A cardinal has said that Pope Francis and Europe’s people have differing views on the migrant crisis because the Pontiff comes from another continent.
Cardinal Dominik Duka, the archbishop of Prague, spoke about the crisis in an interview with a Czech newspaper.
“The sensitivity of Pope Francis on social issues is different from ours in Europe,” Cardinal Duka said.
“Pope Francis is popular and there are different sources of his popularity. He also comes from Latin America where the gap between rich and poor is much bigger.”
Cardinal Duka said that the Pope’s recent trip to Greece to meet refugees and to take two families back to Rome with him did not have enough substance, The Tablet reported.
“It was just a gesture. When the media show the Pope meeting refugees on Lampedusa, I’d cry as well and say: we have to help these people.
“However, this is not a full solution.”
The cardinal directed most of his criticism for the refugee crisis towards the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European federalists for pressing a “welcoming culture” of accepting refugees from Middle East.
This approach is is dividing European societies and endangering their safety, he charged.
“I think that a large proportion of responsibility for this fear must be borne by those people who say: we have to accept all (refugees),” the cardinal said.
He warned against accepting large numbers of refugees from the Middle East and a “completely different culture and civilisation”.
He added that Europe is not able to integrate them and these attempts could cause “enormous humanitarian and economic catastrophe”.
The best solution for these refugees is to “re-establish state apparatus in their country of origin in order to ensure their life in dignity at home”.
Contrasting Francis with the last two popes, Cardinal Duka said that a deep rooted understanding of the history of Europe is vital.
Sources
- The Tablet
- Image: Catholic Herald
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