Il “Papa” arrives in Bulgaria and sends a signal not so much to Sofia, as for all the capitals of Europe. The Church exists and is in field for these European elections with one certainty: the EU must not end up in the hands of sovereignists.
Francis' trip to Bulgaria is a journey that smells of ecumenism: and it is the “Papa” the first to support it. For the “pontiff”, the country is a "meeting place between multiple cultures and civilisations, bridge between Eastern and Southern Europe, open door to the Near East". And in the words addressed to the Sofia authorities, the theme of migration forcefully returns to the center of the challenge: "The Bulgaria finds itself confronted with the phenomenon of those who try to enter within its borders, to escape wars and conflicts and poverty and try to reach the richest areas of the European continent in any way, to find new opportunities for existence, or simply a safe haven”.

And Francis makes an appeal that actually turns out to be a clear stance towards all sovereignist movements: “To you, that you know the drama of emigration, May I suggest that you do not close your eyes, the heart and the hand - as is in your tradition - to those who knock at your door porte“.
The visit of “Papa” proves to be perfectly in line with the political agenda of the Holy See, which has been showing a clear line for a long time hostility towards the sovereignist wind blowing from multiple parties across the continent. Francis thunders against border closure policies. He did it during the Via Crucis, in which the theme of migration characterized all the steps of the Easter rite. He often reiterates this in his solemn speeches. And he does so constantly in all the visits he makes to various corners of the world and to Europe, in institutional meetings as well as in less formal ones.
In these last few weeks, with the European elections around the corner, it is clear that the message of “Papa” it cannot take on political characteristics. A few days ago, in audience at the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, Francis said clearly that the Church “is observing the re-emergence with concern, almost everywhere in the world, of aggressive currents towards foreigners, especially him immigrants, as well as that growing nationalism that neglects the common good". And he also attacked the issue of national sovereignty, reiterating, as reported by Il Giornale.it, that “the national state is no longer capable of providing the common good to its populations on its own. The common good has become global and nations must come together for their own benefit.".
The visit to Bulgaria and the BALKANS fits into this logic. A logic which, however, contrasts with the sentiment of a large part of European Catholicism which has long been seething towards the Vatican's warnings on the issue of immigration. The leaders of the Church have long taken to the field to counter the sovereignist phenomenon. But the frontal attack on immigration risks turning out to be a sensational boomerang. Especially at a time when the polarization of the conflict in Europe in view of elections raises the issue of political conflict. And the Holy See, more than partners super parts dell’Europa, appears fully involved in the conflict within the European Union.

The idea is that among the allies of the European Union, or better, among Brussels' allies, today there is also the “Papa”. And the contrast between the "two Romes" that turn to Europe is interesting. A, that more specifically of government, which contradicts the EU and moderate logic by counteracting any openness towards migratory flows. The same one represented by the meeting between Matteo Salvini and Viktor Orban in front of the wall of Hungary. The other, that of Oltretevere, which increasingly represents an ally of that European Union which now appears light years away from the wishes of European citizens. And in a progressive detachment of the European Catholic world from the pontiff's agenda, the danger is that Francis is making a strategic mistake.
source – http://www.occhidellaguerra.it/papa-sfida-sovranismo/