Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, is monitored by police in early August 2022. / Photo credit: Diocese of Matagalpa
Why hasn’t Pope Francis spoken up forcefully about the oppression of the Church by dictatorial regimes in China and Nicaragua?
It’s a fair question whose answer can perhaps be found in the precedent of several popes of the 20th century.
First a quick look at what’s been happening lately in those two countries.
In China, the most blatant recent incident was the conviction and fining of Cardinal Joseph Zen and five others for not registering a relief fund for pro-democracy demonstrators.
The $500 fine imposed on the Cardinal, former archbishop of Hong Kong, was apparently intended as a warning: “Don’t provoke us or it will be worse next time.” Meanwhile the Holy See and the Chinese government agreed on another two-year extension of their 2018 provisional pact that allows the government to choose bishops subject only to a veto by the Pope.
In Nicaragua, the regime of President Daniel Ortega has closed down Catholic TV and radio stations, expelled the papal nuncio and religious orders, and imprisoned Catholic leaders including priests. As this is written, the case of Bishop Rolando Alvarez of Matagalpa, accused of “damaging the Nicaraguan government” by protesting the misdeeds of the Ortega regime, has been referred for trial and the Bishop is under house arrest.
Critics have faulted Pope Francis for not protesting these assaults on the Church. But is the criticism reasonable? Consider what his predecessors did in situations not unlike these.
Start with Pope Pius XII. While it isn’t true that he said nothing publicly about Hitler’s persecution of the Jews, he did say relatively little. As historian Michael Hesemann shows in his richly documented study The Pope and the Holocaust (Ignatius Press, 2022), that was the price Pius paid to work quietly but effectively by mobilizing the Vatican diplomatic corps in Nazi-occupied countries to get thousands of Jews to safety. And when the German occupiers of Rome began rounding up Jews, Pius ordered convents and religious houses to shelter them and made Castel Gandolfo and the Vatican itself available for that purpose.
By Hesemann’s count, 960,000 Jews were saved directly or indirectly by the Pope’s efforts.
After World War II, Pope Pius practiced unyielding opposition to the communist regimes of Eastern Europe that by then were persecuting the Church. But the 1960s and 1970s saw a significant change in the Holy See’s approach under Pope St. John XXIII and Pope St. Paul VI. With Cardinal Agostino Casaroli, Vatican Secretary of State, spearheading the effort, the Vatican now pursued a policy of Ostpolitik that involved seeking accommodation with the communists to gain breathing room for the Church.
True, Pope St. John Paul II set aside Ostpolitik in favor of a confrontational approach epitomized by his triumphant 1979 visit to Poland, which contributed powerfully to launching the process that culminated in the downfall of communism. But that was only possible because he judged correctly that the regimes involved were by then decayed and vulnerable.
While different in many ways from those of the past, the challenges now facing the Catholic Church in China and Nicaragua also have significant similarities to the problems that the Holy See faced, first with Nazis and then with communists, during and after World War II. Popes Pius XII, John XXIII, and Paul VI concluded then that making the best of a bad situation would accomplish more good than confrontation.
And if that is how Pope Francis reasons today about China and Nicaragua, only future events can show whether he was right or wrong.
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Pope Francis at the general audience in St. Peter’s Square, Oct. 5, 2016. / Credit: Daniel Ibanez/CNA
CNA Staff, Mar 13, 2024 / 12:00 pm (CNA).
March 13 marks the anniversary of the election of Pope Francis as the 266th successor of St. Peter. Here is a timeline of key events during his papacy:
2013
March 13 — About two weeks after Pope Benedict XVI steps down from the papacy, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio is elected pope. He takes the papal name Francis in honor of St. Francis of Assisi and proclaims from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica: “Let us begin this journey, the bishop and people, this journey of the Church of Rome, which presides in charity over all the Churches, a journey of brotherhood in love, of mutual trust. Let us always pray for one another.”
March 14 — The day after he begins his pontificate, Pope Francis returns to his hotel to personally pay his hotel bill and collect his luggage.
July 8 — Pope Francis visits Italy’s island of Lampedusa and meets with a group of 50 migrants, most of whom are young men from Somalia and Eritrea. The island, which is about 200 miles off the coast of Tunisia, is a common entry point for migrants who flee parts of Africa and the Middle East to enter Europe. This is the pope’s first pastoral visit outside of Rome and sets the stage for making reaching out to the peripheries a significant focus.
Pope Francis gives the Wednesday general audience in St. Peter’s Square on Oct. 2, 2013. Elise Harris/CNA.
July 23-28 — Pope Francis visits Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to participate in World Youth Day 2013. More than 3 million people from around the world attend the event.
July 29 — On the return flight from Brazil, Pope Francis gives his first papal news conference and sparks controversy by saying “if a person is gay and seeks God and has goodwill, who am I to judge?” The phrase is prompted by a reporter asking the pope a question about priests who have homosexual attraction.
Nov. 24 — Pope Francis publishes his first apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel). The document illustrates the pope’s vision for how to approach evangelization in the modern world.
2014
Feb. 22 — Pope Francis holds his first papal consistory to appoint 19 new cardinals, including ones from countries in the developing world that have never previously been represented in the College of Cardinals, such as Haiti.
March 22 — Pope Francis creates the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. The commission works to protect the dignity of minors and vulnerable adults, such as the victims of sexual abuse.
Pope Francis greets pilgrims during his general audience on Nov. 29, 2014. Bohumil Petrik/CNA.
Oct. 5 — The Synod on the Family begins. The bishops discuss a variety of concerns, including single-parent homes, cohabitation, homosexual adoption of children, and interreligious marriages.
Dec. 6 — After facing some pushback for his efforts to reform the Roman Curia, Pope Francis discusses his opinion in an interview with La Nacion, an Argentine news outlet: “Resistance is now evident. And that is a good sign for me, getting the resistance out into the open, no stealthy mumbling when there is disagreement. It’s healthy to get things out into the open, it’s very healthy.”
2015
Jan. 18 — To conclude a trip to Asia, Pope Francis celebrates Mass in Manila, Philippines. Approximately 6 million to 7 million people attend the record-setting Mass, despite heavy rain.
March 23 — Pope Francis visits Naples, Italy, to show the Church’s commitment to helping the fight against corruption and organized crime in the city.
May 24 — To emphasize the Church’s mission to combat global warming and care for the environment, Pope Francis publishes the encyclical Laudato Si’, which urges people to take care of the environment and encourages political action to address climate problems.
Pope Francis at a Wednesday general audience in St. Peter’s Square on June 17, 2015. Bohumil Petrik.
Sept. 19-22 — Pope Francis visits Cuba and meets with Fidel Castro in the first papal visit to the country since Pope John Paul II in 1998. During his homily, Francis discusses the dignity of the human person: “Being a Christian entails promoting the dignity of our brothers and sisters, fighting for it, living for it.”
Sept. 22-27 — After departing from Cuba, Pope Francis makes his first papal visit to the United States. In Washington, D.C., he speaks to a joint session of Congress, in which he urges lawmakers to work toward promoting the common good, and canonizes the Franciscan missionary St. Junípero Serra. He also attends the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, which focuses on celebrating the gift of the family.
Pope Francis speaks to the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 24, 2015. . L’Osservatore Romano.
Oct. 4 — Pope Francis begins the second Synod on the Family to address issues within the modern family, such as single-parent homes, cohabitation, poverty, and abuse.
Oct. 18 — The pope canonizes St. Louis Martin and St. Marie-Azélie “Zelie” Guérin. The married couple were parents to five nuns, including St. Therese of Lisieux. They are the first married couple to be canonized together.
Dec. 8 — Pope Francis’ Jubilee Year of Mercy begins. The year focuses on God’s mercy and forgiveness and people’s redemption from sin. The pope delegates certain priests in each diocese to be Missionaries of Mercy who have the authority to forgive sins that are usually reserved for the Holy See.
2016
March 19 — Pope Francis publishes the apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia, which discusses a wide variety of issues facing the modern family based on discussions from the two synods on the family. The pope garners significant controversy from within the Church for comments he makes in Chapter 8 about Communion for the divorced and remarried.
April 16 — After visiting refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos, Pope Francis allows three Muslim refugee families to join him on his flight back to Rome. He says the move was not a political statement.
Pope Francis at the General Audience in St. Peter’s Square, Feb. 24, 2016. Daniel Ibanez/CNA.
July 26-31 — Pope Francis visits Krakow, Poland, as part of the World Youth Day festivities. About 3 million young Catholic pilgrims from around the world attend.
Sept. 4 — The pope canonizes St. Teresa of Calcutta, who is also known as Mother Teresa. The saint, a nun from Albania, dedicated her life to missionary and charity work, primarily in India.
Sept. 30-Oct. 2 — Pope Francis visits Georgia and Azerbaijan on his 16th trip outside of Rome since the start of his papacy. His trip focuses on Catholic relations with Orthodox Christians and Muslims.
Oct. 4 — Pope Francis makes a surprise visit to Amatrice, Italy, to pray for the victims of an earthquake in central Italy that killed nearly 300 people.
2017
May 12-13 — In another papal trip, Francis travels to Fatima, Portugal, to visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima. May 13 marks the 100th anniversary of the first Marian apparition to three children in the city.
July 11 — Pope Francis adds another category of Christian life suitable for the consideration of sainthood: “offering of life.” The category is distinct from martyrdom, which only applies to someone who is killed for his or her faith. The new category applies to those who died prematurely through an offering of their life to God and neighbor.
Pope Francis greets a participant in the World Day of the Poor in Rome, Nov. 16, 2017. L’Osservatore Romano.
Nov. 19 — On the first-ever World Day of the Poor, Pope Francis eats lunch with 4,000 poor and people in need in Rome.
Nov. 27-Dec. 2 — In another trip to Asia, Pope Francis travels to Myanmar and Bangladesh. He visits landmarks and meets with government officials, Catholic clergy, and Buddhist monks. He also preaches the Gospel and promotes peace in the region.
2018
Jan. 15-21 — The pope takes another trip to Latin America, this time visiting Chile and Peru. The pontiff meets with government officials and members of the clergy while urging the faithful to remain close to the clergy and reject secularism. The Chilean visit leads to controversy over Chilean clergy sex abuse scandals.
Aug. 2 — The Vatican formally revises No. 2267 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which concerns the death penalty. The previous text suggested the death penalty could be permissible in certain circumstances, but the revision states that the death penalty is “inadmissible.”
Aug. 25 — Archbishop Carlo Viganò, former papal nuncio to the United States, publishes an 11-page letter calling for the resignation of Pope Francis and accusing him and other Vatican officials of covering up sexual abuse including allegations against former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. The pope initially does not directly respond to the letter, but nine months after its publication he denies having prior knowledge about McCarrick’s conduct.
Aug. 25-26 — Pope Francis visits Dublin, Ireland, to attend the World Meeting of Families. The theme is “the Gospel of family, joy for the world.”
Pope Francis at the 2018 World Meeting of Families in Ireland. Daniel Ibanez/CNA.
Oct. 3-28 — The Synod on Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment takes place. The synod focuses on best practices to teach the faith to young people and to help them discern God’s will.
2019
Jan. 22-27 — The third World Youth Day during Pope Francis’ pontificate takes place during these six days in Panama City, Panama. Young Catholics from around the world gather for the event, with approximately 3 million people in attendance.
Feb. 4 — Pope Francis signs a joint document in with Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, the grand imam of Al-Azhar, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, titled the “Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together.” The document focuses on people of different faiths uniting together to live peacefully and advance a culture of mutual respect.
Pope Francis and Ahmed el-Tayeb, grand imam of al-Azhar, signed a joint declaration on human fraternity during an interreligious meeting in Abu Dhabi, UAE, Feb. 4, 2019. Vatican Media.
Feb. 21-24 — The Meeting on the Protection of Minors in the Church, which is labeled the Vatican Sexual Abuse Summit, takes place. The meeting focuses on sexual abuse scandals in the Church and emphasizes responsibility, accountability, and transparency.
Oct. 6-27 — The Church holds the Synod of Bishops for the Pan-Amazon region, which is also known as the Amazon Synod. The synod is meant to present ways in which the Church can better evangelize the Amazon region but leads to controversy when carved images of a pregnant Amazonian woman, referred to by the pope as Pachamama, are used in several events and displayed in a basilica near the Vatican.
Oct. 13 — St. John Henry Newman, an Anglican convert to Catholicism and a cardinal, is canonized by Pope Francis. Newman’s writings inspired Catholic student associations at nonreligious colleges and universities in the United States and other countries.
2020
March 15 — Pope Francis takes a walking pilgrimage in Rome to the chapel of the crucifix and prays for an end to the COVID-19 pandemic. The crucifix was carried through Rome during the plague of 1522.
March 27 — Pope Francis gives an extraordinary “urbi et orbi” blessing in an empty and rain-covered St. Peter’s Square, praying for the world during the coronavirus pandemic.
Pope Francis venerates the miraculous crucifix of San Marcello al Corso in St. Peter’s Square during his Urbi et Orbi blessing, March 27, 2020. Vatican Media.
2021
March 5-8 — In his first papal trip since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pope Francis becomes the first pope to visit Iraq. On his trip, he signs a joint statement with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani condemning extremism and promoting peace.
July 3 — Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, who was elevated to the College of Cardinals by Pope Francis, is indicted in a Vatican court for embezzlement, money laundering, and other crimes. The pope gives approval for the indictment.
July 4 — Pope Francis undergoes colon surgery for diverticulitis, a common condition in older people. The Vatican releases a statement that assures the pope “reacted well” to the surgery. Francis is released from the hospital after 10 days.
July 16 — Pope Francis issues a motu proprio titled Traditionis Custodes. The document imposes heavy restrictions on the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass.
Dec. 2-6 — The pope travels to Cyprus and Greece. The trip includes another visit to the Greek island of Lesbos to meet with migrants.
Pope Francis greets His Beatitude Ieronymos II in Athens, Greece on Dec. 5, 2021. Vatican Media
2022
Jan. 11 — Pope Francis makes a surprise visit to a record store in Rome called StereoSound. The pope, who has an affinity for classical music, blesses the newly renovated store.
March 19 — The pope promulgates Praedicate Evangelium, which reforms the Roman Curia. The reforms emphasize evangelization and establish more opportunities for the laity to be in leadership positions.
May 5 — Pope Francis is seen in a wheelchair for the first time in public and begins to use one more frequently. The pope has been suffering from knee problems for months.
Pope Francis greeted the crowd in a wheelchair at the end of his general audience on Aug. 3, 2022. Daniel Ibanez/CNA
July 24-30 — In his first papal visit to Canada, Pope Francis apologizes for the harsh treatment of the indigenous Canadians, saying many Christians and members of the Catholic Church were complicit.
2023
Jan. 31-Feb. 5 — Pope Francis travels to the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. During his visit, the pope condemns political violence in the countries and promotes peace. He also participates in an ecumenical prayer service with Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Moderator of the Church of Scotland Iain Greenshields.
Pope Francis greets a young boy a Mass in Juba, South Sudan on Feb. 5, 2023. Vatican Media
March 29-April 1 — Pope Francis is hospitalized for a respiratory infection. During his stay at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, he visits the pediatric cancer ward and baptizes a newborn baby.
April 5 — The pope appears in the Disney documentary “The Pope: Answers,” which is in Spanish, answering six “hot-button” issues from members of Gen Z from various backgrounds. The group discusses immigration, depression, abortion, clergy sexual and psychological abuse, transgenderism, pornography, and loss of faith.
April 28-30 — Pope Francis visits Hungary to meet with government officials, civil society members, bishops, priests, seminarians, Jesuits, consecrated men and women, and pastoral workers. He celebrates Mass on the final day of the trip in Kossuth Lajos Square.
Pope Francis stands on an altar erected outside the Parliament Building in Budapest’s Kossuth Lajos’ Square during a public outdoor Mass on April 30, 2023. Vatican Media
June 7 — The Vatican announces that Pope Francis will undergo abdominal surgery that afternoon under general anesthesia due to a hernia that is causing painful, recurring, and worsening symptoms. In his general audience that morning before the surgery, Francis says he intends to publish an apostolic letter on St. Thérèse of Lisieux, “patroness of the missions,” to mark the 150th anniversary of her birth.
June 15 — After successful surgery and a week of recovery, Pope Francis is released from Gemelli Hospital.
Aug. 2-6 — Pope Francis travels to Lisbon, Portugal, for World Youth Day 2023, taking place from Aug. 1-6. He meets with Church and civil leaders ahead of presiding at the welcoming Mass and Stations of the Cross. He also hears the confessions of several pilgrims. On Aug. 5, he visits the Shrine of Our Lady of Fátima, where he prays the rosary with young people with disabilities. That evening he presides over the vigil and on Sunday, Aug. 6, he celebrates the closing Mass, where he urges the 1.5 million young people present to “be not afraid,” echoing the words of the founder of World Youth Days, St. John Paul II.
Pope Francis waves at the crowd of 1.5 million people who attended the closing Mass of World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal on Aug. 6, 2023. Vatican Media.
Aug. 31-Sept. 4 — Pope Francis travels to Mongolia, the world’s most sparsely populated sovereign country. The trip makes Francis the first pope to visit the Asian country that shares a 2,880-mile border with China, its most significant economic partner. Mongolia has a population of about 1,300 Catholics in a country of more than 3 million people.
Pope Francis meets with local priests and religious of Mongolia, which includes only 25 priests (19 religious and six diocesan), 33 women religious, and one bishop — Cardinal Giorgio Marengo — in Ulaanbaatar’s Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul on Sept. 2, 2023. Credit: Vatican Media
Sept. 22-23 — On a two-day trip to Marseille, France, Pope Francis meets with local civil and religious leaders and participates in the Mediterranean Encounter, a gathering of some 120 young people of various creeds with bishops from 30 countries.
Pope Francis asks for a moment of silence at a memorial dedicated to sailors and migrants lost at sea on the first of a two-day visit to Marseille, France, Sept. 22, 2023. A Camargue cross, which comes from the Camargue area of France, represents the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. The three tridents represent faith, the anchor represents hope, and the heart represents charity. Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Oct. 4-29 — The Vatican hosts the first of two monthlong global assemblies of the Synod on Synodality, initiated by Pope Francis in 2021 to enhance the communion, participation, and mission of the Church. Pope Francis celebrates the closing Mass of the synod at St. Peter’s Basilica on Oct. 29. The second and final global assembly will take place at the Vatican in October 2024.
Pope Francis at the Synod on Synodality’s closing Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on Oct. 29, 2023. Vatican Media
Nov. 25 — Pope Francis visits the hospital briefly for precautionary testing after coming down with the flu earlier in the day. Although he still participates in scheduled activities, other officials read his prepared remarks. The Vatican on Nov. 28 cancels the pope’s planned Dec. 1–3 trip to Dubai for the COP28 climate conference, where he was scheduled to deliver a speech, due to his illness.
Dec. 18 — The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issues the declaration Fiducia Supplicans, which authorizes nonliturgical blessings for same-sex couples and couples in “irregular situations.” Various bishops from around the world voice both support for and criticism of the document.
2024
Jan. 4 — Amid widespread backlash to Fiducia Supplicans, Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, publishes a five-page press release that refers to Fiducia Supplicans as “perennial doctrine” and underlines that pastoral blessings of couples in irregular situations should not be “an endorsement of the life led by those who request them.”
Jan. 14 — Pope Francis for the first time responds publicly to questions about Fiducia Supplicans in an interview on an Italian television show. The pope underlines that “the Lord blesses everyone” and that a blessing is an invitation to enter into a conversation “to see what the road is that the Lord proposes to them.”
Feb. 11 — In a ceremony attended by Argentine president Javier Milei, Pope Francis canonizes María Antonia of St. Joseph — known affectionately in the pope’s home country as “Mama Antula” — in a Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica. The president and the former archbishop of Buenos Aires embrace after the ceremony. Pope Francis, who has not returned to his homeland since becoming pope in 2013, has said he wants to visit Argentina in the second half of this year.
Pope Francis meets with Argentina President Javier Milei in a private audience on Feb. 12, 2024, at the Vatican. Credit: Vatican Media
Feb. 28 — After canceling audiences the previous Saturday and having an aide read his prepared remarks at his Wednesday audience due to a “mild flu,” Pope Francis visits the hospital for diagnostic tests but returns to the Vatican afterward.
March 2 — Despite having an aide read his speech “because of bronchitis,” the pope presides over the inauguration of the 95th Judicial Year of the Vatican City State and maintains a full schedule.
March 13 — Pope Francis celebrates 11 years as Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church.
A recent National Catholic Reporter (NCR) piece points out that due to retirements and other factors, “Pope Francis faces chance to radically reshape US Catholic hierarchy.” Most of the experts interviewed by NCR predicted that […]
Pope Francis met with 30-year-old Mbengue Nyimbilo Crepin who shared his story during a meeting at the pope’s Vatican City residence Casa Santa Marta on Nov. 17. / Credit: Vatican Media
Vatican City, Nov 18, 2023 / 12:15 pm (CNA).
Pope Francis … […]
12 Comments
If Pope Francis is secretly helping to smuggle thousands of Uyghurs out of China, my opinion of him will be completely changed.
To The Latin Masked Catholic: Insightful comment. I’ll bet Archbishop Georg Ganswein would agree and add that the late Pope Benedict XVI couldn’t have said it better himself.
Sad to say, but this is more weak and unimaginative company-man analysis from Mr. Shaw. Dear Mr. Shaw, perhaps you should consider the possibility that the Holy Father does not criticize Communist regimes because he is in sympathy with their policies. It is not as though he keeps his leftist political views secret. On the other hand, he has always been very outspoken in his opposition to right-leaning governments and has done what could to bring them down because he despises their agendas. As for the Christians who suffer under Marxist and Islamic tyrannies, he couldn’t care less.
You need endurance to do the will of God and receive what he has promised.
For, after just a brief moment,
he who is to come shall come;
he shall not delay.
But my just one shall live by faith,
and if he draws back I take no pleasure in him.
We are not among those who draw back and perish,
but among those who have faith and will possess life.
Shaw is usually a very perceptive commenter but in this case he is comparing apple and oranges at least on one aspect. Pius XII had met Hitler when he was a Vatican diplomat and considered that he was totally given over to evil and that dialogue with him would be fruitless. That is very different from the current approach to China which is treating them as worthy dialogue partners despite their recent track record of not honoring the Hong Kong agreement with Britain.
Some will argue that the arbitrary is the regimen of Papa. Cultural Marxism is a destructive policy regardless of where it is practiced.
Proverbs 21:30 No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the Lord.
Matthew 16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Isaiah 46:10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
1 Corinthians 1:25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Jesus never condemned Caesar’s wars, crucifixions, welfare or other secular ‘social justice’ issues. Instead Jesus sent His Disciples into martyrdom for preaching the Word of God for repentance and the Spiritual Life salvation of souls.
God was King and Ruler over Israel in the Promised Land. In the Promised Land, God protected Israel from other kingdom’s armies and God poured out great blessings upon Israel. In return, Israel became twice as evil in their massive sinfulness as other nations. God kicked Israel out of the Promised Land. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was just as ruthless as Adolph Hitler. It is God who put king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and all ruthless dictators to this day, in power over His people on earth, as a punishment so that they might repent of their sinfulness, so that God may grant them peace on earth.
In the Second Secret of Fatima, God offers the Catholic Church, and the world, a reprieve from His punishment of ruthless tyrants. God requested that the Catholic Church get mankind to repent of their massive sinfulness and Consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and in return God will grant peace to the world rather than the punishment of WWII. The Catholic Church chose to rejected God’s offer of peace on earth and chose God’s punishment of WWII instead. Pope Pious XII worked hard at giving us the false image that he was actually the big hero during WWII, as he led us through our Catholic Church chosen punishment of WWII.
Second Secret of Fatima
You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace. The war is going to end: but if people do not cease offending God, a worse one will break out during the Pontificate of Pius XI. When you see a night illumined by an unknown light, know that this is the great sign given you by God that he is about to punish the world for its crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions of the Church and of the Holy Father. To prevent this, I shall come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, and the Communion of reparation on the First Saturdays. If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred; the Holy Father will have much to suffer; various nations will be annihilated. In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she shall be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world.
Now God has offered Peace on earth to His repentant Catholic Faithful. Jesus now wishes to Come and Deliver His Faithful from the Evil One on earth. Jesus instructs us to receive His gifts of Divine Mercy this coming Divine Mercy Sunday. Those who do so become Jesus’ ‘Elect’, whom He will remove all earthly punishments from God and Place His Catholic Church back into the Garden of Eden, on free-willed earth. Like his predecessors before him, Pope Francis now too rejects this offer of Peace on Earth from Jesus, as Pope Francis leads the Catholic Church deeper into massive sinfulness against God.
You seem to be woefully inadequate in history. When the Church in Spain seemed to have lost its godly path, the Church turned to the very devil and his minion –Hitler and Mussolini. During World War II, Pious XII did not excommunicate them – even though both of them were Catholics. The “Saintly” Pope John Paul II, appeared on the Presidential Palace and waved to the cheering supporters of Pinoche of Chile — a ruthless and brutal dictator.
The Church in Spain turned to Franco because the Republican Regime was burning churches and monasteries, and murdering priests, monks, and turned to Franco as obviously he was willing to put a stop to it. It never “turned to Hitler and Mussolini” and in fact Pope Pius XII was involved in the Valkyrie plot to assassinate Hitler.
Hitler left the Catholic Church in his teens and the diaries of Martin Borman and Joseph Goebbels, his closest confidants, confirmed that he despised Christianity in general and Catholicism in particular. Mussolini was an atheist. The Church therefore cannot excommunicate two dictators who were never Catholic in the first place.
Pope St John Paul II didn’t intend to appear next to Pinochet, and was tricked into doing so, which made him furious.
Perhaps you should review the sources you get your Church history from since most of them seem to be unreliable at best, and pure fabrications at worst.
If Pope Francis is secretly helping to smuggle thousands of Uyghurs out of China, my opinion of him will be completely changed.
To The Latin Masked Catholic: Insightful comment. I’ll bet Archbishop Georg Ganswein would agree and add that the late Pope Benedict XVI couldn’t have said it better himself.
Simple. No enemies to the Left
Sad to say, but this is more weak and unimaginative company-man analysis from Mr. Shaw. Dear Mr. Shaw, perhaps you should consider the possibility that the Holy Father does not criticize Communist regimes because he is in sympathy with their policies. It is not as though he keeps his leftist political views secret. On the other hand, he has always been very outspoken in his opposition to right-leaning governments and has done what could to bring them down because he despises their agendas. As for the Christians who suffer under Marxist and Islamic tyrannies, he couldn’t care less.
I agree
This article seems to ignore the fact that the Vatican under Bergoglio is the very definition of a dictatorial regime.
You need endurance to do the will of God and receive what he has promised.
For, after just a brief moment,
he who is to come shall come;
he shall not delay.
But my just one shall live by faith,
and if he draws back I take no pleasure in him.
We are not among those who draw back and perish,
but among those who have faith and will possess life.
Shaw is usually a very perceptive commenter but in this case he is comparing apple and oranges at least on one aspect. Pius XII had met Hitler when he was a Vatican diplomat and considered that he was totally given over to evil and that dialogue with him would be fruitless. That is very different from the current approach to China which is treating them as worthy dialogue partners despite their recent track record of not honoring the Hong Kong agreement with Britain.
Some will argue that the arbitrary is the regimen of Papa. Cultural Marxism is a destructive policy regardless of where it is practiced.
Proverbs 21:30 No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the Lord.
Matthew 16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Isaiah 46:10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
1 Corinthians 1:25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Jesus never condemned Caesar’s wars, crucifixions, welfare or other secular ‘social justice’ issues. Instead Jesus sent His Disciples into martyrdom for preaching the Word of God for repentance and the Spiritual Life salvation of souls.
God was King and Ruler over Israel in the Promised Land. In the Promised Land, God protected Israel from other kingdom’s armies and God poured out great blessings upon Israel. In return, Israel became twice as evil in their massive sinfulness as other nations. God kicked Israel out of the Promised Land. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was just as ruthless as Adolph Hitler. It is God who put king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and all ruthless dictators to this day, in power over His people on earth, as a punishment so that they might repent of their sinfulness, so that God may grant them peace on earth.
In the Second Secret of Fatima, God offers the Catholic Church, and the world, a reprieve from His punishment of ruthless tyrants. God requested that the Catholic Church get mankind to repent of their massive sinfulness and Consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and in return God will grant peace to the world rather than the punishment of WWII. The Catholic Church chose to rejected God’s offer of peace on earth and chose God’s punishment of WWII instead. Pope Pious XII worked hard at giving us the false image that he was actually the big hero during WWII, as he led us through our Catholic Church chosen punishment of WWII.
Second Secret of Fatima
You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace. The war is going to end: but if people do not cease offending God, a worse one will break out during the Pontificate of Pius XI. When you see a night illumined by an unknown light, know that this is the great sign given you by God that he is about to punish the world for its crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions of the Church and of the Holy Father. To prevent this, I shall come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, and the Communion of reparation on the First Saturdays. If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred; the Holy Father will have much to suffer; various nations will be annihilated. In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she shall be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world.
https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20000626_message-fatima_en.html
Now God has offered Peace on earth to His repentant Catholic Faithful. Jesus now wishes to Come and Deliver His Faithful from the Evil One on earth. Jesus instructs us to receive His gifts of Divine Mercy this coming Divine Mercy Sunday. Those who do so become Jesus’ ‘Elect’, whom He will remove all earthly punishments from God and Place His Catholic Church back into the Garden of Eden, on free-willed earth. Like his predecessors before him, Pope Francis now too rejects this offer of Peace on Earth from Jesus, as Pope Francis leads the Catholic Church deeper into massive sinfulness against God.
Please visit: ‘Jesus is Getting Married’.
http://www.apocalypseangel.com/married.html
You seem to be woefully inadequate in history. When the Church in Spain seemed to have lost its godly path, the Church turned to the very devil and his minion –Hitler and Mussolini. During World War II, Pious XII did not excommunicate them – even though both of them were Catholics. The “Saintly” Pope John Paul II, appeared on the Presidential Palace and waved to the cheering supporters of Pinoche of Chile — a ruthless and brutal dictator.
The Church in Spain turned to Franco because the Republican Regime was burning churches and monasteries, and murdering priests, monks, and turned to Franco as obviously he was willing to put a stop to it. It never “turned to Hitler and Mussolini” and in fact Pope Pius XII was involved in the Valkyrie plot to assassinate Hitler.
Hitler left the Catholic Church in his teens and the diaries of Martin Borman and Joseph Goebbels, his closest confidants, confirmed that he despised Christianity in general and Catholicism in particular. Mussolini was an atheist. The Church therefore cannot excommunicate two dictators who were never Catholic in the first place.
Pope St John Paul II didn’t intend to appear next to Pinochet, and was tricked into doing so, which made him furious.
Perhaps you should review the sources you get your Church history from since most of them seem to be unreliable at best, and pure fabrications at worst.