Crux reports on August 5 that during a semi-private meeting, a Russian Orthodox bishop expressed regret for the Ukraine war, thanking Francis for supporting the Ukrainian people.

"I would like to thank you very much for all you have done for the Ukrainian people," the Russian Orthodox bishop told Pope Francis.

The comment was made during a private meeting with interreligious leaders and was translated by Portuguese Father Peter Stillwell, director of the Portuguese bishops' Department of Ecumenical Relations and Interreligious Dialogue.

However a report from the Pillar, the American news website, makes it clear the politics of a private meeting did not translate to the World Youth Day public devotion where there was a notable absence of any reference to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The meditations there centred generally on problems that youth typically face, such as uncertainty about the future, issues with mental health and the scourges of drugs, pornography and alcohol, but also conflict and a lack of religious freedom.

While there were general references to the suffering caused by war, there was no mention of the conflict that has the world on edge.

The Vatican's handling of the Ukraine issue has been fraught with tension.

During the past two Via Crucis observances on Good Friday in Rome, the Holy See insisted on including a symbolic gesture for peace in Ukraine, involving both a Ukrainian and a Russian.

Neither time was Ukraine amused, leading to strained relations between the Vatican and Kyiv.

According to a source within the WYD organisation, Rome initially insisted on a similar gesture though it was unclear if it was intended for the Via Crucis devotions.

The Ukrainians made it clear that there would be diplomatic repercussions this time, and local organisers managed to dissuade the Holy See from repeating the gesture.

A compromise was reached including a visit to Ukraine by Bishop Américo Aguiar, who headed the WYD task force, to assure local Catholics that they had not been forgotten.

It is unknown whether Pope Francis' decision to hold a private audience for Ukrainian pilgrims, during which he prayed with them, was also part of the compromise.

The delicate handling of the Ukraine issue underscores the Vatican's complex position in a conflict that has strained international relations.

The Pope's actions continue to be scrutinised as the world seeks a peaceful resolution to a crisis that shows no signs of resolution.

Asked en route to Rome why he skipped the peace prayer at Lourdes, the Pope said he did not want to give publicity to a public prayer.

"I prayed! I prayed! I prayed to the Madonna and I prayed for peace. I didn't make publicity. But I prayed. And we have to continually repeat this prayer for peace."

A Vatican official, speaking on condition he not be named, denied that any ecclesial-diplomatic considerations entered Francis' decision-making.

Sources

• Crux
• The Pillar
• Associated Press

His intense advocacy for the health of our planet, his concern for the poor, and his courageous stance to protect the rights of migrants and refugees is unparalleled on the world stage.

And we can only applaud him for his disarming witness as a man of sincere dialogue and as a global moral leader who refuses to divide the world into black and white, winners and losers, villains and heroes, the evil and the righteous.

Without a doubt, Francis has been the most evangelical, non-sectarian and "catholic" (as in universal and all-embracing) pope the world has seen in many centuries.

Deep anxiety over the Russian invasion

In the past two months we have seen him agonizingly consumed with the horrors of war in Ukraine. His deep anxiety over the Russian invasion and the seemingly unstoppable destruction it unleashed is palpable.

Even if he has not mentioned the aggressor-nation or its leader by name, Francis has made it crystal clear that he's extremely frustrated with Vladimir Putin and his "chaplain", Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia.

We are told that the pope has decided not to name names in the hope of securing a role for himself or Holy See diplomats in mediating an end to the Russian-Ukrainian "conflict".

He's said various times that he's willing to do whatever he can to stop this war.

But perhaps it's time to face the fact that there is probably no role for him or the Holy See here.

The Russian Orthodox and the "Pope of Rome"

In fact, it is really quite surprising that there are those who believe that the leaders and prominent adherents of the Orthodox Church — both in Russia and in Ukraine — would even trust the "Pope of Rome" or any cleric under obedience to him to mediate Russian-Ukrainian talks.

Francis may have been able to secure the long-coveted meeting with the Russian Patriarch that eluded his predecessors, but that has not significantly changed the calculus of Russian Orthodox-Roman Catholic relations, which are still hampered by lingering distrust that stems from even the recent past.

It is just as ludicrous to believe that a papal visit to Kyiv would do anything to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian conflict or that the Orthodox would even welcome Francis. The Russians are certainly not in favor of him going there.

And Orthodox leaders in Ukraine don't seem particularly thrilled about the prospects of him visiting their country either.

Since the Russian invasion on February 24, Francis has spoken to Patriarch Kirill only once — at the patriarch's initiative. But he seems to have had no contact at all with the Orthodox hierarchs in Ukraine.

A Jew and three Catholics walk into a...

None of the four Ukrainian "authorities" who are urging Francis to visit Kyiv are members of the Orthodox Church.

First of all, there is President Volodymyr Zelensky. He is a secular Jew who came into office vowing he would not take sides in Ukraine's volatile Church disputes.

Then there is Major Archbishop Sviatolslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), which is Orthodox in every conceivable way except that it is professes loyalty to the Roman papacy. And for this reason the Orthodox in Russia and Ukraine intensely dislike and distrust these Byzantine Catholics.

Another figure that has backed a papal visit is Archbishop Mieczysław Mokrzycki of Lviv. He is the de facto head of Ukraine's Latin Rite Catholics, who are mostly located in the western part of the country near the border with Poland where the archbishop was born.

And, finally, there's Ukraine's new ambassador to the Holy See, Andrii Yurash. He just presented the pope with his credentials this past week and is now the most vocal advocate of a papal visit to Kyiv.

Yurash happens to be a Byzantine Catholic, a member of Archbishop Shevchuk's flock.

The impotence of papal diplomacy

Pope Francis obviously wants very badly to help bring about a peaceful resolution to the horrible situation in Ukraine. But he has begun to show flashes of frustration with his inability to do so.

Last week he even took aim at the United Nations, lamenting the organization's "impotence" in the face of what's currently happening.

But he must admit that papal diplomacy has been just as impotent.

His Secretary of State and chief diplomat, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, said in a recent interview with the Catholic News Agency that the Holy See has been in dialogue with Russia and Ukraine since at least 2014 to avert the war that is now raging.

He openly admitted that the Holy See's efforts had failed.

"In a dialogue situation, it was logical that there should be no hostile act. Still, an attempt should be made to use all the means of the negotiation, hoping that the talks would be successful — which, unfortunately, did not happen," the Italian cardinal said.

The Holy See has tried to present itself as a neutral, even-hand mediator. But given the religious demographics in the region, it is not difficult to see why the Russians might be somewhat careful to actually trust such professed neutrality.

According to Vatican statistics, there are fewer than 500,000 Catholics in Russia, out of a population of 105 million.

But there are nearly five million Catholics (Latins and Byzantines) in Ukraine, where they make up more than 11% of the total population.

The pope cannot work miracles

Francis has been a remarkable gift to the Catholic Church and to all of humanity. But he cannot solve all the world's problems, stop all of its wars and heal all of its ills.

And no one should expect him to.

We are blessed to have a pope who, in many astonishing ways, is extremely Christ-like. But he is not the Christ. And he simply cannot work miracles.

Those who are pushing hard for a papal visit to Ukraine evidently think he can. Because if he were to go to the war-ravaged country, he would not be able to resolve anything short of something miraculous happening.

The pope — and not just this pope — simply lacks the type of quasi-superhuman power and influence that many of his adulators believe he has.

They need to admit that there is probably nothing more he can do in this situation except continue to speak out and pray for peace.

• Robert Mickens is LCI Editor in Chief.
• First published in La-Croix International. Republished with permission.

Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk said there was no need to wait for conditions to be ideal, and the visit could take place even in the current circumstances.

Shevchuk said he had invited the Holy Father to visit Ukraine several times previously. "We are hopeful. Gestures are very important, and visiting Ukraine would be a very strong gesture for all of humanity".

Ukraine is predominately Orthodox, but about 10% of the population belong to the Eastern, or Byzantine-rite, Catholic Church whose followers are in allegiance with Rome.

Russia has massed troops near Ukraine but denies planning an attack.

"There is a consensus in Ukraine, not just among Catholics but also among Orthodox and even non-believers, that Pope Francis is the most important moral authority in the world today," Shevchuk said in Italian.

"The people say that if the pope comes to Ukraine, the war will end. They see the gesture of a papal visit as one of a messenger of peace".

On January 26, Francis led an international day of prayer for peace in Ukraine, calling for dialogue to prevail over partisan interests.

A Rhode Island priest is showing solidarity with the plight of the people of the overwhelmingly Orthodox Christian nation.

"Russia is surrounding Ukraine with troops. What else can I do but pray?" said Father Thomas O'Neill, 79, a senior priest of the Diocese of Providence.

Father O'Neill embarked on a pilgrimage of prayer as he rode his bicycle from Middletown to St Patrick Church in Providence in late January.

He stopped at churches along the way to offer prayers for peace in the region.

He expressed his solidarity with the Ukrainian people, noting it is not just geopolitics at work but also Catholic social teaching.

"It's an issue of democracy; it's an issue of citizenship," he said.

Sources

Reuters

Catholic News Service