The Moscow Patriarchate criticizes the Pope. The words spoken by Bergoglio in the interview with Corsera annoyed the Russian Orthodox Church in which, speaking of Patriarch Kirill, the Pontiff recalled that “we are pastors of the same people of God. This is why we must seek ways of peace, to cease the gun fire. The Patriarch cannot become Putin’s altar boy“.
“IS regrettable – writes today the communication service for external relations of the Patriarchate of Moscow – that a month and a half after the interview with Patriarch Kirill, Pope Francis has chosen the wrong tone to convey the content of this interview. IS such statements are unlikely to contribute to the establishment of a dialogue constructive between the Roman Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church, which is particularly necessary at this time ”.
The Patriarchate of Moscow then reports “what the Patriarch concretely said during the interview with Pope Francis on March 16: ‘Thank you for the opportunity to organize this meeting. When we met in Cuba in 2016, I told you that we have met at a right time and in a right place. And although our interview is now via remote means of communication, I am convinced that we are talking again at a right time. With your permission, I would like to share with you my vision of the difficult situation we are currently experiencing. Of course, we live in different fields of information: the Western media have hardly talked about some facts on which I would like to draw his attention ‘”.
Patriarch Kirill, the Moscow Patriarchate again points out, “noted that the conflict started in 2014 with the events of the Maidan in Kiev, which led to a change of power in Ukraine. In particular, he drew the interlocutor’s attention to the events in Odessa and their consequences: “In this city a peaceful demonstration of Russian-speaking residents who intended to defend their right to use their mother tongue and culture. This peaceful reunion was attacked by members of some Nazi groups who started beating protesters with sticks. People began to seek refuge in the nearby building of the House of Trade Unions. And in that moment something terrifying happened: this building was locked and then set on fire. People tried to escape by jumping from the second or third floor and, of course, they killed each other. Those who approached the windows, afraid to jump out, were shot from below. We followed all this on almost live television. This horrible “lesson” from Odessa influenced the decision of the people of southeastern Ukraine to stand up for their rights’ “.
“Furthermore – notes the Patriarchate of Moscow – the Patriarch Kirill recalled that at the end of the Soviet era, Russia was reassured that NATO would not move an inch east.. However, this promise was broken, and even some of the former Soviet Baltic republics joined NATO. As a result, a very dangerous situation has developed: the NATO borders are located 130 kilometers from St. Petersburg, the flight time of the missiles is a few minutes. If Ukraine were admitted to NATO, the flight time to Moscow would also be a few minutes. Russia could not and cannot allow this to happen. In conclusion, the Patriarch underlined: ‘Of course, this situation hurts me deeply. My flock is on both sides of the conflict, mostly Orthodox people. Part of it also belongs to his flock. Therefore, I would like, abstracting the geopolitical component, to raise the question of how we and our Churches can influence the state of things? How can we contribute to pacification with a single goal: to achieve the strengthening of peace and justice? It is very important in the current conditions to avoid further escalation ‘”.
“The response of Pope Francis – the Patriarchate of Moscow again notes was correctly summarized by the Vatican Press Office in the message of March 16: ‘In thanking the Patriarch of all the Russias for the meeting, “motivated by the desire to indicate, as pastors of their people, a path for peace ”, the Pope agreed with the Patriarch that“ the Church must not use the language of politics, but the language of Jesus ”. “We are pastors of the same Holy People who believe in God, in the Holy Trinity, in the Holy Mother of God: for this we must unite in the effort to help peace, to help those who suffer, to seek ways of peace, to stop the fire”. As noted in the same message, ‘the parties underlined the exceptional importance of the ongoing negotiation process’ “.
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