Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options

Catholic and Orthodox leaders from Poland and Russia will issue a joint statement committing their churches to fostering reconciliation between the two historically feuding countries. Archbishop Henryk Muszynski, Poland's former Catholic primate, said the text could be compared to a famous 1965 declaration by Poland's Catholic bishops to their German counterparts; that document contained the words "we forgive and ask forgiveness." However, he cautioned that Polish-Russian ties had not yet "matured sufficiently" for a comparable pledge of mutual forgiveness and said it was still "very difficult to reach a common position with Russians" on historical issues. "As Poles, we speak clearly about our sufferings from two totalitarian systems—the German Nazi and the Soviet communist—but our Russian partners don't usually place them on the same level," the archbishop told the Polish Catholic news agency KAI. "As bishops, we'll be powerless in this area until historians reach a consensus," he said. "We have the same Gospel and sacraments, and we face similar challenges from the world around us—so we are close and cannot act as antagonists," he said. The archbishop helped finalize the appeal, to be signed in Warsaw on Aug. 17 by the Polish bishops' conference president, Archbishop Jozef Michalik, and Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill of Moscow. Polish politicians and historians have frequently criticized Russia's lack of public regret for mass deportations and executions that followed their country's Soviet army occupation after World War II and for the later decades of communist oppression. The spokesman for the Polish bishops' conference, Father Jozef Kloch, told KAI the appeal would "mark a turning-point" by reflecting on "what happened between the two nations over centuries" and by urging a "common witness" for Europe and the world.

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

A Reflection for the Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, by J.D. Long García
J.D. Long GarcíaApril 30, 2025
A Homily for the Third Sunday of Easter, by Terrance Klein
Terrance KleinApril 30, 2025
In a pre-conclave meeting, an Italian cardinal, and backer of Cardinal Parolin as next pope, attacked Pope Francis for opening positions of responsibility in the church to men and women not in holy orders.
Gerard O’ConnellApril 30, 2025
Michael B. Jordan, left, in “Sinners” (Warner Brothers)
As the film’s title promises, there is plenty of sin on display, even before the vampires arrive.
John DoughertyApril 30, 2025