In the occupied city of Mariupol, many Catholic churches are “completely destroyed,” according to Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk. This is not unique to Mariupol. According to the Archbishop, the Catholic Church was “liquidated in the occupied territories” with “not a single Catholic priest” left today. Those priests who tried to remain with their flocks have been arrested, deported, and, in some cases, brutally tortured.

This destruction represents evidence of a campaign that extends far beyond territorial conquest. Russia's war against Ukraine is not merely geopolitical — it is a systematic assault on Ukrainian society, targeting the faith communities that bind its people together and give them strength.

Since his election, Pope Leo XIV has demonstrated remarkable moral leadership on Ukraine. In his first call with a foreign leader as pontiff, Pope Leo XIV chose to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Since then, he has offered to host peace negotiations, led efforts to rescue Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, and surged food supplies to beleaguered Ukrainian towns.

But beyond his actions, the world has much to learn from how the Pope speaks about Russia’s war against Ukraine. Pope Leo XIV said that Ukraine has been "martyred" in a “senseless war.”

He chooses language rooted in moral truth, not diplomatic ambiguity. By using the term martyr, defined as “a person who is killed or who suffers greatly for a religion or cause,” he affirms that Russia has waged war against Ukraine not solely for geopolitical reasons. It goes deeper than that. Russia has waged war against Ukraine because Putin does not believe that Ukrainians have the right to exist as a nation or people.

During our time spent on the front lines interviewing Ukrainians as part of our documentary A Faith Under Siege, we found that it is not just Ukrainian identity that Russian troops are working to destroy. Russia has waged a campaign to eradicate faith.

The statistics are horrifying. Russia has killed 52 faith leaders, destroyed or damaged more than 650 churches, and sought to eradicate or push underground religious groups it opposes. In Russian-occupied Ukraine, no faith group outside those affiliated with the Kremlin-aligned Russian Orthodox Church is safe. People of faith have become martyrs.

The targeting of Catholics has been particularly severe, as detailed in our latest short documentary, No Priests Left. Ukraine’s Catholics have been targeted, silenced, and driven out or pushed underground in Russian-occupied territories.

As of 2019, approximately 5 million Catholics called Ukraine home. Today, according to Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, not a single Catholic priest remains in the occupied territories. Russia has formally banned the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and Catholic organizations like the Knights of Columbus from operating in these areas. Catholic churches in Mariupol, Maryinka, Volnovakha and Lysychansk have been destroyed, while priests who refused to abandon their parishes faced torture and abuse. Russia has also targeted cities far from its borders with Ukraine, including Lviv, the center of Catholicism in Ukraine. Last September, we met a Catholic believer who had lost his wife and three daughters to a Russian hypersonic missile attack.

All the while, the Russian Orthodox Church has endorsed these atrocities, calling for a holy war against Ukraine and the West, urging that “the entire territory of modern Ukraine” should “enter Russia’s exclusive zone of influence.” This stands in stark contrast to free Ukraine, where evangelicals, Catholics, Jews and Orthodox Christians practice their faith freely alongside one another.

Russia is now intensifying its attacks on Ukrainian population centers, raining drones and missiles indiscriminately upon civilians. While Russia is aiming to seize as much territorial control over Ukraine as possible, it seeks far more than territory. Russian occupation forces seek to eliminate dissenters, erase identities, and outlaw faith. Every mile of territory Russia seizes turns more people of faith into martyrs.

Fortunately, under Pope Leo XIV’s leadership, the Vatican is sending aid to Ukraine, working to rescue kidnapped Ukrainian children, and trying to bring peace. Members of the Catholic Church around the world have a role to play as well.

Catholics worldwide can commit to sustained prayer for those in Ukraine. The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which has suffered intense persecution under Russian occupation, continues to hold services, minister to the displaced, and support victims of violence.

Catholics should also educate others. Too few in the West are aware of the Russian atrocities against the Church. Speaking out, sharing accurate information, and correcting false claims — especially those amplified by Kremlin-aligned voices — truly matters.

Lastly, Catholics must demand action. Catholics worldwide must petition their governments and insist that any future peace deal include protections for religious freedom in the occupied territories and the return of exiled clergy and kidnapped children. Policymakers should be pressed to condemn Russia’s religious persecution and support Ukraine’s sovereignty.

The Catholic Church in Ukraine is sounding the alarm. The Vatican is engaged. Ukraine is resisting. But time is of the essence. The world must recognize the persecution of Ukrainian Catholics and other faith communities not as a footnote of war, but as a central objective of Russia’s campaign.

Colby Barrett JD, PE, is an entrepreneur, filmmaker, and former U.S. Marine Corps Captain who led infantry and scout/sniper platoons in the Pacific Rim and Middle East. He is the producer of ‘A Faith Under Siege.’

Steven Moore is a former chief of staff in the U.S. House of Representatives and Founder of Ukraine Freedom Project. He is an executive producer of ‘A Faith Under Siege.’