Pope Francis in Kazakhstan

The pope on Sept. 15 backed Ukraine's right to defend itself from Russia's violent seven-month-long invasion. For the first time he appeared to lend his support to other countries that are supplying Ukrainians with arms.

An outspoken bishop of Kazakhstan's Catholic community, long known for his criticisms of Pope Francis, said that the pope's participation here in a major summit of interfaith leaders could give the "dangerous" impression that the Catholic Church is part of a "supermarket of religions" rather than the "one true religion." 

Pope Francis on Sept. 14 warned against the perversion of religion by power and corruption, telling a global gathering of interfaith leaders that "authentic religiosity" was a necessary building block for world peace.

Pope Francis on Sept. 13 kicked off a three-day trip to a country that shares a 4,700-mile-long border with Russia by condemning the "senseless and tragic war" in Ukraine and pleading with world leaders to listen to those who "cry out for peace." 

Pope Francis will become the second Catholic pontiff to visit Kazakhstan from Sept. 13-15. He is expected to bring a message of peace to the Central Asian nation, which is only about 1,500 miles east of Ukraine.