In the press conference he gave on Monday, upon his return from Mongolia, Pope Francis clarified his comments about Russia’s “culture” that were interpreted by Ukrainian civil and ecclesiastical authorities as support for Russian “imperialism”.
The Successor of Peter affirmed that “he was not thinking about imperialism”, “he was talking about culture” when recalling his words addressed to a group of young Russian Catholics last Friday, August 25, during the special event of the Catholic Church in Russia in St. Petersburg.
The pontiff responded to several questions from journalists who traveled with him during the 10-hour flight from Ulaanbaatar to Rome on September 4. Among them, one about the controversy over his statements regarding the inheritance of figures such as Peter the Great and Catherine II of Russia, which irritated Ukrainians by considering them as “a kind of endorsement of Putin’s policy.”
The journalist from the Italian agency ANSA, Fausto Gasparroni, asked the Holy Father on the ITA Airways charter flight: ” Why did you feel the need to make these statements, if you considered them, if you would repeat them; and also, for the sake of Clarity, if you could tell us what you think of imperialism and, in particular, of Russian imperialism?
The Holy Father contextualized his dialogue with young Russians: “At the end of the dialogue I gave them a message that I always repeat: that they take charge of their inheritance. I say the same everywhere. And even with this vision, I try to encourage dialogue between grandparents and grandchildren: let the grandchildren take charge of the inheritance.”
Later, he insisted that his words about “the idea of great Russia” referred to Russian cultural “heritage.” “Think about the field of literature, the field of music, even a Dostoevsky who today speaks to us about mature humanism,” she added.
“The third aspect,” the Pontiff maintained, “perhaps not entirely correct, but speaking of the great Russia in the sense perhaps not so much geographical, but cultural, I remembered what they taught us at school: Peter I, Catherine II “And this third element emerged, which may not be entirely correct.” “I don’t know. Let the historians tell us. But it was an addition that occurred to me because I had studied it in school,” he explained.
Pope Francis insisted that “Russian culture is of great beauty and depth, and should not be erased due to political problems.” He also noted that in Russia “there have been dark years, but the heritage has always remained that way, at hand.”
Regarding “imperialism,” the Holy Father reiterated that “the transmission of culture is never imperial, never; it is always dialogue, and he was talking about that.” “It is true,” he continued, “that there are imperialisms that want to impose their ideology. I will stop here: when culture is distilled and becomes ideology, that is poison. Culture is used, but distilled into ideology.”
Pope Francis stressed the importance of distinguishing between the culture of a people and ideologies, even in the Church, to avoid moving away from spiritual authenticity and falling into politics and imperialism.
“This must be distinguished, when it is the culture of a people and when they are the ideologies that later arise for some philosopher or politician of that town. And I say this for everyone, even for the Church. Many times ideologies are introduced into the Church that take the Church away from the life that comes from the roots and goes up; they take the Church away from the influence of the Holy Spirit”.
The Pontiff explained that “an ideology is incapable of being embodied, it is just an idea. But ideology takes its place and becomes political, it usually becomes a dictatorship and becomes incapable of dialogue and progress with cultures.”
“Imperialism is always consolidated on the basis of an ideology. Also in the Church we must distinguish between doctrine and ideology: true doctrine is never ideological, never; it is rooted in the holy and faithful people of God; instead, ideology it is disconnected from reality, disconnected from the people… I don’t know if I have responded”, concluded the Bishop of Rome.
On 29 August, the Vatican clarified that Pope Francis did not endorse Russian imperialism in his speech to young Catholics in Russia. The Vatican spokesman affirmed that the Pope urged the preservation of Russia’s cultural and spiritual heritage without promoting political or imperialist agendas.
However, these words generated controversy, especially in Ukraine, where they were perceived as implicit support for the Kremlin. The Ukrainian government and the Church in Ukraine expressed their discontent and requested an explanation from the Vatican. The Pontiff has advocated for peace in Ukraine on several occasions, including on his trip to Mongolia, and is involved in diplomatic and humanitarian initiatives to resolve the conflict.