Pope Francis condemns ‘sacrilegious war’ in Ukraine

Pope Francis on Sunday denounced the “sacrilegous war” in Ukraine during his Sunday Angelus in Floriana, Malta, asking congregants to pray for peace.

He said those listening should think “of the humanitarian tragedy of the martyred Ukraine, still under the bombings in a sacrilegious war.”

Francis, during the papal flight from Rome to Malta on Saturday, also told a reporter that he was considering an offer from the mayor of Kyiv, Vitalij Klitschko, to travel to the capital and has expressed the Holy See’s availability to help Ukraine.

After the invitation from Klitschko, Francis reiterated his closeness “to the suffering of the city, its people, those who had to flee and those who are called to administer it.”

The pontiff has continually called for the end of the war in Ukraine, even traveling to the Russian embassy in Italy to share his concern about the invasion when it began, which was not protocol.

“In Ukraine, rivers of blood and tears are flowing. This is not just a military operation but a war which sows death, destruction and misery,” Francis said last month at St. Peter’s Square.