Francis’ shots at Cyril: Religion should not be instrumentalized

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“Religion should not be an accessory of power and power should not be an accessory of religion,” Francis said to applause from members of the 100 delegations from 50 countries.

Pope Francis warned from Kazakhstan today against the “instrumentalization of religion”, indirectly criticizing Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill, amid diplomatic-religious tensions related to the war in Ukraine.

At the same time, the Russian Orthodox Church announced that Cyril is willing to meet with the pontiff, who has repeatedly condemned the “barbaric” and “brutal” attack on Ukraine, while trying to keep communication channels open with Moscow.

At the opening of an interfaith forum in the capital Nur-Sultan, attended by religious leaders from around the world, Francis called for “violence to never be justified”, another criticism of the Russian patriarch, who has called “forces of evil» those who oppose the Russian invasion.

“Religion should not be an accessory of power and power should not be an accessory of religion,” Francis said to applause from members of the 100 delegations from 50 countries.

In the summer the pope had said of Cyril that he should not turn into “Putin’s choirboy”, a statement that angered the patriarch.

Today, however, the pope had a 15-minute conversation with Metropolitan Antony of Volokolamsk, the “minister of foreign affairs” of Patriarch Kirill, who described the conversation as “heartfelt” and said that a meeting between the two religious leaders is possible, if “properly prepared”. “We have to see when, where and, above all, if we will have something at the end, an appeal, like the one we made in Havana,” he told reporters, referring to Francis’ historic meeting with Cyril in 2016 in Cuba. He also expressed regret that the Vatican “cancelled” the meeting planned for June in Jerusalem.

Metropolitan Antonios underlined that it is necessary “to move forward“, criticizing the pope’s statements about Cyril.

Cyril himself, in a message addressed to the conference and published on the website of the Russian Orthodox Church, writes that “we have witnessed the distortion of historical events and the unprecedented manipulation of collective consciousness.”

Today, it is more difficult than ever for people to orient themselves in the midst of the flow of information, to resist ideological attacks, to maintain clarity of mind and spiritual peace“, he added.

RES-EMP

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