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ROME – The Baltic states know their fair share of invasions, having been attacked by Danes, Germans, Poles, Swedes and Russians in various places. But from September 22nd to 25th, it will be an Argentine pope who will storm these countries of Northern Europe, in what should be among the most friendly incursions in their history.
What Pope Francis seeks to conquer are the hearts and minds of the Catholics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on the occasion of the centenary of their independence and under the umbrella of ecumenism and peace.
The four-day visit promises to allow Francis to take a break from the scandals of financial and sexual abuse that are currently absorbing the Vatican and to return to his passion for promoting a Church of dialogue, mercy and closeness to the people.
Yet the papal trip to the Baltic states also presents a unique set of opportunities and challenges.
On the one hand, Francis will try to engage young people and promote Catholic ideals in a region of the world where the church sometimes has a small footprint, and where atheist secularism may seem like "the only way to do it." Church of State.
Francis will engage with other religious communities in the region, from the Jewish community to Protestants and Orthodox Christians. In Estonia in particular, the pope will also meet a largely non-denominational society.
This allows the pontiff to establish links with other religions and Christian traditions, but it also means that he will have to address some of the issues that divide them often.
Timing and geography will also play a key role. Francis will visit the Baltic countries only 26 years after the withdrawal of Soviet troops and at a time when Russia appears to be reborn globally, which means that Moscow will pay particular attention to the performance of the pontiff.
Francis' pontificate has been instrumental in promoting dialogue and meeting with Russia, and the Pope will most likely avoid compromising the carefully established relationship. However, given the history between Moscow and Rome, it would not take much to revive fears of Catholic and papal intrusion.
The scandal of clerical sexual abuse, even if it is temporarily bracketed, will not be forgotten, and it is hard to imagine a scenario where reporters would not talk about the issue after the event.
Opportunities: Youth, ecumenism and non-believers
Francis' first stop will be in Vilnius, Estonia, where he will meet dignitaries and officials from the country and participate in an event with young people. The pope will give a speech and listen to the testimonies of a young man and a woman.
The meeting with young people acquires a special meaning since on the other side of the Baltic trip in October, the Vatican will host a bishops' summit, called synod, focused on "youth, faith and professional discernment".
The event was tainted with doubts, some bishops, whose American papal ally, Cardinal Joseph Tobin, chose not to attend because of the consequences of the sex abuse scandal. Francis, addressing young people and reminding them that despite the scandals, the church also concerns them, could help to make the importance of the synod understand.
The pope will also meet young people on his last day in Tallin, Lithuania, where he will engage in an ecumenical meeting.
In the Lutheran Cathedral of Riga, Latvia, the pope will participate in an ecumenical prayer with the Lutheran Archbishop and other representatives of the Christian churches of the region. In the ghetto of Vilna, Francis will lay flowers in memory of the Jews who were beaten, deported or killed.
The message is clear – this pope wants to build lasting bridges with other denominations and denominations and overcome the divisions of the past.
Finally, the secular ethics of the Balkans could offer Francis a new opportunity.
The pope is highly regarded by people belonging to no religious group, given his humble and pastoral approach, his spontaneous personality and his seemingly progressive views. A survey conducted in 2015 by the Pew Research Center found that in the United States, for example, two-thirds of non-religious (68%) considered the pope favorably.
In this sense, the Baltic countries offer an opportunity for Francis to bend his missionary muscles to those who have never known the Church or left it behind.
One last point: Estonia and Latvia were formerly known as the Land of Mary, and Francis will visit the shrine of Mary, mother of mercy in Kaunas, Estonia. The Pope has a special dedication to Mary and the trip will undoubtedly echo this devotion.
Challenges: a growing church and Russia
For years under the Soviet occupation, the Church in the Baltic countries was gagged and was not allowed to minister, especially to young people. The result was a crippled church charged with restoring faith from scratch.
"The know-how has been lost and the experience of youth work has been lost," said Bishop Visvaldas Kulbokas, counselor at the Vatican Embassy in Russia, during a press conference in Rome on September 5th.
The challenge for Francis will be to impress upon local churches his message of a Church that goes outside, to the peripheries and to the marginalized. The true measure of the Pope's success on this trip is whether the visit will renew the zeal of local worshipers who see their ranks decrease each year.
What church officials have called a "coincidence" regarding the visit may sound like a criminal act for neighboring Russia. The Kremlin remembers the "singing revolution" of the Baltic people too well. It was not so long ago that they gathered to demonstrate and sing peacefully, hoping to break the chains of the Soviet occupation and usher in an age of freedom.
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