Addressing members of ROACO – the Holy See’s humanitarian arm for the Eastern Churches, Pope Francis reiterated his plea for peace and called for solidarity with Eastern Christians fleeing conflicts.

His appeal rang out as he received ROACO representatives on Saturday morning in the Vatican at the conclusion of their Plenary Assembly.

Speaking to Vatican Radio, the Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, described the Pope’s discourse as very powerful.

He said the group present at the audience was deeply touched by his words as he identified “exactly” the main problems of humanity today, and of the Eastern Churches in particular.

 “They are all victims of war,” the Cardinal said, “of war which is promoted, even if not visibly, by powers that are not local but become local because they mingle into the problems of the country and they try to destabilize the area in order to destabilize another great big power, which is ‘the enemy’ or they feel, ‘their own enemy’.”

It is terrible, he continued, noting that these same people will then exploit the situation in the reconstruction phase of wars they themselves have fueled.

“This is what is terrible: that those people will come after and offer their money to rebuild a society that has been destroyed because of their plans of war.”

The Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches decried this dynamic describing it as ambiguous and “something that is deeply opposite to what is honest and clear and transparent.”

Upholding Pope Francis’ reiterated warning that faith must never be used or exploited for power, he said unfortunately this is something “we see everywhere: When faith becomes slogan, propaganda, it's not the faith.”

Christians must never be loudspeakers of power

Cardinal Gugerotti recalled that the essence of Christianity is to be found in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus who was persecuted and crucified.

“Let us remember that the Christians were a religion of losers, not of winners,” he said, adding that “Jesus Christ was put on a cross.”

Society, he explained, “wanted to get rid of Jesus Christ, and the Christians were persecuted.”

“So how can we,” the Prefect continued, “become the loudspeakers of the power that persecutes the other? It's impossible. It's a contradiction.”

The Cardinal concluded inviting all Christians to examine their consciences, asking themselves about the sincerity of their faith.

"It means that we have to make a deep exam of our conscience to see what our faith is and whether the institution, for us, has become more relevant than the announcement of Christ dead and risen," he urged.