ABSTRACT
The aim of this chapter is to present the position of the current head of the Roman Catholic Church on the condition of contemporary Europe. In the case of this pontificate, we learn the perspective of a non-European observer evaluating the processes taking place in the Old Continent as well as indicating the possibility of its revival and credible integration. In the opinion of Pope Francis, Europe, the ‘family of nations’, is gradually losing its spiritual dynamism and potential for fruitful development. He sees the fundamental causes of Europe’s stagnation in the weakening of its Christian identity and the domination of conflicting ideological divisions (‘ideological colonisation’). In his opinion, these worrying phenomena are conducive to reductionist and unifying measures that lead to a ‘poverty of exclusion’ rather than to a resilient and multicultural attitude open to the coexistence and multipolar development of different nations. Pope Francis expects a Europe built on true solidarity and dialogue and founded not only on geographical integration, but mainly on cultural integration rooted in Christianity.
