ROME (Reuters) – A Ukrainian and a Russian woman took part in Pope Francis’s Good Friday “Cross Street” service, but their meditation was canceled after Ukrainians protested, saying the war had made it inappropriate. The traditional Via Crucis procession to the Colosseum in Rome had been embroiled in controversy earlier this week, when the show showed that two friends, a nurse and a female nurse at a Rome hospital, were involved. The function of the candlelight consists of the 14 stops of the Cross, stages between the condemnation of Jesus to death and his burial. It is often adapted so that those who carry the cross from one station to another reflect world events. Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Byzantine Catholic Church in Ukraine, described their inclusion as inappropriate and ambiguous because he “did not take into account the context of Russia’s military offensive against Ukraine.” The original text of the meditation written by the two women spoke of death, loss of values, anger, resignation and reconciliation despite the bombing. Shevchuk said the text, which had been approved by the Vatican, was “incoherent and even offensive, especially in the context of the expected second, even more bloody attack by Russian troops on our towns and villages.” Ukraine’s ambassador to the Vatican, Andrii Yurash, also expressed concern. On Friday night, the original text of about 200 words was replaced by two sentences: “In the face of death, silence is the most eloquent word. Let us all pause in silent prayer and pray in their hearts for world peace.” . The multitude of thousands of people then fell silent for as long as it took to read the original, larger meditation. Francis sat and watched the procession in a white chair. In his last prayer, he asked God to allow opponents to shake hands to taste mutual forgiveness, to disarm the hand raised by a brother against a brother, so that the agreement would spring from where hatred now exists. The story goes on Since the start of the war, Francis has explicitly mentioned Russia only in prayer, such as during a special world peace event on March 25. But he has clarified his opposition to Russia’s actions, using the words aggression, aggression and atrocities. Moscow calls the actions in Ukraine a “special military operation” designed not to occupy territory but to demilitarize and “demilitarize” the country. Francis tacitly rejected this definition. The war in Ukraine is expected to continue to cast a shadow over the Pope’s remaining activities during Holy Week. On Saturday night, Francis will preside over the Easter Vigil in the basilica. On Easter Sunday, the most important day in the Christian liturgical calendar, he will hold a Liturgy in St. Peter’s Square and then deliver the message and blessing “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) twice a year. (Report by Philip Pullella · Edited by Nick Zieminski)
title: “Text At Pope S Good Friday Service Scrapped After Ukrainian Protest " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-13” author: “Lora Rabelo”
Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register ROME, April 15 (Reuters) – A Ukrainian and a Russian woman took part in Pope Francis’ Good Friday “Cross Street” service, but their meditation was canceled after a protest by Ukrainians, who said the war had made it inappropriate. The traditional Via Crucis procession to the Colosseum in Rome had been embroiled in controversy earlier this week, when the show showed that two friends, a nurse and a female nurse at a Rome hospital, were involved. The function of the candlelight consists of the 14 stops of the Cross, stages between the condemnation of Jesus to death and his burial. It is often adapted so that those who carry the cross from one station to another reflect world events. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Byzantine Catholic Church in Ukraine, described their inclusion as inappropriate and ambiguous because he “did not take into account the context of Russia’s military offensive against Ukraine.” The original text of the meditation written by the two women spoke of death, loss of values, anger, resignation and reconciliation despite the bombing. Shevchuk said the text, which had been approved by the Vatican, was “incoherent and even offensive, especially in the context of the expected second, even more bloody attack by Russian troops on our towns and villages.” Ukraine’s ambassador to the Vatican, Andrii Yurash, also expressed concern. On Friday night, the original text of about 200 words was replaced by two sentences: “In the face of death, silence is the most eloquent word. Let us all pause in silent prayer and pray in their hearts for world peace.” . The multitude of thousands of people then fell silent for as long as it took to read the original, larger meditation. Francis sat and watched the procession in a white chair. In his last prayer, he asked God to allow opponents to shake hands to taste mutual forgiveness, to disarm the hand raised by a brother against a brother, so that the agreement would spring from where hatred now exists. Since the start of the war, Francis has explicitly mentioned Russia only in prayer, such as during a special world peace event on March 25. But he has clarified his opposition to Russia’s actions, using the words aggression, aggression and atrocities. Moscow calls the actions in Ukraine a “special military operation” designed not to occupy territory but to demilitarize and “demilitarize” the country. Francis tacitly rejected this definition. The war in Ukraine is expected to continue to cast a shadow over the Pope’s remaining activities during Holy Week. On Saturday night, Francis will preside over the Easter Vigil in the basilica. On Easter Sunday, the most important day in the Christian liturgical calendar, he will hold a Liturgy in St. Peter’s Square and then deliver the message and blessing “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) twice a year. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Philip Pullella Edited by Nick Zieminski Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
