Dad and Russia-Mother

Online Ladder of Francis with Russian youth August 25

Speaking about the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, Pope Francis from the very beginning equalized the aggressor and the victim. He talked about the “clash of empires” and “warlike infantilism” of the West, he refused to clearly demand the return of the captured Ukrainian territories, calling this a “political issue” and advocating for negotiations between the parties. Among the innocent victims of the war, Pontiff mentioned Daria Dugin.

Last year, a Russian woman and Ukrainian were carried by Easter in Rome in Rome. Despite the indignant reaction of the Ukrainian public and diplomacy, the Vatican developed an even more blasphemous script for the procession. This year, at the walls of the Coliseum, the word was given to two teenagers - a refugee from Ukraine and his Russian peer from the family of the invaders, who "almost feels guilty", but "does not understand why."

In the November interview of the pontiff there was a monstrous passage about ethnic varieties of the invaders: "As a rule, the most cruel are perhaps those who are from Russia, but do not adhere to the Russian tradition, such as Chechens, Buryats, and so on."

But even after that, the papal message to the young Russians, which sounded last Friday, many took for a rude Kremlin fake. Turning to representatives of Catholic youth, who gathered in St. Petersburg in St. Petersburg, the pontiff carefully reproduced his favorite “peacekeeping” stamps, and farewell to the Russian flock: “Never forget about the heritage. You are the heirs of the Great Russia: the Great Russia of the Holy, the rulers, Big Russia Peter I, that empire - great, enlightened, enlightened. [countries] of great culture and great humanity.

Soon a video appeared, and all doubts disappeared.

The Vatican’s representative office is trying to get out in Ukraine, but it only comes out worse: “According to some interpretations, Pope Francis allegedly called on young Russian Catholics to take an example with certain Russian historical figures, known for their imperialist and expansionist ideas and actions that were carried out to the uniforms of the Ukrainian people. The Papal Representation resolutely rejects the Papal Representative. The aforementioned interpretations, since Pope Francis never called for imperialist ideas.

The head of the press service of the holy throne of Matteo Bruni had to be explained : “In the words of greetings spontaneously addressed to some young Russian Catholics a few days ago, as they clearly should be from the context, in which they were uttered, the pope wanted to encourage young people so that they would store and promote what is positive in the great Russian cultural and spiritual heritage, and, of course, he is not certainly He intended to praise the imperialist logic and the rulers, whom he mentioned to point out some of the corresponding historical periods. "

The Primate of the Ukrainian Greekatolic Church Svyatoslav (Shevchuk) released an unprecedentedly sharp communique . We give his full translation.

“With great pain and anxiety, we learned about the words that Papa Francis from his Holiness on the online meeting with the Russian Catholic youth on August 25, 2023 in St. Petersburg.

We hope that these words of the Holy Father were spontaneously said, without any attempts by historical assessments, and even more so supporting the imperialist ambitions of Russia. However, we share more pain caused by them not only among the episcopate, clergy, monasticism and believers of our church, but also of other faiths and religious organizations. At the same time, we are aware of the deep disappointment in the society that they called.

The words about "the Great Russia of Peter I, Catherine II, that empire - the great, enlightened, country of great culture and great humanity" is the worst example of imperialism and extreme Russian nationalism.

There is a danger that these words can be perceived as the support of that nationalism and imperialism, which today became the cause of the war in Ukraine - a war that brings death and destruction to our people daily.

Examples given by His Holiness Father actually contradict his science of peace, because he always condemned any form of manifestation of imperialism in the modern world and warned about the dangers of extreme nationalism, emphasizing that it was he who was the cause of the "third world war [began] by grains" (quote from an interview of Papa Francis Italian and Swiss television RSI in March in March this year - ed.).

As a church, we want to say that in the context of Russia's aggression against Ukraine, such statements inspire the neocolonial ambitions of the aggressor country, although we would categorically condemn this way to "be Russians."

In order to avoid any manipulations regarding the intentions, context and statements assigned to the Holy Father, we expect an explanation of this situation from the holy throne.

The Ukrainian Greekatolic Church, together with all the citizens of our state, condemns the ideology of the "Russian world" and the whole criminal way to "be Russian." We hope the Holy Father will hear our voice.

A few days later, the bishops of our church will unite in the city of Rome for the annual Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. We will be able to meet his Holiness and personally convey to him doubts and the pain of the Ukrainian people, trusting his paternal care for him. "