Posted on 04/21/2002 5:34:47 PM PDT by history_matters
VATICAN CITY, APRIL 21, 2002 (Zenit.org).- The Vatican protested to Russian authorities over the expulsion of Bishop Jerzy Mazur of the Catholic Diocese of St. Joseph of Irkutsk, in Eastern Siberia.
On Friday night, when the Polish-born bishop arrived in Moscow´s Sheremetievo-2 airport "he was expelled from the territory of the Russian Federation and forced to take a flight to Krakow, from where he came," says a statement issued Saturday by the Vatican Press Office.
The bishop "was given no reasons for the measure," the statement adds. The Vatican "State Secretariat and the pontifical representation in Moscow appealed immediately to the Russian authorities, requesting an explanation and the restitution of the bishop´s visa."
The Vatican State Secretariat called a meeting with Vitaly Litvin, the Russian Federation´s ambassador to the Vatican, who said that he had not been informed about what happened, the missionary agency Fides reported.
The Vatican note stated that what "has happened to Bishop Mazur, a few days after the expulsion of Italian priest Stefano Caprio, parish priest of the Holy Rosary church in Vladimir and Ivanovo, represents a grave violation of the commitments assumed by the Russian governmental authorities, who signed the conclusive document of the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe, in January 1989."
In Article 16 of the principles of that document, the signatory states commit themselves to respect the right of religious communities "to choose, name and replace their own personnel according to their respective needs and their own norms."
Vatican spokesman Joaquín Navarro-Valls ends the statement by requesting "the review of the measure adopted and that Bishop Mazur be able to return soon to his faithful in Eastern Siberia."
In statements to Vatican Radio, the bishop, 48, said that his visa expires next January. "I was surprised that I was not given any explanation," he said. "I was told at the airport that the decision came from higher up and that they knew nothing about it; they only knew I was not allowed to enter."
"It never occurred to me that they would not let me return to my diocese, where I carry out my pastoral work as bishop," he added. "At this difficult time, we must trust the Lord even more. I ask everyone to pray for the Catholic Church in Russia and for all Christians."
Father Caprio´s expulsion and now that of the bishop of Irkutsk has caused fear among the 215 Catholic priests in Russia, the vast majority of whom are foreigners.
Metropolitan Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz of Moscow said in a statement: "Russian Catholics are wondering who will be next, and how long this will last. Are constitutional guarantees of freedom of conscience and the right to have their own pastors, including the right to invite them from abroad, also valid for them?"
Last week the Russian Duma failed to halt a motion asking President Vladimir Putin to close the four Catholic dioceses recently created by John Paul II. The motion states the "activity of the Catholic Church in Russia must be prohibited because it represents a threat to Russia´s integrity," given its alleged intent "to impose its will on our people" as if the country were "a spiritual desert."
Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us.
Our Lady of Czestachowa, pray for us.
Mary, Queen of All Saints, pray for us.
LOL...thats a good one. Compared to what is happening elsewhere in the world, this is so mild as to not even register. Everyone knows that the Vatican and the Orthodox Church don't get along. This is just a little tiff.
Perhaps if the Russian Orthodox Church dissolved their dioceses in Catholic nations and recalled their clergy, one could understand a Russian Orthodox request of the Catholic Church to do the same in Orthodox lands.
No, not the Pope, but rather Our Lord Jesus Christ who prayed that we all would be one.
No, I do not think so.
Do you know that for fact or are you just speculating? Was that icon in Portugal? How did it get to Rome?
The Conversion of Russia —To Islam!
In Moscow alone there are 1 million Muslims today. That’s nearly ten times the number of Russian-born Catholics in all of Russia. Muslims now comprise about 5% of the total Russian population, outnumbering Catholics by anywhere from 30-to-1 to 60-to-1, depending on which statistics you use.
The expansion of Islam in Russia since “the fall of communism” in 1991 has been assured by Russia’s 1997 law on “freedom of religion,” which enshrines Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and, of course, Russian Orthodoxy as “traditional religions” entitled to legal existence. The Catholic Church, on the other hand, must register its “pastoral points” (which the Vatican will not call parishes, lest the Orthodox be offended) each year, and no foreign-born Catholic priest may remain in Russia for more than three months without leaving the country to renew his visa. Needless to say, the Catholic Church won’t be sinking any roots in Russia under this regimen.
Meanwhile, Zenit.org, citing a BBC report, informs us that “Mayor Yuriy Luzhkov attended a service Monday at the city's main mosque to mark Eid al-Adha, the Muslim feast of sacrifice, and promised to help provide more facilities for Moscow's million-strong Muslims.” The article goes on to observe that “because of their higher birthrate and increasing cultural and religious self-confidence [the] Muslims are likely to increase both in absolute numbers and in their proportion of the population.” On the other hand, the Catholic population can be expected to shrink proportionately in Russia, just as it has been shrinking proportionately throughout Europe since “the springtime of Vatican II” got underway.
Zenit notes that “In terms of political orientation, [Muslims] have tended to vote for the Communist Party, as the bastion of conservatism and regional elites ...” For this reason, “Russia's leaders may have decided the time has come to court the growing Muslim constituency before its loyal, Tatar leadership gives way to more militant trends that seek guidance from abroad.”
So, the Muslim population of Russia continues to grow apace, and Russia’s leaders are now courting the Muslims because they make good communists! Meanwhile, foreign-born Catholic priests—which means every priest in Russia except three!—are not even allowed to maintain permanent residence in that country. Yes, it does seem that the “conversion of Russia” is taking place, after all—a conversion to Islam, according to current trends.
Article from here: Fatima Perspective
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