International Affairs
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Francis & Kirill in Havana:
Worrying Political Aspects
The meeting between Pope Francis I and the “orthodox” patriarch of Moscow Kirill I, to be held in Havana this coming Friday, February 12, raises important religious considerations that specialists are commenting on. At the same time, this meeting provokes political considerations that are equally important. We shall now present in schematic fashion some worrying examples in the political sphere.
Pope Francis I returns to Cuba five months after his first visit to the “prison-island,” which took place in September 2015, a visit dotted with statements, gestures and omissions that only served to benefit the regime and strengthen it politically. From the standpoint of the fight for freedom in Cuba and considering its political and diplomatic aftermath, this trip was regrettable, leaving a bitter aftertaste: The regime was strengthened and repression was intensified.
The choice of Communist Cuba as the venue for the meeting between Pope Francis I and Patriarch Kirill I has also helped to give prestige to the tyrants of Havana as supposedly trustworthy hosts and mediators. According to news sent by AFP from Vatican City, the spokesperson of the Holy See, Fr. Federico Lombardi, had highlighted in a positive light this role of Cuban dictator Raul Castro as host and mediator.
It is, therefore, no surprise that Castro himself stated that he was “honored” at the prospective that the meeting of these two religious leaders would take place in Havana.
From the political and publicity standpoints, the aim of this meeting is to conceal the jaws and claws of the regime. It is much the same tactic used in the publicity campaign the Cuban regime employed for the talks that took place in Havana between the Colombian Government and the narco-guerillas of FARC, in the very mouth of the wolf. This dialogue helped to sharpen their fangs, making it appear as if the Castro regime were a trustworthy host.
Kirill himself has a regrettable past of collaboration with the Soviet regime. In 2009, when he was elected patriarch of Moscow, the Italian newspaper Il Giornale revealed in a long, detailed article that both Kirill and his predecessor had been agents with the notorious Soviet security agency, the KGB.
The report also divulged that the new patriarch was well known in KGB circles as Agent Mikhailov. Only a few months before he was elected, in October 2008, Kirill had visited Havana, where he praised dictator Fidel Castro, who responded that the patriarch was an important ally of Communist Cuba in its fight against so-called imperialism.
Apart from his pro-communist past, Kirill has an equally regrettable present with his support for dictator Putin. For example, the “orthodox” patriarch is one of the main persons responsible for the fact that Russian Catholics are often considered second-class citizens and live in a virtual political and psychological catacomb.
Patriarch Kirill, along with other Russian “orthodox” leaders, show a particularly strong hatred for Ukrainian Catholics, most of whom politically maintain their anti-communist positions. In 2014, when the Ukrainian Parliament deposed the pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych, Putin invaded the Crimea and threatened to invade the whole of Ukraine.
Kirill did not go as far as to directly justify that invasion, but he did so indirectly by blaming the Ukrainian Catholics, known as Uniates, for the loss of the political power held by pro-Russian leaders in the Ukraine.
In short, we can say that the forthcoming dialogue between Pope Francis I and Patriarch Kirill I, seen from the standpoint of freedom, could have a strong effect on the domestic situation in Communist Cuba, favoring the dictatorship once again.
In the Ukraine, this could weaken the position of those patriots who had the courage to break free from the shackles of the Soviet regime and are fighting against the authoritarian Putinist regime, not allowing themselves to be misled by the religious arm of the Kremlin, which is currently composed of the followers of patriarch Kirill.
In the current context of countries such as Cuba, Russia, China, Venezuela and Bolivia, the promotion of dialogue with wolves and jackals arouses the most painful problems of conscience in many of their inhabitants. Indeed, this dialogue with wolves, when taken over to the political sphere, can pressure those people who currently resist heroically and peacefully, through loyalty to their anti-communist principles, against this fraudulent dialogue.
Francis never loses an opportunity to bolster Communism: above, meeting Castro in Cuba in 2015; below, welcoming Putin at the Vatican
The choice of Communist Cuba as the venue for the meeting between Pope Francis I and Patriarch Kirill I has also helped to give prestige to the tyrants of Havana as supposedly trustworthy hosts and mediators. According to news sent by AFP from Vatican City, the spokesperson of the Holy See, Fr. Federico Lombardi, had highlighted in a positive light this role of Cuban dictator Raul Castro as host and mediator.
It is, therefore, no surprise that Castro himself stated that he was “honored” at the prospective that the meeting of these two religious leaders would take place in Havana.
From the political and publicity standpoints, the aim of this meeting is to conceal the jaws and claws of the regime. It is much the same tactic used in the publicity campaign the Cuban regime employed for the talks that took place in Havana between the Colombian Government and the narco-guerillas of FARC, in the very mouth of the wolf. This dialogue helped to sharpen their fangs, making it appear as if the Castro regime were a trustworthy host.
Kirill himself has a regrettable past of collaboration with the Soviet regime. In 2009, when he was elected patriarch of Moscow, the Italian newspaper Il Giornale revealed in a long, detailed article that both Kirill and his predecessor had been agents with the notorious Soviet security agency, the KGB.
Two ex-KBG agents, Kirill & Putin, sharing the same communist goals
Apart from his pro-communist past, Kirill has an equally regrettable present with his support for dictator Putin. For example, the “orthodox” patriarch is one of the main persons responsible for the fact that Russian Catholics are often considered second-class citizens and live in a virtual political and psychological catacomb.
Patriarch Kirill, along with other Russian “orthodox” leaders, show a particularly strong hatred for Ukrainian Catholics, most of whom politically maintain their anti-communist positions. In 2014, when the Ukrainian Parliament deposed the pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych, Putin invaded the Crimea and threatened to invade the whole of Ukraine.
Kirill did not go as far as to directly justify that invasion, but he did so indirectly by blaming the Ukrainian Catholics, known as Uniates, for the loss of the political power held by pro-Russian leaders in the Ukraine.
Kirill chastises the Ukrainians for taking over schismatic churches & resisting Communism
In the Ukraine, this could weaken the position of those patriots who had the courage to break free from the shackles of the Soviet regime and are fighting against the authoritarian Putinist regime, not allowing themselves to be misled by the religious arm of the Kremlin, which is currently composed of the followers of patriarch Kirill.
In the current context of countries such as Cuba, Russia, China, Venezuela and Bolivia, the promotion of dialogue with wolves and jackals arouses the most painful problems of conscience in many of their inhabitants. Indeed, this dialogue with wolves, when taken over to the political sphere, can pressure those people who currently resist heroically and peacefully, through loyalty to their anti-communist principles, against this fraudulent dialogue.
Posted February 10, 2016
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