The exiled head of Belarus's Catholic Church has reiterated warnings of civil war if current political deadlock and violence drag on. "We must pray for Belarus, now experiencing an exceptional social and political crisis, which may still end on civil war", said Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, the Bishops Conference president. "We want our homeland to live in happiness, and we are against violence, lies and injustice. All of that we condemn. But we must also approach each person with love and be able to forgive those perpetrating evil acts".
The 75-year-old archbishop was preaching on Sunday in Vilnius, almost months after being denied re-entry to his home-country by border guards. He told his Church's news website he could "barely hold back tears" at seeing the large numbers attending the Mass at the Lithuanian capital's Austros Vartai sanctuary, adding he was still unclear why he was being barred from returning home.
Meanwhile, the spokesman for Belarus's Bishops Conference said his Church saw no reason to "change its way of speaking and acting", after leading bishop was threatened with prosecution for criticising repression by the regime of President Alexander Lukashenko.
"We aren't against the government, just praying for peace and conversion - everything we say and do is based on the Gospel", Fr Yuri Sanko told The Tablet. "When some people hold power without limits, this deprives others of their rights and distorts the very idea of governance. But only God can truly judge".
Tensions flared again in Belarus, where mass protests have continued since the disputed August re-election of President Lukashenko, following the savage beating of an artist, Raman Bandarenko, who died in hospital on 12 November after police smashed his display of national flags in a Minsk square and later destroyed a shrine of flowers and candles in his memory.
Kondrusiewicz's auxiliary, Bishop Yuri Kasabutsky of Minsk-Mogilev, was handed a written warning by official prosecutors last week after deploring the police violence, which was filmed by onlookers, during a cathedral requiem for Bandarenko, and later urging prayers in a Facebook message "for those whose hands are covered with human blood".
The press secretary of Belarus's predominant Orthodox church, Sergei Lepin, was also warned against "deliberately raising tension in society and inciting hatred against government officials", after denouncing the "satanic trampling of flags and icons", and "mockery of portraits of a murdered man".
In an Advent pastoral letter, to be read in parishes next Sunday, Archbishop Kondrusieiwicz compared the "unprecedented crisis" in Belarus to the 1912 Titanic disaster, which he said had sunk after its captain and crew ignored safety warnings. Meanwhile, the Bishops Conference spokesman insisted the Church was "only calling for things to be done in a humane, cultured way, without igniting tensions", and said hopes were high a new Vatican nuncio, Archbishop Ante Jozic, would use "legal and diplomatic procedures" to secure Archbishop Kondrusiewicz's return.
"His psychological state isn't good, since he's deeply worried about his Church and faithful", Fr Sanko told The Tablet. "We are living and working within the law of our country, reacting in a religious way on behalf of those hurt or killed. At present, we've no idea how the situation here will develop".
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