A Gathering of Remembrance, Friendship, and Hope
On Saturday, our church welcomed former participants from our ESL Language Circle for a potluck lunch and social gathering. The gathering included both our Ukrainian newcomer freinds and English-speaking conversation partners from our congregation as well as from the neighborhood. The room quickly filled with the warmth of shared food, lively conversation, and the joy of reconnecting with old friends while making new ones.
We began by lighting a candle in memory of the victims of the Holodomor, the genocide that remains an open wound in Ukraine’s collective memory. Pastor Vida offered a prayer of remembrance and blessed the food, helping us hold together both the weight of sorrow and the strength of the women who continue to rebuild their lives far from home.
After lunch, Pastor Vida shared reflections on a contemporary icon of the Annunciation, created by an iconographer Ivanka Demchuk associated with the Lviv school. While it draws from traditional motifs, the icon is profoundly shaped by the present moment of Ukraine’s suffering.
In it, the angel Gabriel stands just outside the room where Mary sits, almost hesitating to enter. Mary’s gaze is turned toward the doorway, as though she senses someone is there but has not yet heard the message. The room itself is painted in dark, muted tones, and Mary’s cloak is rendered in a deep charcoal blue—so dark it appears almost like a mourning shroud. For many, this imagery resonates with Ukraine today: a nation still in mourning for thousands killed on the battlefield or by missiles and drones that have struck homes, hospitals, and schools.
And yet, there is a window in the scene—an opening onto fields of golden wheat, luminous against the darkness. The wheat fields are unmistakably Ukrainian and serve as a quiet sign of hope. Through this opening, light enters the room. The icon seems to say that even in the midst of grief, Ukraine is still waiting, still listening for good news, still hoping for the moment when God’s messenger steps fully into the room with the promise of deliverance.
The afternoon concluded with folk songs sung by the women's own vocal quartet. Their final offering—a traditional Ukrainian Christmas carol—was sung as a blessing over everyone gathered.
As the women departed, many expressed how meaningful the event had been: the food, the music, the conversations, and the chance to be together again. For us, it was a glimpse of Advent hope—an embodied reminder that friendship, remembrance, and shared hospitality are themselves signs of God’s coming peace.