The Pope will not resign. At least for now. It is he himself who denies the speculations circulated after the announcement of the visit to Aquila, on August 28, where Celestino V, who had resigned in 1294, is buried. Francis, in a conversation with the Reuters agency, also denies the rumors that he has cancer. The doctors “didn’t tell me,” he replies with his usual ironic verve. And on the crisis in Ukraine he confirms that, to achieve the result of peace, he would like to go to Kiev, “it is possible that he will succeed”, after the trip to Canada, which will take place at the end of July. So probably in September.
“The first thing is to go to Russia to try to help in some way, but I would like to go to both capitals,” he adds, referring to the desire to go to Moscow as well. Francis also reported that there have been contacts between the Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, about a possible trip to Moscow. The initial signs – the Pope said – were not good, because Moscow had made it known that it was not the right time. However, the Pontiff hinted that now something could have changed: “I thought that if the Russian president had given me a small window to serve the cause of peace …”, he said, leaving the hypothesis pending. The interreligious meeting to be held in Kazakhstan on 14 and 15 September fits into this scenario.
The participation of Francesco, even if not yet officially announced, is taken for granted. And in the capital Nur-Sultan there could be a meeting with the Patriarch of Moscow Kirill, which was to be held in Jerusalem and then postponed precisely due to the serious crisis underway with Ukraine. Meeting the delegation of the European Swimming League, in view of the championships to be held in Rome in August, with a message addressed to the athletes he hoped that the races on the agenda could be “a reason to show even more forcefully our commitment to a world without wars, without hatred among peoples, without nuclear threat “. “I think that you too, like me, are saddened because the shadow of the war in Ukraine weighs on this sporting event”, added Francesco.
On his resignation, one of the most popular topics in the Vatican and in the specialized press, especially in relation to the announcement of his visit to L’Aquila, “all these coincidences have made some think that the same ‘liturgy’ – commented Francis, referring to the Celestine V’s resignation – would have happened. But it never crossed my mind. Not for the moment, really. ” At the same time, the Pope went back to saying that the possibility of resigning will be considered, especially after the choice made by Benedict XVI in 2013, should his health make it impossible for him to continue in his ministry, for the good of the Church. But when asked when it might happen, he replied: ‘We don’t know. God will tell. “
Source: Ansa
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