A senior Polish cardinal has called for a more compassionate and Christ-like tone in public debates about migrants and refugees, following a diplomatic clash between the Polish government and the Vatican.
In a pastoral letter read across the Archdiocese of Łódź, Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś warned against inflammatory rhetoric, stating: “Hate speech, fear of the ‘other’, stereotypes, and hatred are becoming more important than human and evangelical reasoning.”
He urged Catholics engaging in public discussions to reflect Christ’s teachings, adding, “If not, then please have the courage to stay silent and not add fuel to this fiery reality.”
His intervention comes after two bishops, the Rt Revd Wiesław Mering and Rt Revd Antoni Długosz, were accused by Poland’s Foreign Ministry of undermining diplomatic relations and Christian values, as reported by Church Times.
Bishop Mering had claimed Poland was led by “political gangsters” and “people who call themselves Germans,” while Bishop Długosz warned of the “Islamicisation” of Europe and supported vigilante efforts to repel migrants at the German border.
The government lodged a formal complaint to the Vatican, suggesting disciplinary action and criticising the bishops for promoting “nationalist circles” and harming the Church’s reputation.
The statement argued such comments “undermine good Polish-German relations” and infringe upon the country’s democratic integrity.
In response, Jesuit theologian Fr Dariusz Kowalczyk of Rome’s Pontifical Gregorian University criticised the Ministry’s démarche, calling it “full of errors and inaccuracies” and “driven by emotion and ideological zeal.”