LVIV, Ukraine — Camouflage netting, spent shell casings, hunks of jagged shrapnel: In this 17th century Baroque jewel of a church in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, these are considered sacred relics.
During Sunday services at the city’s Garrison Church, Ukrainian soldiers in uniform, flanked by civilians young and old, bowed their heads and clasped their hands in prayer, surrounded by ancient tokens of faith and artifacts of modern battle.
Since war erupted in Ukraine more than two months ago, this landmark house of worship, named for the apostles Peter and Paul, has become a lodestar for those praying for their army’s success against a larger and more powerful invader.
