The Pope is leaving Africa and in particular two countries bloodied, for different reasons, by war.
In Congo and South Sudan he saw the humanitarian tragedy linked to decades of conflict and therefore, looking at the whole planet, he raises an alarm: "The world is in self-destruction, let's stop in time" because if we go along with "the escalation will not you know where you're going".
The reference is to Ukraine but not only.
Francis mentions Syria, Yemen, Myanmar and the many conflicts in Latin America.
The Pontiff - who met journalists together with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and the Moderator of the Church of Scotland, Iain Greenshields - does not shy away from questions about poisons in the Vatican and says that "Benedict's death was exploited" .
He also returns to homosexuality and says it is "a pity" to condemn gays.
Finally, he announces his next trips: Lisbon and Marseilles, but Mongolia is also one of his wishes, perhaps at the end of September, and India next year.
The Pope - while the great powers are sending arms to Ukraine and thinking of strengthening their arsenals - once again condemns the arms trade and "the escalation", with which one goes "from bomb to bomb and no one knows where it goes to finish".
"Today I believe that this is the plague in the world, the greatest plague, the deal, the sale of arms," he reiterated.
As for the war in Ukraine (in less than twenty days it will be a year from the beginning), "I am open to meeting both the presidents, that of Ukraine and that of Russia, I am open to the
encounter.
If I did not go to Kiev it is because it is not possible for the moment to go to Moscow but I ask for dialogue". It is not possible because Putin did not want to open even that "negotiation window" that the Pope immediately requested through the Russian embassy in Vatican. "But it is not the only war, I would like to do justice", he adds, rattling off all the main areas touched by the conflicts. Then he moves on to the controversies 'at home': those who attack him and for this "exploit Benedict are without ethics, they are people of the party, not of the Church". "I let it go, these things will fall by themselves, some will not fall and we will go on, as happens in the history of the Church", he told journalists in flight. "Some stories that are told ,
"A person who thinks he is a great theologian, through a friend of Pope Benedict, went to him and filed a complaint against me. Benedict was not frightened, he called four top-level cardinal theologians and said 'explain to me this' and they explained it to him and so the story ended".
Ratzinger therefore agreed with him.
And on homosexuality he reiterates that "it is a sin" to condemn these people and "an injustice" to criminalize them, as is happening today in about fifty countries around the world.
Finally he reveals his forthcoming travels and to those who ask him if he is still able to make such demanding visits, like the one in Africa these days, he replies with a joke: "Bad grass never dies".
through a friend of Pope Benedict, he went to him and filed a complaint against me.
Benedict was not frightened, he called four top-level cardinal theologians and said 'explain this to me' and they explained it to him and so the story ended". Ratzinger therefore agreed with him. And on homosexuality he reiterates that "it is sin" to condemn these people and "an injustice" to criminalize them, as happens today in about fifty countries in the world. Finally, he reveals his forthcoming trips and to those who ask him if he is still able to make such demanding visits, such as the one in Africa of these days, replies with a quip: "Bad weed never dies."
through a friend of Pope Benedict, he went to him and filed a complaint against me.
Benedict was not frightened, he called four top-level cardinal theologians and said 'explain this to me' and they explained it to him and so the story ended". Ratzinger therefore agreed with him. And on homosexuality he reiterates that "it is sin" to condemn these people and "an injustice" to criminalize them, as happens today in about fifty countries in the world. Finally, he reveals his forthcoming trips and to those who ask him if he is still able to make such demanding visits, such as the one in Africa of these days, replies with a quip: "Bad weed never dies."
