SW News: Pope Francis asked the Nicaraguan regime to allow the expelled nuns of the Missionaries of Charity founded by St Mother Teresa to return to Nicaragua, saying they were harmless "revolutionaries of the gospel”. This was said in response to a question about Nicaragua on the flight while returning from Kazakhstan after attending the three-day inter-religious summit in the capital Nur Sultan.

The 18 nuns were taken to the border with Costa Rica in July as part of President Daniel Ortega’s crackdown on the Catholic Church. The Church in the Central American country had acted as a mediator during 2018 protests against the government. Following this, the Church has had a strained relationship with the oppressive Sandinista government after seeking justice for those who died during the unrest.

Citing the lack of valid licenses, the regime ordered the closure of the NGOs operated by the nuns and deported them. Across the border, they were welcomed by the local bishop and granted them facilities to set up a house in his diocese.

Separately, the Holy Father also expressed concern over the moral degradation of the West especially the advancement of legal euthanasia in countries like France, Italy, and Belgium. The Holy Father said killing is not human and it should be left “to the animals”.

Pope Francis said: “To kill is not human, period. If you kill — with motivation yes — in the end, you will kill more. It’s not human. Let’s leave killing to the animals.”

During the in-flight press conference, the pope also addressed the Russo-Ukrainian War and Ukraine’s right to defend itself, and relations between the Vatican and China among other issues of immediate concern.

Stressing on the importance of dialogue, he said, “To understand China takes a century. And we don’t live in centuries. The Chinese mentality is a rich mentality, and when it becomes a little sick, it loses its richness. To understand, we have chosen the path of dialogue.”

The pope said the bilateral Vatican-Chinese commission headed by Cardinal Parolin “is going well” and also warned against classifying China in a democracy-antidemocracy binary because it is such a complex country with its rhythms.