Foreign Affairs
Related: About this forumVatican seeks to tamp down outrage over pope's words of praise for Russian imperial past
Source: Associated Press
Vatican seeks to tamp down outrage over popes words of praise for Russian imperial past
BY NICOLE WINFIELD
Updated 8:38 AM EDT, August 29, 2023
VATICAN CITY (AP) The Vatican on Tuesday sought to tamp down an uproar that erupted after Pope Francis praised Russias imperialist past during a video conference with Russian Catholic youths, insisting that he never intended to encourage modern-day Russian aggression in Ukraine.
The Vatican spokesman, Matteo Bruni, said Francis merely wanted to praise the positive aspects of Russias spiritual and cultural history when he exalted Russias imperial rulers Peter and Catherine the Great, encouraged young people to remember that past and praised their way of being Russian.
Francis certainly didnt want to exalt imperialistic logic or government personalities, who were cited to indicate certain historic periods of reference, Bruni said in a statement.
The Vatican, and before it the Holy Sees embassy in Ukraine, spoke out after Ukraines Greek Catholic leader, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, bitterly complained about Francis remarks. The Vatican never published the comments, but they were shared on social media following Francis video conference with a Catholic youth encounter Friday in St. Petersburg.
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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/pope-russia-ukraine-war-vatican-imperial-b82bfb9185f0fc8062c43927a2b058b0
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Source: Reuters
Kremlin says Pope's comments on Russian history are 'very gratifying'
Reuters
Tue, August 29, 2023 at 5:38 AM EDT·1 min read
MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin on Tuesday described as "very gratifying" comments by Pope Francis urging young Russians to remember their history, saying that the Russian state had a rich legacy and that it was good that the Pope knew Russian history.
Pope Francis has come under criticism for telling Russian youths last week to remember that they are the heirs of past tsars such as Peter the Great, whom President Vladimir Putin has held up as an example to justify Moscow's actions in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government said the comments, which Francis made in a live video address to Catholic youths gathered in St. Petersburg, were "deeply regrettable".
While the Vatican issued a statement on Tuesday saying the Pope had no intention of glorifying past Russian imperialism, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov praised the Pope during a briefing on the same day.
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Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/kremlin-says-popes-comments-russian-093836258.html
Deuxcents
(16,455 posts)Whatever he meant to say is on deaf ears now, especially in Russia.