Your Beatitude Patriarch Kirill,
We, religious leaders representing many faith traditions, write to express our concern with the war taking place in Ukraine. We are mindful of our religious obligation to choose peace through dialogue. Our role is to pray for and support peaceful resolutions of conflict situations.
We are saddened to see the fighting, which pits people of faith against each other. The current conflict has already resulted in a significant loss of life, of both combatants and civilians. The conflict also poses a much wider risk of destruction beyond Ukraine, including the threat of a nuclear accident and a larger conflict between nuclear armed powers, which we know God wants us to avoid at all costs. In this moment, religious leaders are called to rise to the occasion on behalf of God, people, and all creatures.
We appreciate how as Patriarch you have spoken for peace. In light of your close connection to President Vladimir Putin, we call on you to request that he take immediate steps to de-escalate the conflict, and seek a peaceful resolution to it.
We thank you for your time and attention in considering this request.
With blessings for peace on God’s good earth,
Affirmed by members of the Elijah Board of World Religious Leaders:
Buddhist Leaders:
His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Jan Chozen Bays
Venerable Zoketsu Norman Fischer
Dharma Master Hsin Tao
Venerable Prof. Jinwol Sunim
Venerable Ashin Nyanissara (Sitagu/Thegon Sayadaw)
Her Eminence Mindrolling Jetsün Khandro Rinpoche
Venerable Bhikkhu Sanghasena
Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo
Venerable Dharmakosajarn
Christian Leaders:
Cardinal Christoph Schönborn
Prior Isabelle Flye-Saintmarie
Bishop Frank Griswold
Archbishop Boutrous Mouallem
Rev Dr Katharine Henderson
Bishop Lennart Koskinen
Dr. Dimitra Koukoura
Metropolitan Nikitas Lulias
Patriarch Sahag Mashalian
Most Revd Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon
Abbot Primate Notker Wolf
Bishop Domenico Sorrentino
Rev. Prof. David Ford
Leaders of the Religions of India:
Swami Amarananda
Swami Atmapriyananda
Swami Rameshwarananda Giri
Acharya Shri Shrivatsa Goswami
Karshni Swami Sri Gurusharananand
H.H. Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati
H. H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Bhai Sahib Bhai Mohinder Singh
His Holiness Sri Sri Sugunendra Theertha Swamiji
Swami Agnivesh
Jewish Leaders:
Chief Rabbi René-Samuel Sirat
Rabbi David Bigman
Rabbi Yuval Cherlow
Rabbi Arthur Green
Rabbi Menachem Hacohen
Rabbi Richard Marker
Rabbi Michael Melchior
Rabbi David Rosen
Gilla Rosen
Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp
Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg
Muslim Leaders:
Kyai Haji Yahya Cholil Staquf
Sheikh Muhammad Nur Abdullah
Dr. Y. Mossa Basha
Grand Mufti Dr. Mustafa Ceric
Imam Plemon T. El-Amin
Imam Umer Ahmed Ilyasi
Dr. Muzaffar Iqbal
Sayyed Jawad Al-Khoei
Imam Abduljalil Sajid
Dr. Ahmed Taoufiq
Dr. Muhammad Suheyl Umar
Sheikh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani
Affirmed by Other religious leaders:
Rabbi Dov Singer
Rabbi David Wolpe
Rabba Tamar Elad-Applebaum
Imam Abdul Rauf
Archbishop Felix Machado
Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzabala
Dr. Chinmay Pandia
Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati
Br. Thomas Josef Goetz
Swamini Adityananda Saraswati
Sukhbir Singh
Archbishop Aram Artesyan
Ven. Geshe Tashi Tsering
Rabbi Eliyahu Birnbaum
Professor Nasr Seyyed Hossein
Rabbi David Lau
Custos of the Holy Land Fr. Francesco Patton
Rabbi Dr. Alon Goshen Gottstein
Rabbi Yonatan Neril
Rabbi Michael Schudrich
Rev. Dr. Maria Leppakari
Rev. Fletcher Harper
Rabbi Donniel Hartman
Dr Khan Rajat Malhotra
Rabbi Asher Lopatin
Rabbi Yitz Greenberg
Rabbi Mel Gottlieb
Rev. Dr. Uwe Graebe
Rev. Dieter Bullard-Werner
Rabbi Avi Rosenfeld
Rev. Johannes Stahl
Rev. Dr. Ibrahim Wushishi Yusuf
Rev. Susan Hendershot
Rabbi Dr. Eugene Korn
Rev. Bruce Thompson
Rev. Dr Frank Lorentzon
Rev. Kayko Driedger Hesslein
Rev. Patricia Simonson
Dr. Jaakko Rusama
Rt. Rev. Jāna Jēruma Grīnberga
Rabbi Shayna Abramson
Rabbi Daniel Silverstein
Rabbi David Jaffe
Rabbi Avidan Freedman
Rabbi Avram Mlotek
Rabbi Ami Silver
Rabbi Shamir Caplan
Rev. Detlev Knoche
Pastor Dietric
Imam Sqazwini
Archbishop Antje Jackelen
Fr. Christian Rutishauser
Other Signatories:
Mateen Siddiqui
Maureen Goodman
Professor Nader Saiedi
Dr Ahmed Nazeer
Peta Jones Pellach
Dr. Sallie B. King
Dr. Piotr Sikora
Prof. Haviva Pedaya
Brian Farr
