Graduations taking place in recent weeks in Russia have been marked not only by officials and members of Putin’s party, as has been the case for years, but also by “SVO veterans,” participants in the war in Ukraine. Authorities are increasingly recruiting young people from technical institutes to train them as drone operators.
Indian bishop and theologian Felix Machado addressed the international consultation on ecumenism in Asia in Chang Mai. “[W]e are called to seize every opportunity to extend the hand of reconciliation, in order to heal the wounds,” he said.
On his second day in Spain, Leo XIV led the Mass in Plaza de Cibeles, attended by more than a million people. Processions should not be a “remnant of folklore,” he said, but be “the presence of the Risen Lord." Jesus “is not confined to the church, but comes out to meet us.” People should abandon a "comfortable, private faith" to “go forth into the paths of life.” Last night, during the vigil with young people, he told them to “be the sparks of a new humanity.”
In the capital, where he began his long apostolic journey to Spain, Leo XIV urged “everyone to set aside divisive and polarizing narratives" and appreciate complexity rather than “identity-based approaches that [. . .] fill the world with ‘ghosts’.” He cited the examples of Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa of Avila, as well as the fruitful dialogue that took place at the time of the Islamic presence in Andalusia. He stressed that “religious freedom” is essential to reach out to others.
The competition was held last week in Negombo, Sri Lanka. The young athlete from Karachi won the 60kg Muay Boran category. “I won because of the prayers of my parents and my community,” he told AsiaNews. He was able to participate thanks to funds raised among his friends and family. Now he is appealing for a sponsor to support him on his future endeavours.
The Kremlin is trying to fill the void left by the decline of ideologies with the cult of the Great Victory. While "Putinism" and fascism share some features, with echoes from Hitler, stressing their similarities tends to obscure their distinctive features. Putinism rejects socialist ideas and scorns the pursuit of equality, while making the messianism of the Russian Orthodox Church a fundamental part of its politics.
