Pope rejects Ukraine’s Orthodox ban: Last week in the Church with John Allen Jr.

In this episode: 0:00 Introduction
3:04 Pope rejects Ukraine’s Orthodox ban
9:05 Pope avoiding ‘Biden moment’ with next trip?
15:16 Ecclesiastical group founder expelled for abuse
22:46 Vatican staff still waiting for Pope’s reply
26:20 Nigeria’s military complicit in Christian persecution?

ABOUT CRUX

Crux offers the very best in smart, wired, and independent coverage of the Vatican and the Catholic Church.

WHERE TO LISTEN

Web

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Stitcher

Amazon Music

Google Podcasts

TuneIn

FOLLOW US

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

LinkedIn

[annefalola]

Thank you John for giving a mention to Nigeria, by the way, it is the country with the highest number of practicing Catholics in proportion to the Catholic population.
The problem is that the world - the west and sadly the Church has turned the blind eye for far too long on what was going on in Nigeria.
It has been over a decade when we all knew that the military and the security outfit in the country was compromised with the infiltration of terrorists. Nigeria was 8 years under a Muslim extremist president (Buhari) who gave killer terrorists soft landing while the world looked on.
We have been left helpless under a regime that condoned attacks on Churches and no global headlines came after that government.
In fact, the truth is that the current government might be less extreme in religious terms, but the system has been long compromised. So let us see how this will end.

Nigerians were very grateful to John Paul II whose second visit to Nigeria in 1998, we believe miraculously ended the Abacha regime only a few months after the Pope’s visit. We still believe in miracles😊 this time to cleanse our political class, so we can reorganize the system that has hijacked our military, police and security😢

[Bluets]

Censorship is the child of fear, the father of ignorance and the weapon of tyrants .
- Laurie Halse Anderson

[Juan-glcs]

Most church going Catholics don’t really listen to Francis anymore

[vincentberg]

Pope Francis has not been silent about the war in Ukraine. He has condemned this war and called for stopping it immediately. He has attempted a peace mission.
Yet, it is broadly expected that the Pope of Rome should be acting first and foremost as the spiritual leader and teacher.
Regrettably, I have to express my opinion that
- Pope Francis, as the spiritual leader and teacher, has never publicly expressed his views about the Moscow Patriarchate's attempts to provide religious inspiration and justification not only for the war in Ukraine, but for the Russian authorities' nationalistic aggressive ideas of "spiritual" supremacy of Russia and its "holy" role in the modern world as a "defender" of Christianity and "traditional" values, "Russian world", and so on.
- Pope Francis, as the spiritual leader and teacher, has never publicly offered his vision on the spiritual position of the Moscow’s Patriarch blessing a murderous war, elevating it to the status of a crusade and preaching presumed forgiveness of personal sins of all the Russian soldiers involved in this war.
- Pope Francis, as the spiritual leader and teacher, has never publicly offered a spiritual teaching on the incompatibility of Christianity and nationalism as it specifically applies to the war in Ukraine and current nationalistic tendencies in the world.
My belief is that it is vitally essential. From this perspective, it is hard to appreciate and accept the lack of Pope Francis' spiritual reaction to such a challenge and its replacement by a public stance regarding political aspects, in which the Pope Francis’ competence looks doubtful.
Sincerely, bishop Vincent Berg.

[MichaelCarroll-pvmk]

This has nothing to do with the Pope or the Roman Catholic Church or Italy or anything but Ukraine integrity and sovereignty.

[Michael-OConnor]

I think if the Pope wants to help his health and I say this with Love. He needs to loose weight. That will ease his sciatica and knee pain.

[rtsyzxb]

I am still attending mass because I love the church with its traditions and spiritual message though I have many questions with respect Pope Francisco and the neo.catholic priests.

[marshalldarcy]

We all should know that the Russian Orthodox priest that performed the funeral rite of Alexei Navalny was punished by the Orthodox Church and my go to jail.

[KMF]

I wish we could say that Pope Francis was doing all of the evil things that he's doing because of his age and senility or some type of dementia but unfortunately that doesn't look to be the case.

[Kitiwake]

At last the church is being even handed.

[nigelmansfield]

I disagree with your thoughts on this matter.

[KMF]

No dialogue of the post conciliar age has born any fruit whatsoever

[johnfisher]

Religious freedom is NOT supreme. In a majority Catholic country the government must give recognition to the fact and religious tolerance for other religions in degree to which they threaten social, political and moral stability...public peace and virtue. The Russian Orthodox in Ukraine do not accept the Ukrainian Orthodox Patriarchy as the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople does. The Russian Orthdox Patriarchy was recognised by the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople in the i7th century and has its status because of it. Moscow is a daughter Church of Kiev. The Moscow Patriarchy is a puppet of the Russian State and does favours for it in exchange for official sanction. This was so during the Soviet era too. 20, 000 RO monks nuns and clergy were liquidated by the Soviets. The RO bishops and clergy were KGB plants. Patrirach Kiril was a KGB informer. In Ukraine tje RO Church is a agent of Russia. It occupies churches and exerts influence with spying. I think it right the RO be banned and the Ukrainian Orthdox replace the RO. Greek Catholics are those Orthdox dioceses who in the West Ukraine stayed in communion with Rome following the Council of Florence. They are spies for no one and are considered illegitimate by the RO.

[rodolfobracho]

If everyone would keep in mind our Lord, 's saying,  'Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God. ' there would be no problem. No goverment, neither the Kremlin or Kiev should pressure any church.

[Bluets]

How do you tell who, s telling the truth ? The ones trying to silence other people are the ones lying .

[carolynkimberly]

Bergoglio speaks more kindly of Muslims than he does faithful Catholics

[KMF]

Pope says you can pray in whatever church you want as long as it's not a traditional Latin Mass church. 😢

[KMF]

I certainly hope the pope does not die anytime soon before he repents😢

[Pindar]

Another expected apologia pro pontifice....journalism at its worst.

[carolynkimberly]

Why doesn't Francis visit Nigeria?