Pope warns ‘cancel culture’ is ‘form of ideological colonization’
Global News
In his remarks on Monday, the Pope warned of "a form of ideological colonization, one that leaves no room for freedom of expression."
Pope Francis on Monday warned against attempts to cancel culture, decrying “one-track thinking” he said attempts to deny or rewrite history according to today’s standards.
Francis made his comments in an address to diplomats, the main thrust of which was the condemnation of “baseless” ideological misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines, the backing of national immunization campaigns and calling health care a moral obligation.
He spoke of the crisis of trust in multi-lateral diplomacy, which he said has led to “agendas increasingly dictated by a mindset that rejects the natural foundations of humanity and the cultural roots that constitute the identity of many peoples.”
Last month, the Vatican’s number two, Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, expressed concern over a draft European Union communications manual that suggested not using the term Christmas.
The manual, which the Vatican saw as an attempt to cancel Europe’s Christian roots, was later withdrawn for revision.
In his remarks on Monday, Francis warned of “a form of ideological colonization, one that leaves no room for freedom of expression and is now taking the form of the ‘cancel culture’ invading many circles and public institutions.”
He used the two words in English in the midst of a long speech in Italian. The “cancel culture” controversy is particularly sharp in English-speaking countries, such as the United States and Britain.
This risked canceling identity “under the guise of defending diversity,” Francis said, adding that a kind of “one-track thinking” is taking shape, one constrained to deny history or, worse yet, to rewrite it in terms of present-day categories.