The Kremlin has demanded that NATO guarantee that Kyiv never be allowed to join NATO and that the alliance withdraw forces from eastern member states that were Soviet allies or republics during the Cold War.Īlso see | Beyond full scale attack on Ukraine, what are other risky options does Russia have? Moscow denies any plans to invade, instead accusing the West of failing to respect Moscow's security concerns on its borders. Russia has massed some 100,000 troops near Ukraine's borders, a buildup the West says is preparation for a war to prevent Ukraine from ever joining the NATO Western security alliance. Hopefully, in the coming years, the pope will be able to implement the measures he's already promised, especially before the aliens arrive and he has to add even more members to the congregation.Also see | What weapons has Ukraine received from Western countries to resist Russia's army?
And while he has remained firm on certain issues, such as abortion, he has used his year-long tenure to criticize ideology, rail against capitalism and support the evaluation of civil unions.
Still, Pope Francis' public stance on these issues is a marked progression from his more conservative predecessor. Last year, when asked about the prospect of openly gay people serving in the clergy, Pope Francis famously said, "If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?" While that statement was met with great approval, little has been done to turn this into practice. The same goes for LGBT representation in the Church. The pope has previously stated that he wants women to have higher official roles in the Vatican bureaucracy, but there is still no word on ordaining women as deacons or ministers who can assist at Mass or perform baptisms. He has already proposed allowing children of unmarried parents to get baptized, even though the Church considers such living arrangements to be sinful.īut there's still a long way to go. While accepting alien souls into the arms of Jesus Christ is a nice thought, there's a lot Francis and the Church can do to better integrate its current members. It's also important to note that the pope has been matching his words with action. "Peter in that first diocese - the first diocese was Antioch - makes this decision: 'Who am I to admit impediments?' A nice word for bishops, for priests and for Christians. Peter met when he allowed non-Jews to become Christian. During the same homily, the pope also described the resistance St. While Pope Francis was talking about a hypothetical situation, he was really illustrating the importance of opening the Church's doors to more people (a common theme for Francis so far). "Any entity - no matter how many tentacles it has - has a soul," said Guy Consolmagno.īut there's a reason behind the proclamation. Back in 2010, one of Pope Benedict XVI's astronomers said he would baptize any willing aliens. Wait, what? This is not the first time that the Vatican has brought up welcoming extraterrestrials to the fold. And one says, 'But I want to be baptized!' What would happen?" he said. Martians, right? Green, with that long nose and big ears, just like children paint them. "If, for example, tomorrow an expedition of Martians came, and some of them came to us, here. Preaching about the spirit of acceptance and inclusion, the pontiff announced that he would be open to welcoming any extraterrestrial life to Christ. On Monday, Pope Francis made a rather fantastic and out-of-the blue proclamation. The news: Greetings, aliens - the pope means you no harm.
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