Military chaplain Yosyp Holubko, head of the military chaplaincy service of the 7th Carpathian Border Detachment, supports Ukrainian border guards every day while on duty and in the most difficult moments of the war. He is beside the servicemen not only during prayer, but also when human presence, help and a word of encouragement are especially needed.
Yosyp comes from Lviv region. He received his theological education at the seminary of Chernivtsi University. Since 2004 he has been the parish priest of the Church of the Great Martyr Dmytro in Lviv region. The priest first went to Ukrainian defenders in the area of hostilities in Donetsk region in August 2015, where he conducted services and provided moral support to the servicemen.
In 2017, Yosyp Holubko began his ministry in the 7th Carpathian Border Detachment as a civilian employee, and in 2022 he became a serviceman. Today his daily work involves talking with border guards, travelling out to positions, supporting the wounded, and helping the families of servicemen and the relatives of the fallen.
The chaplain emphasises that his ministry is not only about prayer, but also about concrete actions. He helps the soldiers with everyday matters, can cook food, bring water, support them through a hard day or simply listen. In his words, it is precisely in such simple things that the true essence of chaplaincy is revealed.
“A military chaplain must not only be nearby, he must also be of use. He can cook a meal, bring water, help while weapons are being cleaned” — Yosyp Holubko
At the same time, such work carries a significant emotional burden. The chaplain admits that the hardest thing is when he has recently spoken with a serviceman and later learns of his death and has to support his family. That is why the priest himself also needs renewal from time to time, as daily encounters with pain and loss cannot leave anyone indifferent.
Despite all the trials, Yosyp Holubko continues his ministry. He believes that after the most difficult events, better times will surely come, and that future generations will not know what war is. He is motivated by the thought of a future in which his grandchildren will never hear the sound of bullets or rockets.
For Yosyp, military chaplaincy is an opportunity to be beside his comrades-in-arms in the most challenging moments, to help them not lose hope and to remain human even in the realities of full-scale war.