Pope Francis criticized Ukraine's recent ban on the activities of religious groups linked to the Russian Orthodox Church during the Angelus prayer on Sunday (August 25), and called for the freedom of worshippers to pray in their own churches.
“Please, no Christian Church should be abolished directly or indirectly,” the Pope said in response to Kyiv’s move.
The bill, approved by Ukraine's parliament earlier this week, creates legal tools for the government to ban the activities of any religious group deemed to have close ties to Russia or support its invasion of Ukraine.
“Let those who want to pray, pray in the place they consider their church,” Pope Francis said.
The pope also addressed the “beloved people of Nicaragua” whose government closed another 151 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) on Thursday, including the American Chamber of Commerce.
This comes just days after the government closed some 1,500 NGOs, many of them religious.
President Daniel Ortega has targeted NGOs since the 2018 uprising, accusing organizations that receive foreign funding of being involved in what he sees as an attempt to remove him from office.
To date, his government has closed more than 5,000 NGOs.
“Remember that the Holy Spirit always guides history towards higher projects. May the Virgin Mary protect you in your moments of trial and make you feel her maternal tenderness,” Pope Francis said.
The Pope also expressed his solidarity with the communities affected by the pandemic.
“I extend my sympathies to the local churches in the countries most affected by this disease and encourage governments and private industry to share available technologies and treatments so that no one lacks adequate medical services,” he said.
The Democratic Republic of Congo reported more than 1,000 new cases of mpox in the week to Tuesday as African health authorities appealed for much-needed vaccines to help combat the “growing” threat on the continent.
The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak in Africa a global emergency.
Mpox belongs to the same family of viruses as smallpox but causes milder symptoms. (ab/uh)
