Crimea was Christian and Ukraine is Christian. He murdered thousands in both places. This pope is scary nuts.
http://www.indcatholicnews.com/news.php?viewStory=29372
Russia: Threat to Christians is catalyst for historic meeting between Pope and Patriarch
Clare Creegan and John Newton
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 9:41 am.
The persecution of Christians is the driving force behind the forthcoming historic meeting between the heads of the Catholic and Russian Orthodox Churches according to a leading Catholic charity’s Russian expert.
Aid to the Church in Need’s Peter Humeniuk said that the meeting between Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill in Cuba had come about “because we are witnessing a persecution of Christians, which... now threatens the survival of Christianity in parts of the world.”
Mr Humeniuk added: “We are witnesses of persecution of Christians, which has adopted an unprecedented range and threatens the survival of Christianity in parts of the world. When the world is burning, the question of Church politics plays a secondary role. The common witness is more important than ever. Given the situation in the world, the churches can speak up only if they cry for peace with one voice.”
The event this Friday, 12th February, will be the first time that the heads of the Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox Churches have met for more than 1,000 years.
lthough Mr Humeniuk said the announcement came as a surprise, the ground work for a meeting between the heads of the two churches had been ongoing for many years. He said: “The fact that the two church leaders had not physically met yet, does not mean that there had not been any cooperation. The meeting is therefore a high point in the progress which has been made so far, was but it is based on something that was being built up for several decades It is expected that cooperation between the two churches will deepen and intensify after the meeting.”
News of the meeting between the Holy Father and Patriarch Kirill was welcomed by both Churches - as they noted the situation for Christians in the Middle East was worsening.
Mr Humeniuk said that the Russian Orthodox bishops had agreed at the General Assembly that steps needed to be taken to address the worsening situation in the Middle East. He said: “The long-awaited meeting between the Pope and the Patriarch of Moscow is an important step towards a common future, where both churches want to speak and testify with one voice.”
ACN has always helped build an open and positive relationship with the Russian Orthodox Church.
Writing to the charity on the 10th anniversary of the death of Fr Werenfried van Straaten, ACN’s founder, Russian Orthodox Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk said: “Aid to the Church in Need was practically the first Catholic organisation that built constructive, friendly relations with the Russian church.”
ACN also supports a number of ecumenical projects in Russia including ‘Blagovest info’, an interfaith news agency which provides extensive coverage of Christian issues.
Mr Humeniuk said the meeting served as an incentive for the charity to continue their ecumenical work in Russia. It is clear to Aid to the Church in Need that we will continue to proceed down this path.”
The Russian Orthodox Church is the largest of the Eastern Orthodox Churches, with more than 100 million members.
Source: Aid to the Church in Need
See also: VIS - 5/02/2016 Francis to meet Patriarch Kirill of Moscow http://www.news.va/en/news/francis-to-meet-patriarch-kirill-of-moscow-in-cuba
Crimea still is Christian and much better off as a part of Orthodox Russia.