The Pope was interviewed yesterday in a collaborative effort between Belgium’s Catholic weekly magazines: Tertio (Flemish-speaking) and Dimanch (French-speaking). It was also published yesterday in L’Osservatore Romano and Vatican News. The Pope spoke out on several issues.
“The day after the invasion began, I personally went to the Russian Embassy. [This was] something that had never been done by a pope and that a pope normally does not do. I also expressed my willingness to go to Moscow and make sure that the conflict would not continue. From its inception until now, the Vatican has always been at the center of the action. Several cardinals have already gone to Ukraine – Cardinal Konrad Krajewski has gone there six times – to help the Ukrainian people.”
Francis also touched on the Second Vatican Council, the Synodal process, and the economy, as well as the war in Ukraine.
” This war is terrible; it is an immense atrocity. There are many mercenaries fighting. Some of them are very cruel. There is torture; there are children being tortured. Many children staying in Italy with their mothers, refugees, have come to see me. ” Francis said.
“But for years there have been wars in the world to which we do not pay attention: in Myanmar. In Syria – already 13 years of war – in Yemen where children have neither education nor bread, where they suffer from hunger…In other words: the world is de facto always at war.”
Next, he spoke on the economy. “We need to be prudent with the economy: if it is too focused on finance alone, on simple numbers that have no true entities behind them, then the economy is reduced to dust and can lead to a serious betrayal. The economy has to be a social economy. To the expression “market economy” John Paul II added “social”, a social market economy. We have to always bear in mind social issues. At this time, the economic crisis is undoubtedly serious, the crisis is terrible. The majority of people in the world – the majority – does not have enough to eat, it does not have enough to live on. Wealth is in the hands of a few people who lead large businesses, which are sometimes inclined to exploitation. The economy has to always be social, at the service of society,” said the Pope.
Then, he gave his thoughts about the Synodal process. “To regard a synod as a parliament is a mistake. The synod is an assembly of believers, an assembly of faith led by the Holy Spirit, but equally charmed and seduced by the evil spirit,” the Pope concluded.
