No Christian Church must be abolished in Ukraine, Pope Francis said in his weekly Angelus prayer Sunday a day after Kyiv banned the Orthodox Church there for its ties to the Russian one.
"I continue to follow with sorrow the fighting in Ukraine and the Russian Federation," Pope Francis said at the Angelus.
"And thinking about the laws recently adopted in Ukraine," he continued, "a fear arises for the freedom of those who pray, because those who truly pray always pray for everyone.
"One does not commit evil because one prays. If someone commits an evil against his people he will be guilty for it, but he cannot have committed evil because he prayed.
"Then let those who want to pray, pray in what they consider their Church," he added.
"Please, let no Christian Church be abolished directly or indirectly. Churches are not to be touched!".
President Volodymr Zelensky signed into law a bill banning religious groups with ties to Russia Saturday, Ukraine's Independence Day.
The bill's main target is the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) which has historically been linked to the Russian Orthodox Church, also known as the Moscow Patriarchate.
Zelensky referenced the bill in his nightly address, saying "Ukrainian orthodoxy today is taking a step toward liberation from the devils of Moscow."
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