Pope Francis meets with bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated persons, seminarians and pastoral representatives at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Nour-Sultan, September 15, 2022. FILIPPO MONTEFORTE / AFP
The patron of the VII Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, which opened for two days on Wednesday, September 14, in Noursultan, Kazakhstan, in the presence of Pope Francis, is not a religious. It is the country’s president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. The successor of Nursultan Nazarbayev – the first president of independent Kazakhstan, who invented this triennial congress – selected the participants, gave the first speech, distributed medals. And received the congratulations of the participants for their contribution to a better understanding between the different traditions and cultures.
Around the Independence Palace’s huge round table, reminiscent of the larger one at the United Nations Security Council, eighty representatives of the main religions, including half a dozen women, were invited to discuss their role in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Also read: Article reserved for our subscribers In Kazakhstan, the diplomacy of Pope Francis in the challenge of Russia and China
As the Moscow Patriarchate announced at the end of August, Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, with whom Pope Francis wanted to speak about the war in Ukraine supported by the Patriarch, was absent. But Kazakhstan belongs to its orthodox “jurisdiction” and has a quarter of ethnic Russians. He could not therefore be entirely absent and was represented by the new President of the Department of Foreign Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Antoine. Reluctant to face the Russian offensive, his predecessor Hilarion was ousted before the summer.
If the word “Ukraine” was not mentioned at this meeting, it is clear that the war started by Russia was the subtext of certain interventions. Metropolitan Antoine read the short text entrusted to him by his guide. He attributed the current “food, energy and economic problems” to “attempts to build a world without reference to moral values”. In his opinion, these “attempts” have “resulted not only in a loss of the concept of justice in international relations, but also in violent clashes, military clashes and the spread of terrorism and extremism in different parts of the world”.
Also read: Article reserved for our subscribers War in Ukraine: the Russian Orthodox Church in close ranks behind Vladimir Putin
In fact, after February 24, the Patriarch immediately said that the war in Ukraine had the “metaphysical” dimension of a struggle against “the forces of evil,” which, for example, prompted Western countries to accept gay pride. “The path of dictatorship, rivalry and confrontation chosen by some of the world’s leaders is leading humanity to ruin,” he said again in the speech read by Antoine, which was obviously not aimed at Vladimir Putin. In such circumstances, only faith can do it [ramener] People on the path of dialogue and cooperation, because in traditional religions the basic moral principles of human existence remain unshakable. »
You still have 53.18% of this article to read. The following is for subscribers only.