Ukraine, Russia: Two Years Later

The opinion of the Russian Orthodox on Fiducia supplicans (FS) was published on the website of the Moscow Patriarchate on February 20, 2024, two years to the day since the beginning of a conflict that Moscow considers a “special military operation,” but which much of the world views as an unlawful invasion.

The Roman document published on December 18, 2023--giving the possibility of granting a non-ritual blessing to couples which are illegitimate under Church law--is, as could be expected, the object of a definitive negative judgment from the highest Russian religious authority, who sees it as an “innovation reflecting a clear departure from what Christian morality teaches.”

Shortly before, Metropolitan Hilarion--the former number two of the Moscow Patriarchate--had set the tone by evoking a “shockwave”: “From now on, the whole world will believe that the Church encourages homosexual couples, thus deceiving those who receive such a blessing as well as those who witness it,” the hierarch lamented.

It is not unreasonable to wonder if the Declaration developed by the Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, may be a supplementary obstacle on the difficult road of the Holy See’s mediation between Ukraine and the Russian Federation.

The whole paradox of the current pontificate finds its illustration in the diplomatic conundrum of the conflict in Ukraine. On one hand, Pope Francis assumes a form of rupture, or at least independence, from most of the West by refraining from reasoning in a binary way and stigmatizing Russia. In doing so, he gives himself the means to have the ear of the master of the Kremlin and demonstrates a certain pragmatism.

There is, however, another side to the coin. With FS--to cite only this document--a rupture occurs in another domain: that of Christian morality, where several aspects of traditional doctrine and practice appear to be trampled underfoot. This is something to further dishearten more than one Russian opposed to the progressive creed.

In 2013, in the Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, Pope Francis already mentioned his guiding principle: “Here our model [...] is the polyhedron, which reflects the convergence of all its parts, each of which preserves its distinctiveness. Pastoral and political activity alike seek to gather in this polyhedron the best of each. There is a place for the poor and their culture, their aspirations and their potential. Even people who can be considered dubious on account of their errors have something to offer which must not be overlooked.”