Companionship – 24 February 2023
Good afternoon,
Today is the first anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine by the armed forces of Russia as commanded by Vladimir Putin. In St Andrews, the Chaplaincy has supported Ukrainian and Russian students, members of staff and family members, and took part in a vigil in the early days of the war. A year on, the suffering continues.
I was wondering how to mark this day when I happened on a new song by Suzanne Vega, a singer-songwriter I’ve long loved and whose cassette album 99.9 Fahrenheit Degrees disappeared from my bag when I was on the Trans-Siberian Express in 1993. This new song is called Last Train from Mariupol, and imagines that conditions there were so bleak that even God left on the train.
Here’s the song:
The lyrics are simple but profound:
There’s a last train from Mariupol
See how the platform is heaving
Who’s on the last train from Mariupol?
All of humanity fleeing
I heard God himself was on the last train from Mariupol
Frightened by all he was seeing
There’s a last train from Mariupol
All of humanity grieving
It’s hard to see how God could have been there, or is with those who are suffering so deeply. But let us hope that God is with those who have found refuge, and somehow with those who have stayed. And that whether we hope in God or not, that an end to the suffering will come.
Yours,
Donald
Revd Dr Donald MacEwan
Chaplain