WorldPriest's unexplained expulsion from Russia fuels fears for foreign clergyMexican member of Opus Dei 'a balanced, reasonable person who wouldn't take radical positions'A nun walks at the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Alexander Nevsky in the old city of Jerusalem. Father Fernando Vera, a Mexican member of Opus Dei, left Russia in mid-April after being told his residence permit was revoked. Father Kirill Gorbunov, spokesman for the Russian bishops' conference, told Catholic News Service on April 21 no reason had been given for the priest's expulsion, adding that the Catholic Church had "no reason" to believe it was connected with the conflict in Ukraine. Father Vera most recently headed Moscow's Saints Peter and Paul Parish, one of three Catholic parishes in the capital. Russia's Catholic Church has 270 parishes spread over four non-territorial dioceses and represents less than 1 percent of the country's 146 million inhabitants, according to Vatican data.

Source: Ethiopian News April 22, 2022 11:39 UTC