Prayers for the Kingdom of Denmark and for the autonomous government of Greenland are offered every Sunday from Evangelical Lutheran churches located in the Danish territory that has become a target of the Trump administration’s expansionist ambitions. The initiative, spearheaded by Paneeraq Siegstad Munk, Bishop for Greenland of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, comes amid an unprecedented geopolitical context: “It is essential to remain calm in a situation like this. Prayers heal and give meaning,” Munk stated in a press release issued by the World Council of Churches (WCC).

Human rights and dignity

“People,” Munk added, “are clearly worried. It’s a matter of human rights, dignity, and respect for the law and international treaties. We are a small people, but we are not invisible. Our future is not something that can be decided over our heads. We have a language, a culture, ancestors, children, and a future tied to this place. We are people, not property. Greenland is not land that can be bought. It is our home, and it is not for sale,” he emphasized.

Opposing majority

According to the most recent polls, the majority of Greenlanders oppose the annexation proposed by the US president. The predominant religion in Greenland is Evangelical Lutheranism: 95% of the population belongs to the Danish National Church, known as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark, and nearly 90% of the 57,000 inhabitants are of Greenlandic Inuit ethnicity. Munk, maintaining the tradition of her people, who for centuries have strived to protect their local culture and their close relationship with nature, reiterated her commitment to continue this fight both as a “leader of the Church” and as a “private citizen.”

Catholics alarmed

A few days ago, the Catholic parish priest of Nuuk, the capital, also expressed his concern. Father Tomaž Majcen said he was alarmed not so much by the geopolitical issue as by the human one: “I am concerned that our home could be considered a piece of land rather than a community of people with families, traditions, and faith. The tone of many of these statements has also been harsh and even unsettling, especially when alluding to the control or ownership of our island. As a priest, I believe that peace and dialogue are more important than conflicts over the appropriation of land or resources.” Greenland, he concluded, is a “wonderful and peaceful place, and I hope it will remain so. I hope that the leaders will focus on peaceful cooperation rather than fueling tensions.”