July 27th, 2026
To the Trustees of St. Nicholas Church and National Shrine:
Christ is in our midst!
However, I am writing to protest your decision to honor Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine as the 2026 “Beacon of Hope.” Zelensky is a divisive, dishonorable character, unworthy of any award.
As an American with multigenerational American roots, I would likewise object to honoring any other autocrat on the planet.
The dictator Zelensky is ruling Ukraine as a police state, having suspended elections, silenced critics, and censored the media. His government has violently seized and repurposed more than 1,000 Ukrainian Orthodox Church properties, has beaten and arrested clerics and parishioners, and has committed countless human rights violations. This is only an abbreviated list of his thuggery; a full accounting would take pages.
Why would you even associate with Zelensky? Aren’t you invoking a potential PR crisis?
I object to your using an Orthodox organization and an awards dinner to promote militarism and to score geopolitical points. And I urge you to rescind the Zelensky award and to choose a worthy non-political honoree.
Sincerely,
Cassandra St. John, an Orthodox Christian
If you would like to join Cassandra in objecting to honor being bestowed on a dictator and persecutor of canonical Orthodoxy, please sign the petition below. Each time the petition is signed, an email with the petition text will be sent to info@stnicholaswtc.org, info@goarch.org, archdiocese@goarch.org, communications@assemblyofbishops.org, and info@archons.org. Further, prior to the event, a final copy with all signatures attached will be delivered to the Assembly of Orthodox Bishops, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the Board of Trustees, and the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Even if we get tens of thousands of signatures, will they cancel the event? Of course not, but a protest of the event makes for bad PR, and optics are an obsession for Constantinople. American Orthodox Christians, and others who care about Ukraine, have to challenge the narrative of widespread support for Zelensky. Otherwise, Constantinople will continue its narrative that Zelensky, and his persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, are popular among Orthodox Christians. American Orthodox need to be very clear before God and the world: this is not done in our name.
Silence equals assent.
Petition Text:
“I object to the Board of Trustees of the St. Nicholas Church and National Shrine bestowing an award on Zelensky, the dictator of Ukraine. Zelensky is not a democratically elected head of state. He has cancelled elections, shut down his opposition, and engaged in brutal repression. He and his government have actively persecuted the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, even to the point of forcibly conscripting canonical Orthodox priests into the Ukrainian Army. Many American Orthodox belong to jurisdictions that actively pray, each Divine Liturgy, for Metropolitan Onuphry, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, and the Ukrainian people. Honoring Zelenksy in this manner is a direct slap in the face to all Orthodox jurisdictions in North America that recognize the UOC as the canonical Church in Ukraine. It is also a rejection of God, Whose Church is under attack, and Whose beloved Ukrainian people deserve peace and honest government. In shame and repentance, you should cancel this event. I doubt you will. However, know that American Orthodox have rejected your actions honoring this man with Christian blood on his hands. This is not done in our name. The Trustees and other officials of the Greek Archdiocese will answer alone for their actions before the Dread Judgement Seat of Christ. Amen.
In Christ,
(Your name will be displayed in the email)”
