Tag: Pope Francis

Pope criticizes Trump administration policy on migrant family separation

The following article by Philip Puellella was posted on the Reuters website June 20, 2018:

Credit: Tony Gentile, Reuters

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Pope Francis has criticized the Trump administration’s policy of separating migrant families at the Mexican border, saying populism is not the answer to the world’s immigration problems.

Speaking to Reuters, the Pope said he supported recent statements by U.S. Catholic bishops who called the separation of children from their parents “contrary to our Catholic values” and “immoral”.

“It’s not easy, but populism is not the solution,” Francis said on Sunday night. Continue reading “Pope criticizes Trump administration policy on migrant family separation”

Exclusive: Pope convenes Big Oil, investors to talk climate change

The following article by Amy Harder was posted on the Axios website June 1, 2018:

Illustration: Lazaro Gamio/Axios

Pope Francis is hosting a gathering next week at the Vatican with executives of major oil producers and investment firms to talk about how the companies can address climate change, according to several people familiar with the event.

Why it matters: It’s one of the most significant developments showing how corporations are working with other world leaders on climate change amid President Trump’s whole-scale retreat on the issue. Continue reading “Exclusive: Pope convenes Big Oil, investors to talk climate change”

The pope used his Christmas address to call for Middle East peace after Trump’s Jerusalem decis

The following article by A.P. Joyce was posted on the Mic.com website December 25, 2017:

Donald Trump described meeting Pope Francis as the ‘honour of a lifetime’: AFP/Getty ImagesDonald Trump described meeting Pope Francis as the ‘honour of a lifetime’: AFP/Getty Images

On Christmas Day, Pope Francis delivered his annual address celebrating the Christian holiday and used the opportunity to take direct aim at Donald Trump’s controversial decision to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

During his traditional “Urbi et Orbi” (speech to the city and to the world), the pope called on members of the Catholic church to pray for dialog between Israelis and Palestinians to resume, just days after the U.N. voted 128 to 9 to condemn the Trump administration for its decision.

Trump’s move has reignited latent tensions in the region and was widely condemned as an unnecessary provocation. For decades the U.S. has kept its Israeli embassy in Tel Aviv, and former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama all decided not to move the embassy to Jerusalem, citing national security interests, CNN noted. Continue reading “The pope used his Christmas address to call for Middle East peace after Trump’s Jerusalem decis”

Trump’s team of ‘apocalyptic geopolitics’ similar to Isis

The following article by Ben Kentish was posted on the Independent site was posted on the Yahoo News site July 14, 2017:

Donald Trump described meeting Pope Francis as the ‘honour of a lifetime’: AFP/Getty ImagesDonald Trump described meeting Pope Francis as the ‘honour of a lifetime’: AFP/Getty Images

Donald Trump’s administration is responsible for promoting an “apocalyptic geopolitics” with roots similar to those of Islamist extremism, two allies of Pope Francis have said.

Writing in La Civilta Cattolica, the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, Antonio Spadaro, and Marcelo Figueroa, the editor-in-chief of the Argentinian edition of the Vatican newspaper, accused Steve Bannon, the US President’s chief strategist, of being a “supporter of apocalyptic geopolitics” and claimed Mr Trump’s team promote an “evangelical fundamentalism” that twists Christian scripture to promote conflict and war.

Both Mr Spadaro and Mr Figueroa are known to be close associates of the Argentinian pope. La Civilta Cattolica is vetted by the Vatican before being published, meaning the article would have had the approval of church authorities. Continue reading “Trump’s team of ‘apocalyptic geopolitics’ similar to Isis”

Pope Francis warns against rise of populist leaders ‘like Hitler’ as Donald Trump sworn in as President

‘In times of crisis, we lack judgement’

The following article by Samuel Osborne was posted on The Independent website January 22, 2017:

He made the comments to Spanish newspaper El Pais as Donald Trump was being sworn in as the 45th President of the United States.

During the interview, the pontiff condemned the use of walls and barbed wire to keep out foreigners, but said it was too early to judge Mr Trump, saying: “I think we must wait and see.”

When asked if he worries about the rise of populism in the United States and Europe, he said people should not repeat the same mistakes as in the 1930s, when they turned to “saviours” to resolve economic and political crises only to end up at war.  Continue reading “Pope Francis warns against rise of populist leaders ‘like Hitler’ as Donald Trump sworn in as President”

Climate Talks Must Heed the Call of Pope Francis and the Multifaith Movement

Pope FrancisThe following article by Myriam Alexander-Kearns and Claire Markham was posted by the Center for American Progress:

In May, the Vatican released “Laudato Si,” Pope Francis’ second encyclical and the first papal encyclical to focus on the urgent and politically challenging issue of climate change. The document—which added to the impressive history of multifaith environmental activism—was written to inspire, according to Pope Francis, a “global consensus” at this month’s Paris climate talks “so that future generations will not have to suffer the effects of our ill-advised delays.”

With today’s opening of the Paris talks—officially called the United Nations’ 21st Conference of the Parties—it is imperative that global leaders seize this opportunity to advance common goals for the preservation and protection of the planet, vulnerable communities, and all nations. Continue reading “Climate Talks Must Heed the Call of Pope Francis and the Multifaith Movement”