Recep Tayyip Erdogan og Emine i privat audiens i Vatikanet 5. februar.

Vatikanet går nu all in for at bekæmpe “fremmedfrygten” og den “politisk motiverede populisme”. Hermed får upopulistiske partier som Alternativet, De radikale, Enhedslisten samt Jan E. Jørgensen fra Venstre en magtfuld allieret i deres kamp for islams udbredelse.

Til september vil Frans holde en konference, hvor man vil overveje, hvad der kan gøres for at få europæerne til at elske masseindvandringen. Dog ikke til Vatikanet, hvor Guds stedfortræder på Jorden, ja det er Frans, bor bag høje mure. Og hvor der ikke rigtigt er plads.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has announced a joint venture with the Vatican to co-host a meeting next September on “migration, xenophobia, and politically motivated populism.”

The WCC said it is partnering with the Vatican department for Promoting Integral Human Development in preparing the conference to be held September 17-20 as part of ongoing work toward “peace-building and migration.”

Frans opfordrer befolkningen (på latin populus) til at ændre indstilling. Indvandrerne ikke en trussel, men en kilde til berigelse, siger den hellige mand.

Last September, the Vatican launched a two-year campaign to change people’s minds about migrants and to encourage a more welcoming attitude toward them worldwide.

“Brothers, we mustn’t be afraid to share the journey! We mustn’t be afraid to share the hope!” Francis said in his weekly General Audience on September 27, in which he inaugurated the new project, titled “Share the Journey.”

Det var nemmere i gamle dage, da den katolske kirke kunne komme kritikere og tvivlere til livs ved at sende dem i torturkælderen og brænde dem på bålet. Senere blev disse gudsmænd mest kendt for kreativ omgang med børn.

Paven står over for en hård kamp. Den kamp mod befolkningen, som politikere tabte for årtier siden.

The pontiff also sought to counter a negative narrative on mass migration, calling for a shift in priorities and mentality.

“This demands a change in mindset,” he said. “We must move from considering others as threats to our comfort to valuing them as persons whose life experience and values can contribute greatly to the enrichment of our society.”

“For this to happen, our basic approach must be to encounter the other, to welcome, to know and to acknowledge him or her,” he said.

Vatican to Host Conference on ‘Migration, Xenophobia, and Politically Motivated Populism’