daylight in the west and ran inside to get the camera to catch this picture.  The temple is almost unreal at any time of the day.  But this is a reminder of the changing of the seasons and the beautiful day we enjoyed on Sept 23, 2010

A Visit to a Ukrainian Restaurant

We arrived in the temple president's van that we have converted into a 10 passenger vehicle by adding two chairs to the back luggage area--a rumble seat!  We had a great drive around the city as Pres. Galbraith tried to find the location.  It was the perfect end of our preparation day.  

This is the front of the restaurant with one of the waiters standing by the pig statue.  It looked as quaint as it was inside.  They also have outdoor eating in a garden setting.  The food was Ukrainian and the menu was obviously for tourists like us.  We had a great time selecting and eating our good food. 

We were excited to see moonflowers (right) in their gardens.  The hill behind the white van covers an underground portion of the restaurant!

These musicians were very entertaining.  The man on the accordion could whistle through his spaced teeth making bird songs.  The singer had a wonderful tenor voice.  We always applauded and tipped them to come and sing a song for Pres. Christiansen's birthday.  They sang several songs!